What is considered normal wear and tear in a Canadian rental?

Normal wear and tear in a Canadian rental includes deterioration that results from ordinary, everyday use of the unit — not from negligence, accidents, or misuse. Examples include faded paint, small scuffs on walls from furniture, carpet fibres worn down from foot traffic, minor scratches on hardwood flooring, and the gradual dulling of fixtures and appliances over time. Canadian tribunals — including Ontario's LTB, BC's RTB, and Alberta's RTDRS — consistently hold that landlords cannot charge tenants for normal wear and tear.

Can a landlord charge for repainting after a tenant moves out in Canada?

Generally, no. Paint naturally fades and scuffs over time from ordinary use. If the paint is in reasonable condition relative to its age, a landlord cannot charge the departing tenant for repainting. However, if the tenant painted the walls an unauthorized colour, allowed grease or smoke to significantly stain the paint, or made holes requiring patching, the landlord may recover the cost of returning the walls to their original state.

Is carpet replacement normal wear and tear in Ontario?

It depends on the carpet's age and the nature of the deterioration. Carpet that has worn down from years of foot traffic is normal wear and tear — the landlord cannot charge the tenant for replacement. However, a carpet with burns, large stains from spills, or damage from pets goes beyond normal use and can be charged back to the tenant. Even then, the Ontario LTB typically applies depreciation — if the carpet was 10 years old and had a 15-year useful life, the tenant would only owe 5/15ths of the replacement cost.

Can a landlord keep a security deposit for normal wear and tear in BC?

No. In British Columbia, a landlord can only apply to keep a security deposit (up to half a month's rent) to cover damage beyond normal wear and tear, unpaid rent, or other specific breaches. If the landlord cannot prove actual damage, they must return the deposit within 15 days of the tenancy ending, or within 15 days of receiving the tenant's forwarding address. A landlord who wrongly withholds a deposit can be ordered to pay double the deposit amount as a penalty.

What is a move-in inspection report and why does it matter?

A move-in inspection report — also called a condition inspection report in BC and Alberta — is a written record of the rental unit's condition at the start of the tenancy. It is signed by both the landlord and tenant. If damage is documented at move-in, it cannot later be claimed against the tenant at move-out. In BC, a landlord who does not complete a move-in inspection loses the right to make any claim against the security deposit for damage. In Alberta, both parties must complete the inspection for the landlord to be eligible to claim from the deposit.

Can a landlord charge for cleaning after a tenant moves out?

A landlord can charge for cleaning only if the unit was left in a significantly worse state of cleanliness than it was provided in at the start of tenancy. If the unit was professionally cleaned at move-in and left dirty at move-out, the landlord can recover professional cleaning costs. If the unit was left in a comparable state of ordinary cleanliness, a cleaning charge is not warranted. Tenants should photograph the unit at both move-in and move-out to protect themselves from disputed cleaning charges.

Home BlogNormal Wear and Tear vs. Damage

CanadaJuly 7, 20268 min read

Normal Wear and Tear vs. Damage in Canadian Rentals: What Tenants Need to Know

Canadian landlords cannot charge tenants for normal wear and tear — ever. But the line between wear and tear and chargeable damage is often blurry, and deposit disputes hinge on it. This guide explains exactly what each concept means, how Canadian tribunals draw the line, and what every tenant should document before moving out.

What Is Normal Wear and Tear?

Normal wear and tear is the gradual, inevitable deterioration of a rental unit that results from ordinary, day-to-day living — not from negligence, carelessness, misuse, or accidents. It is the cost of having a property occupied, and Canadian law assigns that cost to the landlord, not the tenant.

While “wear and tear” is not defined in word-for-word in Ontario's RTA or BC's Residential Tenancy Act, it is a concept with a well-established meaning in landlord-tenant law and is applied consistently by the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB), BC's Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB), and Alberta's Residential Tenancy Dispute Resolution Service (RTDRS). The core question each tribunal asks is: would a reasonable person living in the unit for that period of time have produced this level of deterioration? If yes — it is wear and tear.

Key factors that determine whether deterioration is wear and tear include the age of the item, the length of the tenancy, the nature of the use, and whether the deterioration was accelerated by something beyond ordinary use. A small scuff on the baseboard after five years is wear and tear; a deep gouge made by repeatedly dragging a refrigerator across the floor is not.

Side-by-side comparison for Canadian rentals: normal wear and tear (faded paint, worn carpet, minor scuffs — landlord's cost) versus tenant damage (holes in walls, burns, pet damage, large stains — tenant's cost) — The dividing line at a glance — and even for genuine damage, tenants owe depreciated value, not new-item replacement cost.

What Counts as Damage?

Damage is deterioration that results from something beyond reasonable, ordinary use — accidents, negligence, carelessness, misuse, or deliberate action. A burn in a carpet, a cracked bathroom tile from a dropped object, a hole in drywall from a thrown item, or large stains from an uncleaned spill: these are all damage.

The tenant is also responsible for damage caused by their guests or other occupants. If a friend visits and breaks a window, or if a child in the household draws on the walls, that falls on the tenant — not the landlord. Ontario RTA s.34 is explicit on this point.

Damage must be proven

In any Canadian province, a landlord who claims the tenant caused damage must prove it. That means evidence of: (1) the unit's condition at move-in, (2) the unit's condition at move-out, (3) the difference is attributable to the tenant, and (4) the repair cost is reasonable. Without a move-in inspection report, proving that the damage was not pre-existing is difficult — which is why tenants should always insist on one.

Room-by-Room Guide: Wear and Tear vs. Damage

Item	Wear & Tear (Landlord)	Damage (Tenant)
Paint & Walls	Faded paint, small scuffs from furniture, minor marks at doorknobs, gradual yellowing	Large holes from anchors, unauthorized paint colour, grease stains, smoke staining throughout
Carpet & Flooring	Worn-down fibres from traffic, light matting, minor indentations from furniture legs	Burns, pet stains, large spill stains, gouges from dragging furniture, torn sections
Hardwood	Minor surface scratches from everyday use, slight dulling of finish over years	Deep gouges, water damage from unaddressed spills, scratches from pet nails across large areas
Appliances	Normal depreciation, worn knobs, minor interior staining from cooking	Broken burners from impact, burned interiors from unattended cooking, cracked glass from misuse
Fixtures & Hardware	Faded finish on faucets, slow draining from age, loose hinges from repeated use	Cracked toilet seats, broken cabinet hinges, missing handles, bent towel bars
Windows & Doors	Stiff locks from age, faded window frames, draft from seal deterioration	Broken glass from impact, damaged locks from forced entry by tenant, missing door stops
Bathroom	Soap scum buildup, mild grout discolouration from water over years	Mould from tenant's failure to ventilate, cracked tiles from dropped objects, broken fixtures

How Depreciation Works: You Don't Owe the Full Replacement Cost

Even when a tenant has genuinely caused damage, Canadian tribunals apply depreciation when calculating how much the tenant owes. The principle is straightforward: you are only liable for the remaining useful life of the damaged item — not the cost of replacing it with something brand new.

For example: a carpet has a typical useful lifespan of 10–15 years. If a 7-year-old carpet is damaged by a tenant and would cost $1,500 to replace, the tenant would only owe a fraction of that — roughly $375 to $750, depending on how the remaining useful life is calculated (if the carpet had 3–8 years of life left).

Typical Useful Life Estimates Used by Canadian Tribunals

Carpet10–15 years
Interior paint5–7 years
Hardwood flooring25+ years
Appliances10–15 years
Bathroom fixtures15–25 years
Blinds / window coverings5–10 years

The Move-In Inspection: Your Most Important Tool

The best protection against a wrongful damage charge is a thorough move-in inspection report. Before or on your first day in the unit, walk through every room and document the existing condition of every surface, fixture, appliance, and fitting.

In British Columbia and Alberta, the move-in condition inspection is a legal requirement for landlords. In BC, a landlord who fails to complete a condition inspection at both move-in and move-out loses the right to make any claim against the security deposit, regardless of what damage occurred. This is one of the most tenant-protective provisions in Canadian rental law.

In Ontario, there is no statutory move-in inspection requirement, but it is strongly recommended. Without one, proving pre-existing conditions becomes a credibility contest — and photographed, timestamped evidence from day one of a tenancy is far more persuasive than a landlord's verbal claim that the damage did not exist before.

1Photograph every wall in each room, including behind doors

2Photograph all appliances (open the oven, dishwasher, and refrigerator)

3Document every carpet and flooring area

4Photograph fixtures: bathroom, kitchen sink, faucets, toilet

5Test every window, door, and lock — note any that stick or do not latch

6Note any scuffs, marks, holes, or stains already present

7Email the photos to yourself the same day to create a timestamp

8Ask your landlord to sign the inspection report — or at minimum send it to them in writing

Province-by-Province: Security Deposits and Damage Claims

Ontario

No security deposit — landlords can only collect last month's rent (LMR). The LMR cannot be used for damage claims without an LTB order. A landlord must file a Form L2 at the LTB to claim compensation for tenant-caused damage. Tenants can dispute damage claims at the LTB via a T1 if the LMR is wrongly applied.

British Columbia

Security deposit capped at half a month's rent. Landlord must complete a condition inspection at move-in and move-out, or they lose the right to claim against the deposit entirely. Disputes go to the RTB. A landlord who wrongly withholds a deposit can be ordered to pay double.

Alberta

Security deposit capped at one month's rent (RTA s.43). Both parties must complete the move-in inspection for the landlord to claim against the deposit. If no inspection occurs, the landlord forfeits their right to deductions. Disputes go to the RTDRS or Provincial Court.

Quebec

No security deposits of any kind — Civil Code art. 1904 prohibits them outright. Landlords can only sue through the TAL to recover proven damage costs after the tenancy ends.