Tenant burnt a ring into the kitchen floor

[Steven Sestir]

Hello everybody,

   I did an inspection on my properties and I found that there was a black burnt ring on my floor in my kitchen, I talked to my tenant and told them they would have to pay with their security deposit to put a new floor down and they agreed.  What if the floor cost more than the security deposit can I charge them more to fix the floor?   

[Paul De Luca]

Quote from @Steven Sestir:

Hello everybody,

   I did an inspection on my properties and I found that there was a black burnt ring on my floor in my kitchen, I talked to my tenant and told them they would have to pay with their security deposit to put a new floor down and they agreed.  What if the floor cost more than the security deposit can I charge them more to fix the floor?   

 It seems very unlikely that the cost of replacing a few floor tiles will be more than their security deposit. Have you gotten quotes?

[Jaron Walling]

Is that "tile look" vinyl flooring or real tile? The tricky part is matching the replacement. In some cases a particular style is no longer produced or in stores. Yeah I'm burning the entire damage deposit on replacement, pun intended. If it's way more I'm requesting additional $$$ or eating the costs and moving on. It's not worth fighting over a couple hundred dollars. 

[Scott E.]

That flooring needed to go anyway.

[Benjamin Aaker]

If the repair was necessary and was greater than the security deposit, you are allowed to bill the tenant. If that is vinyl, then the whole floor covering will need replacement. This will be more than the deposit. The challenge will be in collecting the money. Keep all receipts and write down all the interactions you have with the former tenant.

[Richard F.]

Aloha,

Clearly the tenant needs to be charged, HOWEVER, you must first determine the depreciated value of the flooring. If it is one year old vinyl flooring, then you can likely get away with redoing the entire room. If it is 8 years old, value is zero, no charge. It certainly does not appear to be a floorcovering that could easily be patched in or repaired. Don't forget to "non-renew" the tenant when their current term is about to end. Lucky they didn't burn your house down. Screen better!

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Steven Sestir:

Is the Tenant moving out now? If so, use the deposit. IF they are not moving out until later, do the repair now and make the Tenant pay for it. You don't want to spend a dime of the deposit until after the Tenant is out and the lease is terminated.