Reference
Fair wear vs damage.
What you, the tenant, are responsible for — and what's wear and tear that the landlord absorbs. The line is in s.51 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (NSW): you must leave the premises in substantially the same condition as at the start, fair wear and tear excepted.
The plain-English test.
Fair wear and tear is what would happen even to a reasonable tenant: time, normal use, the property aging. Damage is the result of an act, omission, or neglect by the tenant (or their guests, pets, sub-tenants). The burden of proof is on the landlord.
Walls and paint
Paint fades, scuffs, and small marks accumulate over time. Damage is different — holes, deep gouges, ink, crayon, smoke staining.
Fair wear · landlord absorbs
- Faded paint after 3+ years of use.
- Light scuffs at desk height or where furniture sat.
- Picture-hook holes (pre-agreed in the lease).
- Discolouration above heaters or behind appliances.
Damage · tenant may be liable
- Holes punched through plasterboard.
- Deep gouges, drawings, or graffiti.
- Large nail holes, holes from screws not authorised by the lease.
- Smoke yellowing throughout when the lease was non-smoking.
Carpet and flooring
Carpets flatten in walkways, fibres wear, and laminate marks lightly over years. Specific stains and burns are damage.
Fair wear · landlord absorbs
- Flattening in main walkways.
- Light marks from rolling chairs in a home office.
- Minor furniture indents.
- Mineral build-up in older carpets.
Damage · tenant may be liable
- Cigarette burns, candle wax, melted plastic.
- Deep gouges or cuts.
- Visible stains from spills (red wine, blood, ink, paint, pet urine) that won't lift with professional clean.
- Damaged tiles or floorboards from dropped weights or appliance leaks the tenant didn't report.
Bathroom and kitchen
Tile grout discolours, silicone yellows, and minor mildew is normal. Mould caused by ventilation issues or unreported leaks is more nuanced.
Fair wear · landlord absorbs
- Discoloured grout in a long-used shower.
- Worn rubber seals on appliances.
- Light mineral build-up on tapware.
- Surface mildew that wipes off.
Damage · tenant may be liable
- Cracked or missing tiles.
- Broken oven door, missing fittings, snapped drawer runners.
- Burn marks on benchtops from hot pots.
- Heavy mould that the tenant didn't report (s.63 — landlord must keep premises in reasonable repair; tenant must report).
Cleaning
The standard at the end of a tenancy is "reasonably clean", against the baseline of how the property was provided at move-in.
Fair wear · landlord absorbs
- Light dust accumulated since the last clean.
- Normal carpet vacuum.
- Empty rubbish bins.
- Lawn mown reasonably recently.
Damage · tenant may be liable
- Property left in a clearly dirty state — fridge, oven, bathroom, floors.
- Carpet professionally cleaned at move-in (per condition report) but not at move-out.
- Bins overflowing, rubbish left on the property.
- Lawn knee-high and unmaintained for months.
Appliances and fixtures
Wear from normal use is the landlord's. Damage from misuse is the tenant's.
Fair wear · landlord absorbs
- An old appliance failing after years of use.
- Light marks on benchtops from normal cooking.
- Slight blind discolouration from sunlight.
- Worn doorhandles.
Damage · tenant may be liable
- An appliance broken from being dropped, overloaded, or operated incorrectly.
- Heat damage from a hot pan placed without trivet.
- Broken or bent blind slats.
- Doors broken, holes punched through, kicked panels.
If a deduction is borderline
The Tribunal looks at three things: condition at move-in (per the signed condition report), condition at move-out (per photographs and the condition report), and what would have happened to a reasonable tenant in the same time frame.
The age of the item matters. A 10-year-old carpet that fails at end of tenancy isn't replaceable at the tenant's cost just because it failed during your time there.
Depreciation matters too.NCAT routinely reduces a landlord's claim by the proportion of the item's expected life already used up. Rough indicative life: carpet 7-10 years, paint 5-7 years, blinds 10 years, oven 10-15 years, dishwasher 10 years. If the kitchen had to be repainted after 7 years and the painter's quote was $1,800, the landlord can only recover the un-depreciated value — not the full $1,800. A 100% claim on a fully-depreciated item is almost always overreach.
Honest assessment first: if the line item is clearly tenant-caused damage and the cost is reasonable, pay it. If it's clearly fair wear and tear, dispute it. If it's mixed, negotiate a partial — usually a depreciation-adjusted figure works.