Landlord Question and Answer Forum

We own a rental apartment in Chicago and visited the property recently to make sure everything was ok. On the most part it was but there was a large red wine stain on the carpet and some fairly obvious marks on a wall where a bike was being kept. The tenant suggested that it was "normal wear and tear", which I don't agree with. I asked him to remove the carpet stain ASAP and we would discuss how to deal with the wall at the end of the tenancy and left it there. Unfortunately we didn't do a condition inspection at the start of the tenancy and I'm now concerned that carpet stain isn't going to come out and will be ruined and I won't be able to recover anything from him. I have looked at the Chicago landlord tenant ordinance, which is very strict on withholding deposits, which makes me even more worried. Does anyone have any similar experiences and/or advice to help me out.

I suggest that you send him a letter indicating the date and time of your visit. Mention that upon your inspection that you noticed the stain on the rug due to his negligence. Also mention that per your conversation with him he was to remove stain (enter time given. If no time was given, state a reasonable time in this letter). You will also want to state a date/time that you will visit to check if the correction had been completed. After you re-inspection, send him another letter stating your finding and remedy if one was agreed to. This should give you evidence that he was responsible for the damage, provided he doesn’t deny that it was his fault and that the stain was there when he moved in.

Posted by Bob R, CA on Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Thanks for the good advice Bob

Posted by Kristina P, IL on Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Yes I agree! always give them written notices either written, fax or mail, with confirmation postage that will be a proof of your request/ complain,

Posted by Asma I, AZ on Wednesday, March 7, 2012