Normal Wear and Tear: Meaning and Lease Example

Normal wear and tear

Normal wear and tear is the gradual decline a rental goes through from ordinary, careful use over time, such as faded paint, minor scuffs and carpet worn in walkways. Landlords cannot deduct it from a security deposit; they can deduct damage beyond it.

Also called ordinary wear and tear · reasonable wear and tear

Example

After a three-year tenancy, faded paint, a few small nail holes and carpet worn along the hallway are normal wear and tear. A pet-stained carpet, a fist-sized hole in a wall or a cracked countertop is damage. If a carpet with an eight-year life was two years old when a tenant ruined it, a fair charge is the six years it had left: 75% of the replacement cost, not 100%.

In a lease it looks like…

Landlord may deduct from the security deposit the reasonable cost of repairing damage to the premises beyond normal wear and tear, and of cleaning needed to return the premises to their condition at move-in.

By state

States define it in similar words, but the deadlines, the paperwork and the penalties for over-charging differ, and small claims judges commonly scale charges for carpet and paint by their age.

Plain English, not legal advice. Last reviewed September 29, 2026.