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Do I have to pay for the carpet of the entire apt when my dog tore up a small part?

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smiledays

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NC

Hi there,

I just moved to a new apt in North Carolina and my pup tore up the new carpet when I was out. The damaged part is about 6inch*2inch. However, the leasing office guy said they would charge me the fee to replace the carpet of the whole apartment, which is around 650 squareft and the cost might be around $2500. The leasing office didn't allow me to repair the carpet by myself and insisted on replacing the whole piece of carpet. They even threatened me as they wanted to replace the carpet and charge me asap. I wondered if I'm legally obligated to pay for the carpet of the entire apartment or just the damaged part.

Updates:
If I have to pay for the whole piece of carpet...
1. Since I just moved in, could I request to replace the carpet till the ending of my leasing term? Thus, I may be able to avoid any damages during my term.
2. Could I request the receipt of the new carpet?

Any suggestion will be very much appreciated!

Thanks.
 
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Ohiogal

Queen Bee
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NC

Hi there,

I just moved to a new apt in North Carolina and my pup tore up the new carpet when I was out. The damaged part is about 6inch*3inch. However, the leasing office guy said they would charge me the fee to replace the carpet of the whole apartment, which is around 650 squareft and the cost might be around $2500. The leasing office didn't allow me to repair the carpet by myself and insisted on replacing the whole piece of carpet. They even threatened me as they wanted to replace the carpet and charge me asap. I wondered if I'm legally obligated to pay for the carpet of the entire apartment or just the damaged part.

Any suggestion will be very much appreciated!

Thanks.
How new is the carpet? 18 square inches is a pretty big piece to "repair" and there may not be anyway of guaranteeing that the repair would not be noticeable. If the repair would be noticeable, then more than that section needs to be replaced. The entire piece is not out of the realm. Apparently you should crate your puppy when you are not home.
 

smiledays

Junior Member
How new is the carpet? 18 square inches is a pretty big piece to "repair" and there may not be anyway of guaranteeing that the repair would not be noticeable. If the repair would be noticeable, then more than that section needs to be replaced. The entire piece is not out of the realm. Apparently you should crate your puppy when you are not home.
I believe it's pretty new. The damaged area may not be so large but still, yea relatively difficult to repair. However, I guess at least I could try. Now the office wouldn't allow me to take any measurements. Also, compared to 650 square feet, a hand-sized damage part is not so big. I just felt it's not so necessary.
 

FarmerJ

Senior Member
OK so heres the deal you might be able to get away with telling them that you will live with the damage and they can deal with it when you move out ( since you refuse to move any of your furniture etc ) but know this they are going to take a very detailed look for dog nail scratches and dog pee and as you were told by Ohiogal>>> Apparently you should crate your puppy when you are not home. <<< there is no appearing about it this dog needs to be kenneled or as puppy gets bored more things will be destroyed and it wont be just your own things. Don't be surprised if your LL chooses to not renew your lease . Im not sure if the dog found a loose spot or what triggered it to tear the carpet up but I suggest for now that you cover it over with a very thick area rug so that way you don't trip and the dog might not be able to make it worse.
 

smiledays

Junior Member
OK so heres the deal you might be able to get away with telling them that you will live with the damage and they can deal with it when you move out ( since you refuse to move any of your furniture etc ) but know this they are going to take a very detailed look for dog nail scratches and dog pee and as you were told by Ohiogal>>> Apparently you should crate your puppy when you are not home. <<< there is no appearing about it this dog needs to be kenneled or as puppy gets bored more things will be destroyed and it wont be just your own things. Don't be surprised if your LL chooses to not renew your lease . Im not sure if the dog found a loose spot or what triggered it to tear the carpet up but I suggest for now that you cover it over with a very thick area rug so that way you don't trip and the dog might not be able to make it worse.
Thanks for your suggestion!

well the dog is kind of kenneled as I bought him a closed fence inside which he has enough space to play with his toys. It is weird for him to cause that accident as he never did this before. Later I checked the whole apt and did find some areas with some thread of the carpet. Maybe the damaged area was not so perfect which caused this accident. Anyway, I don't think this would help me any.

So...as you think, there is no way for me to avoid paying the whole carpet instead of the damaged part, right?
 

quincy

Senior Member
Thanks for your suggestion!

well the dog is kind of kenneled as I bought him a closed fence inside which he has enough space to play with his toys. It is weird for him to cause that accident as he never did this before. Later I checked the whole apt and did find some areas with some thread of the carpet. Maybe the damaged area was not so perfect which caused this accident. Anyway, I don't think this would help me any.

So...as you think, there is no way for me to avoid paying the whole carpet instead of the damaged part, right?
Although I am surprised your landlord wants to replace the carpet now as opposed to waiting until your lease term is up (unless he believes the damaged area will become worse), I do not see any way you will not be held responsible for replacement of the whole carpet. No other tenant will want to move into an apartment with a patched, unmatched carpet.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
Thanks for your suggestion!

well the dog is kind of kenneled as I bought him a closed fence inside which he has enough space to play with his toys. It is weird for him to cause that accident as he never did this before. Later I checked the whole apt and did find some areas with some thread of the carpet. Maybe the damaged area was not so perfect which caused this accident. Anyway, I don't think this would help me any.

So...as you think, there is no way for me to avoid paying the whole carpet instead of the damaged part, right?
Or maybe your pup has been pulling at other areas of the carpet. The dog should be in a kennel with a floor on it. That way the puppy can't dig at the carpet when you are not there. So you very well may be forced to pay for the carpet. If you do not, you may find yourself being sued.
 

smiledays

Junior Member
Or maybe your pup has been pulling at other areas of the carpet. The dog should be in a kennel with a floor on it. That way the puppy can't dig at the carpet when you are not there. So you very well may be forced to pay for the carpet. If you do not, you may find yourself being sued.
He performed well when I was home and would not be able to reach to other places except the fence area when I was off. How did he pull at other areas?
I won't avoid the pay if it is for sure the replacement is necessary. $2500 is a lot for me and I just wanted to lowest my own expense. That's it.
 

quincy

Senior Member
He performed well when I was home and would not be able to reach to other places except the fence area when I was off. How did he pull at other areas?
I won't avoid the pay if it is for sure the replacement is necessary. $2500 is a lot for me and I just wanted to lowest my own expense. That's it.
The $2500 is a lot of money for anyone. What your ultimate cost will be will depend in large part on the age of the carpet when you moved in. If the carpet was new when you moved in, the cost to replace it is greater to you than if the carpet was older when you moved in. You then need to pay only the depreciated costs.

So, you need to determine the age of the current carpet.

As for puppies, most will do better when their owners are around. They get bored when their owners are gone and can be terribly destructive. I agree with those who say you should have your puppy crated when you are away - and, for lengthy stays away, have a dog walker come in.
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
He performed well when I was home and would not be able to reach to other places except the fence area when I was off. How did he pull at other areas?
I won't avoid the pay if it is for sure the replacement is necessary. $2500 is a lot for me and I just wanted to lowest my own expense. That's it.
If that amount is alot to you ...CRATE your dog. :rolleyes:


Gheesh...Why would you get a puppy and not take CARE and CONTROL of the pup??
 

smiledays

Junior Member
If that amount is alot to you ...CRATE your dog. :rolleyes:


Gheesh...Why would you get a puppy and not take CARE and CONTROL of the pup??
Once again, I crated him. It's just because the apt is kind of small and major of the floor is covered by carpet. I placed him on the wood floor and somehow he still reached to the carpet. I just moved to the new place and not well prepared for the potential issue. That's my fault. I was here to ask for some advice to see if I could repair the carpet or any other methods to lower my expense. However, most of you guys kept criticizing as you may think criticizing is the best way to solve the problem. Well, it's the best way to remind and warn me. Still, thanks you all. And hope that you wont never deal with the same issue as mine. Well, I believe most of you wont as it looks like you're really good at crating your puppies and know whatever may happen in your life.
 

FarmerJ

Senior Member
No matter what the carpets age , It makes no sense from my view that your LL would want to replace the carpet now , while your still living there and the risk of further damage since Ill lay odds you aren't willing to find another home for the dog. SO take the steps you must that are reasonable to reduce the risk of further damage and that might inc doing things like placing the dogs kennel on top of large cardboard from say clothes washer so Pee cant leak out of the kennel if the dog couldn't hold it while your gone. In the time being you could negotiate a so called payment plan with your LL that will have the funds on hand when you do finally move out to replace the carpet at a depreciated amount since it would be reasonable of you to insist that it makes no sense to replace it now. but that amount should be a lowered value since during your tenancy you would have used up some of the carpets life NO matter what.
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
Once again, I crated him. It's just because the apt is kind of small and major of the floor is covered by carpet. I placed him on the wood floor and somehow he still reached to the carpet. I just moved to the new place and not well prepared for the potential issue. That's my fault. I was here to ask for some advice to see if I could repair the carpet or any other methods to lower my expense. However, most of you guys kept criticizing as you may think criticizing is the best way to solve the problem. Well, it's the best way to remind and warn me. Still, thanks you all. And hope that you wont never deal with the same issue as mine. Well, I believe most of you wont as it looks like you're really good at crating your puppies and know whatever may happen in your life.
Babies cause issues in the home. Human, canine, feline...whatever. Do not have one if you are not able to pay for the potential issue. To impulsively get a pup and not think about how you will see to that pups care at all times is immature.
 

smiledays

Junior Member
Babies cause issues in the home. Human, canine, feline...whatever. Do not have one if you are not able to pay for the potential issue. To impulsively get a pup and not think about how you will see to that pups care at all times is immature.
yea. I'm young and I may not be as mature as you. ''Do not'' means nothing to me as I've already have one pup and I'll learn my lesson to keep him better.

I'm here to ask for advice to resolve issues. You're here to act like a sage who could reverse the time and save those poor and silly people who made mistakes in the past. Unfortunately you cannot. So please take your do not back.
Also, Remember this is Real Estate Law forum not the puppies' owner education center. YEA YOU HAVE FULL RIGHTS TO SAY WHATEVER YOU LIKE. SO DO I.

There're always some SAGEs in this virtual world to tell people you shouldn't do this after we've made some mistakes and wanted to know what we can do to resolve the problems. I salute to you: Hero on the keyboard.

Lesson from me for future advice:

1. If you're lucky and haven't got the same issues as mine, listen to the sages. Their words are helpful if bad things haven't happen.
2. If you got bad luck, try to talk with your landlord to discuss the potential replacement at the end of your lease term as you could request to pay for the depreciation price. Also, if they're very nice, they might agree to replace partial of the carpet and place a seam at some unobvious area.


Thanks all you guys.
 
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Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
yea. I'm young and I may not be as mature as you. ''Do not'' means nothing to me as I've already have one pup and I'll learn my lesson to keep him better.
The other half of the lesson is to be sure you can afford it when "mistakes" do happen.
 

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