Wisconsin Landlord Law Carpet Cleaning

Because routine carpet cleaning is not an obligation statutorily imposed on either the landlord or the tenant assigning this responsibility to a tenant through a contractual provision does not render a rental agreement void.

Wisconsin landlord law carpet cleaning.

A lease may include a contractual provision requiring the tenant to pay for routine carpet cleaning. Under wis admin code atcp 134 06 3 c landlords cannot withhold from a tenant s security deposit for normal wear tear even if included in a nonstandard rental provision. Tenant caused damage as an exception to the above no state requires the landlord to replace repair damaged carpet if the damage to the carpet has been caused by the tenant. In disputes over security deposits courts have often considered basic carpet cleaning to be part of normal wear and tear.

Because carpet cleaning is part of the overall turnover costs that is usually covered by the landlords. This means that a landlord cannot automatically deduct the cost of routine carpet cleaning from a tenant s security deposit unless the cleaning i. Even if the lease includes the permitted provision the cost for routine carpet cleaning may not be collected by the landlord in advance because all prepayments in excess of one month s rent must be treated as security deposit. Atcp 134 06 note note.

Under wisconsin law a landlord cannot deduct the costs of routine carpet cleaning or painting caused by a tenant s normal wear and tear from the security deposit. If a tenant abuses or negligently damages the carpeting or walls in a way that requires repair replacement and or repainting the tenant may be at least partially liable for the damages though. Atcp 134 06 note note. In most cases landlords should not charge tenants for a standard carpet cleaning.