Rental: How much of DD to keep for smoke smell?

[bspot]

I've got a rental that I'm about to sell and the current upstairs tenant smoked a ton in there despite several requests not too, and a rental agreement saying not to.

How much of the DD would you keep to cover this?

The place is all hardwood, will washing/painting the walls be enough? Do I need to scrub the crap out of those bad boys?

[Mibz]

I'd get a quote for a pro to do it and keep the amount of the quote, or more.

[bspot]

Any suggestions on pros?

[adam c]

I would keep the full amount since he was in violation of the rental contract

[ercchry]

Originally posted by adam c
I would keep the full amount since he was in violation of the rental contract

:werd:

[Abeo]

Originally posted by adam c
I would keep the full amount since he was in violation of the rental contract

So any violation of the contract means he gets to keep all of the damage deposit? Doesn't work that way, damage deposit is for damages incurred, not because you want to punish them.

http://www.servicealberta.ca/618.cfm


How do I get my security deposit back?

You have the right to get the full amount of your security deposit back, plus interest, within 10 days of moving out if:
you have not caused any damage beyond normal wear and tear,
the premises have been properly cleaned, and
no rent is owing.

Otherwise the landlord can keep part or all of your security deposit to cover the costs. If there are damages and they exceed the security deposit, the landlord can take you to court for the rest of the money owing. If there are deductions for damages, the landlord must pay you the balance of the deposit within the 10 days, and include a statement of account that lists all the damages, repair costs and cleaning costs. Alternatively, the landlord may, within the 10 days, give you an estimate of the deductions to be made and return any money that won't be used. In this case, you must receive a final statement, plus any money owing, within 30 days after your tenancy ended.

[adam c]

Originally posted by Abeo


snip



I understand that but after multiple violations and warnings the tenant still went out of his way to void the contract, in theory the OP could have ended the rental agreement anytime due to this but chose not to

Assuming the DD is approximately 1000 and I doubt the smoke is contained to one room, it will probably eat up almost all of the balance to have the walls cleaned/painted as well the ceiling would have to be completely redone

[ercchry]

for something like smoke you could easily eat through a DD+ take them to court, depends how much of a dick you want to be.

[kvg]

Its pretty standard to clean and paint between tenants is it not? My question would be was it written in the rental agreement that it was a non smoking unit? If so then get a quote quick before the 10 days is up.

[bspot]

It was written up that the unit was non-smoking. I'm just curious what work is fair to get a quote written up for. I don't want to hose the guy, but I don't want to be left with a smokey house. The friend I owned it with is moving in there with his wife and I don't want them stuck in a foul smelling place.

[KRyn]

I can't comment on the DD portion of your question. However, I can on the smoke smell. As a kid I used to do some handy / renovation work on my uncles apartments after tenants left. When people had smoked in the units I used TSP to clean all of the walls and then I would apply a fresh coat of paint. TSP does a fantastic job of removing the smoke damage caused to paint and once the walls are clean new paint can actually be applied properly and it will stick to the walls. You are lucky the unit has hardwood as carpet holds the smell and usually needs to be removed. I would also use TSP on every surface you can to remove staining / smell of the smoke. After I had applied fresh coat of paint, had the carpet replaced and the unit had been cleaned you couldn't tell it had been previously smoked in. I hope this helps.

[Abeo]

Originally posted by adam c


I understand that but after multiple violations and warnings the tenant still went out of his way to void the contract, in theory the OP could have ended the rental agreement anytime due to this but chose not to

Assuming the DD is approximately 1000 and I doubt the smoke is contained to one room, it will probably eat up almost all of the balance to have the walls cleaned/painted as well the ceiling would have to be completely redone

Did the landlord take the steps required to kick out the tenant? No? Then you can't take the DD just because you want to. There are steps to take.

[bspot]

^ Perfect! Thanks. My parents always used TSP in the places we rented as kids and it seemed to work well. I can't wait to scrub the ceilings :cry:

[KRyn]

Originally posted by bspot
^ Perfect! Thanks. My parents always used TSP in the places we rented as kids and it seemed to work well. I can't wait to scrub the ceilings :cry:


A fairly quick and easy way to get it all cleaned is as follows. Buy a bucket, TSP, some towels and one of those sponge mops. Mix TSP in bucket with water. Place towels against wall / under section of ceiling you plan to clean. Go crazy with sponge mop on entire unit and catch dripping water with towels! Fairly easy and way less time consuming than using a rag or something.

[ercchry]

what if you have chalky popcorn ceilings?

[Seth1968]

Originally posted by ercchry
what if you have chalky popcorn ceilings?

Prime then paint.

[Masked Bandit]

Quickest way around this is going to be a fresh coat of paint for the walls & ceilings with a good solid cleaning of the floors. I'm pretty sure that's going to eat up the DD plus some.

[CanmoreOrLess]

His DD is easily gone with the cleaning and new paint, spare no expense in eating the full amount. The smoker was a dick about the warnings and the contract stated "no smoking", fair game I say.

I know if I was a renter looking for a place and the unit smelled even a bit of cigs... keep looking.

[CMW403]

Taking the full DD would be going easy on him IMO.

Who actually smokes inside these days? Even my smoking friends wouldn't be able to stand a dirty cigarette stained apartment.

Maybe it's just because I have a law class this semester, but I'd take the fucker to court. :D

[Ven]

Get 3 quotes for clean-up and repaint. You'll be keeping all the DD, and you'll be set for court. Seriously what was this guy thinking? Clearly not. Lack of oxygen perhaps.

[Seth1968]

Do you have a tenant signed walk in/inspection report?

If not, you're SOL.

[bourge73]

Pretty easy hire a company for a $1000 (if thats the Deposit) to clean the smoke smell out of the entire place, full cleaning of the floors, shampoo/cleaning of all drapes, wall clean etc etc . Get them to clean for literally hours and hours. Done and done. haha.

[J-hop]

Originally posted by CMW403
Taking the full DD would be going easy on him IMO.

Who actually smokes inside these days? Even my smoking friends wouldn't be able to stand a dirty cigarette stained apartment.

Maybe it's just because I have a law class this semester, but I'd take the fucker to court. :D

no doubt, smoking inside a home or even in a car is trashy as hell. OP I would get a quote from a professional company as mentioned and bill the guy. I wouldn't bother trying to clean it yourself, it would be hard to get it as clean as a professional with all the right chemicals would.

Best of luck, I would be pissed because the last thing you need is to spend money on cleanup and/or potentially take a hit on future rent because the house stinks.

[turbotrip]

take the full damage deposit. ive dealt with this situation a few times now and its gonna cost you more than 1000

[C_Dave45]

Keep the whole amount. To properly get rid of the smoke smell and stain, the whole place has to be repainted, including the ceilings. Try getting a quote from a professional painting crew and see how much that will cost you.
Hotels charge $500 for violating their "non-smoking" room policy. That's for ONE night.
You would have no problem taking it to court. Just because a landlord "didn't do anything"? It's not mandatory that a landlord do inspections...sure its advisable..but it certainly doesn't relinquish your right to charge for damages resulting from violation of tenancy agreement (no smoking in the unit)

*edit*. And yes I fucking can't stand douchebag tenants that think they'll just "sneak in one little cigarette" and think the landlord won't notice. Six months later and the whole unit smells like a fucking ashtray with brown stains all over the place.

Clean him out, OP.

[beyond_ban]

Hold on, people still just sit on their couch and smoke? That's fucking nasty, at least stand beside an open window or door.

[johnboy27]

Originally posted by Seth1968
Do you have a tenant signed walk in/inspection report?

If not, you're SOL.
Yeah, what this guy said. I personally would call the tenancy board prior to keeping any of the money and let them know what is happening and what you intend to do. they will start a case on the situation and then if the guy comes back and complains that you did not give him his damage deposit you have your ass covered. Co worker of mine is going threw a similar situation right now but he was on the other end and called tenancy first, the landlords stands to get multiple charges set against her due to this situation.