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I had a tenant move out of a house recently. When I went to inspect the house I found that it was, for lack of a better word, filthy. I swept and washed every hard surface and vacuumed all the carpets and rented a rug doctor. Besides that I also removed an entire car load of stuff that was left after I was told that they removed the last of their stuff. On top of it all the living room carpet is ruined and needs to be replaced. My question is, because I can't find info in my lease, am I able to charge an hourly rate or something similar for the time I had to spend cleaning and removing stuff that was left in the house?

Thank you. I cleaned every day after work for 3 days (4 pm til almost 10 PM) and the new tenants said they would finish anything that was left (she was 9 months pregnant, they needed to get the move done) and I said I would take it off rent accordingly. Thanks for the input.

I think the first step in protecting your rental property is doing thorough tenant screening checks of every applicant which starts with reviewing your applicants credit report. If anyone visit this website http://www.starpointtenantscreening.com/criminal-reports.html.  Cutting corners on your tenant screening could cost you thousands of dollars and countless headaches. I like it.

I had a similar situation with the first tenant I had in my house that I rented.  I hired someone to clean, I also had repairs because of damage that was done.  I added up all the costs involved and subtracted it from the security deposit.  The cleaning was $400.  If you are doing it yourself, I would ask the going rate in your area, include the cost of the new rug, the rug doctor and subtract from the security deposit.    I did a thorough screening on that tenant who was a physician, and the screening was great, thinking she was a professional, thought no problem. Wrong!!!  That is why a security deposit is necessary and in no way should be used as the last months rent, which should be in the contract.  

Aside from deducting the cost of repairs (items damaged, etc), you can charge for your labor. Get a few estimates to determine what a reasonable and customary cost would be for the repairs, and value your time equivalently. In other words, if a professional does it in 1 hr and it takes you 2 hrs, you should only charge for 1 hr

Note: I'm reposting my response (org.12/04) to Matthew's question for which he gave thanks. I find it interesting that it was removed. I also find it intersting that Mary posted the same???? ..........My original post: Aside from deducting the cost of repairs (items damaged, etc), you can charge for your labor. Get a few estimates to determine what a reasonable and customary cost would be for the repairs, and value your time equivalently. In other words, if a professional does it in 1 hr and it takes you 2 hrs, you should only charge for 1 hr. .  -----Disclaimer: Since I’ve been answering a lot of questions, I thought I would make the following statement. I’m not affiliated with EZlandlord Forms. I’m just here (not sure how long) to help those that have questions. Having 40+ yrs with Rental Property and done well, it’s my way of “Pay it Forward (check out the movie).” However, it is up to you to become familiar with your State/Local laws. I always like to know if the suggestions I offer are helpful. Feel free to comment anytime. Thanks in Advance. BTW...check out the Rental Property Organizer at Simp-List.com. Free Trial Download with data.

I recall Bob posting the same.  Wonder if there's some sort of conspiracy?

@Dawn...thank you for the support. Maybe Admin can shed some light   :-) But it does make one wonder how a whole post can disappear and yet we can delete our own posting. Poor Matthew. It looks as if he was thanking himself  LOL