What Is Useful Life and Property Damage in A Rental Property? 

If you own rental properties in California or elsewhere in the United States, you know that damage will occur in rental properties during the time that a tenant lived there.  

Damage is a fact of life when you own investment properties because some damage may occur naturally as part of everyday living while other damages will occur due to tenants who don’t treat the property that they live in with care. 

In this home management article, we will break down the differences between useful life, and regular property damage, just so you know what to expect when you own an investment property. 

What Is Useful Life Damage? 

As we stated above, useful life damage occurs naturally over time from day-to-day living.  

Examples: 

Flooring – The flooring in any home will experience a degree of normal useful life damage due to foot traffic and it’s going to need to be cleaned and or replaced after your tenant moves out. 

Walls – These will experience the most useful life damage due to everyday interaction with your tenants including them hanging things on the walls. When your tenants move out of your rental property the walls should always be fixed and repainted so that the rental property looks new when a new tenant moves in. 

What Is an Example of Property Damage? 

Some examples of property damage include holes in the walls, stains on the carpeting, broken windows or other broken appliances in the property. When you spot obvious damages, these are signs that your tenant didn’t treat your rental property with care, and you shouldn’t hesitate to take money from their deposit to fix those damages. 

Learn More About Peninsula Property Management 

Are you planning on hiring a East Bay Property Management company? Contact Utopia Management by calling us at (800) 294-4656 or connect with us online.