My cost to replace or repair damaged carpet

In North Carolina, the industry standard is to prorate damages to carpet based on the life of the carpet (most use 7 years). The landlord would determine how old the carpet was when you moved in and how many more years of use it would have based on normal wear and tear (no stains/holes/tears/etc). Based on that, you could be charged for the remaining life of the carpet once you move out. For example, if you moved in on carpet that was 2 years old (using 7 year life) then it would have an expected life of 5 years. After your living on it for 2 years, upon your move-out, it would have a remaining life of 3 years....the prorated amount that you could be charged for. Depending on the location of the hole, overall wear of the carpet, etc., it is sometimes possible to patch/repair/partially replace the carpet; however, this is at the landlord's option and they can choose to replace all the carpet and they are allowed to charge you the prorated amount for this.

I am not aware of an NC law that requires the LL to prorate based on the age of the carpet (although they have a statue like that in CA). However, usually situations like this are resolved by the tenant paying an amount similar to the prorated amount. Typically, the LL deducts the cost of something like this from the tenants security deposit after they leave. The security deposit can be used to pay for damages to the property, but not for improvements or refurnishing. Thus, the LL cannot charge the tenant the entire amount of the new carpet, but can charge for what would be the cost to repair. Here, it would be unreasonable for the LL to charge you the full price of new carpet. Feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss further.