Does Texas and Florida have state laws requiring landlords to replace
flooring/carpet every X amount of years? Therefor negating any
possible charges of damage considering the life expectancy.

If not, is there a law requiring a prorated repairing fee based on
life expectancy?

For example, as in my case, the carpet is about 4 years old of which I
spent 2.5 years in.  There is no massive damage except for 2 spots
where our cat pulled up some shreds.  If this carpet has a life
expectancy of 5 years, is there not a law (florida and texas) to
protect me from having to foot the entire bill for new carpet?

Hello,

As always, keep in mind that this does not constitute professional
legal advice and that you should see a lawyer for definitive help.

I was unable to find anything in Texas landlord-tenant law that
requires the landlord to provide a carpet. After all, many apartments
come unfurnished and without a carpet at all.

According to section 92.052 of the Texas code, a landlord may be
required to make a repair if “the condition materially affects the
physical health or safety of an ordinary tenant”
(http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/py/py0009200.html).

Who pays for making the repair depends on whose fault the damage is.
According to the Texas attorney general’s office:
 
“The landlord may not charge you for normal wear and tear on the
premises and may only charge for actual abnormal damage. For example,
if the carpet simply becomes more worn because you and your guests
walked on it for a year, the landlord may not charge you for a new
carpet. If your water bed leaks and the carpet becomes mildewed as a
result, you may be charged.”
<http://www.tenant.net/Other_Areas/Texas/tenants.html>

If the landlord fails to make a necessary repair, you can withhold the
cost of the repair from your rent. However, as the attorney general’s
guide says:

“You do not have a right to withhold rent because the landlord fails
to make repairs when the condition needing repair does not materially
affect your health and safety. If you try this method, the landlord
may file suit against you.”

It very well could be that your lease includes right to carpeting, in
which case you would have to see that document for details on what the
landlord’s responsibility, and yours, are.

Florida’s landlord-tenant code does not appear to have the “health and
safety” provision in laying out just what are the landlord’s
responsibilities. See Section 83.51 at
(http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=Ch0083/SEC51.HTM&Title=->2002->Ch0083->Section%2051).

However, county or municipal property codes might cover things beyond
the items listed in the state law. See the city of Jacksonville’s
guide to landlord-tenant law at
(http://www.coj.net/pub/consumer/landlord.htm).

In short: The landlord probably cannot charge you for any share of the
carpet-replacement charge except what extra expenses are due to damage
caused by your or your cat. However, unless the carpet is a threat to
your health, your landlord probably does not have to replace it right
away, unless your lease states otherwise. If your landlord is
violating state or local law by not making a repair, you can withhold
rent, but see a lawyer or talk to the authorities before taking that
step.

Also see:

Rental Housing On Line discussion of “wear and tear”
<http://rhol.org/rental/wear.htm>

Homestore.com question on moldy carpet
<http://www.springstreet.com/apartments/fyp/ask_the_advisor/qa_27.jhtml>

Homestore.com question on what repairs are required of a landlord
<http://www.springstreet.com/apartments/fyp/legal_corner/living/fix.jhtml>

Nolo Press discussion of responsibility for carpet (and links to books
on tenant rights)
<http://www.nolo.com/lawcenter/auntie/questions.cfm/objectID/49292C08-3D1B-4950-9A4743134C057221/catID/1F6840E5-5262-46EA-9347E71F16315DE3>

Good luck.

Search strategy:

Texas landlord tenant law
<://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=Texas+landlord+tenant+law>

Texas landlord tenant law carpet
<://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=Texas+landlord+tenant+law>

Florida landlord tenant law carpet
<://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=Florida+landlord+tenant+law+carpet>

Florida landlord tenant law
<://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=Florida+landlord+tenant+law>

landlord tenant law carpet
<://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&safe=off&q=landlord+tenant+law+carpet>

average.  wasn't exactlly what I was hoping for.

Hi - 
mwalcoff-ga's advice is right on the money and well done.

I have been in court a number of times on landlord/tenant disputes
and, as a general rule, the judge will consider normal wear and tear.

1.  Consider the useful life of the item. If carpeting has a ten year
life expectancy (or 5 or 6 or whatever), and if that carpet must be
completely replaced, then the judge will determine the value based
upon what useful life is lost. For example, if it is determined to
have a life of 10 years and carpeting is replaced after 8 years, the
landlord would only be able to collect 20% of the replacement cost.
AND, landlord would have to support with some sort of evidence
(typically photographs) of the damage.

2.  Make sure to consider your state's security deposit law - many
states will not permit a landlord to deduct damage from the security
deposit which is reserved for rent payment deficiencies.

3.  Make sure to attend court appearances - an attorney would be a
good investment - though you could probably do it yourself. Just
answer the judge's questions and keep an even keel. When in doubt of
the law, ask the judge - he/she may or may not explain the law, but my
experience is that they will.

Good luck,

weisstho-ga

A couple more practical comments to supplement the above:

Often when there are regulations which control such things as how
often a carpet is to be changed, they emerge not from state law (which
tends to be very broad and general on these issues), but from local
ordinances. If the town(s) at issue have tenants unions, they can be
an excellent source of information on your rights as a tenant.

Landlords run their properties as businesses, and thus they depreciate
their rental properties for tax purposes. It may well be that a given
landlord depreciates the carpet on a five year schedule, even if there
is no legal requirement that the carpet be replaced after five years.
If a landlord has placed a book value of $0 on the carpet, and has
taken tax deductions for the entire value of the carpet, that type of
information may influence a court asked to decide what replacement
value should be assigned to a damaged carpet.

If you have to pay a monthly surcharge to your apartment for keeping a
pet, it should be argued that this type of damage is the very type of
thing that surcharge is meant to cover, and thus falls under normal
wear and tear (even if it would not have occurred had you not had the
cat).

I LOVE (and frankly had not thought of) Expertlaw's depreciation
marker. Brilliant.

You can bet the landlord depreciated the carpeting over 5 yrs max -
probably three years, with an excellent chance that they wrote it off
in the year it was installed.

Judge may not buy it. But then again . . .