Unsure On Who Should Pay For Suite Damage?
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Assessing who is responsible for damage inside your suite can be complicated, and sometimes it’s not the Tenant who will have to fund these repairs.
This article will review how Sage Living inspects suites, how damage is discovered and who is responsible for specific types of damage.
Sage Living Suite Inspections
Most management packages will include two annual suite inspections. The first suite inspection will normally take place between November to January of each year. The second suite inspection will normally take place between February to May of each year.
For each inspection Sage Living will coordinate an inspection time for your suite and Tenant. We will dispatch staff members with appropriate hardware to record the suite inspection and take photos if needed. Each inspection is reviewed and damage noted by our trained staff.
Damage is then assessed as one of two types:
1. Wear and Tear
2. Non-Wear and Tear
Depending on the type of damage, a work order will be made and the appropriate party contacted for payment relating to the repair as needed.
Our work inspection reports and work orders are saved and held on record in our office for future reference. Sometimes our office will need to review these files and cross reference the work needed vs the work previously completed to make sure billing is properly completed.
Who Is Responsible For This Damage?
Sometimes it can be difficult to determine who is responsible for the damage found in each suite. But, there are two common types of damage which occur.
1. Wear and Tear
This is commonly understood as the expected amount of damage a suite will endure during the reasonable enjoyment of the suite by the Tenant. It can be difficult to interpret wear and tear, but it would be commonly viewed as paint scuffs on walls or floor boards, small scratches on the floor, and the eventual wear down or breaking down of furniture inside the suite. Generally speaking, when trying to determine if something was damaged due to wear and tear a suite owner should ask themselves ‘was this damage caused on purpose of due to the Tenant’s negligence?’ - if neither is true, then the damage you found is likely wear and tear.
When wear and tear is found and a repair needed, as per Ontario law, the Suite Owner would be responsible for repairing the item and funding the cost of the repair.
2. Non-Wear and Tear
This can be a little easier to identify compared to wear and tear. This is commonly understood to be the opposite of wear and tear, where damage is found and is the distinct fault of the Tenant. A common example of this type of damage being - a hole in the wall, damage caused by pets, or damaged furniture from being left outside on the balcony.
Typically, non-wear and tear is identified when there is a complete misuse or purposeful change to the suite by the Tenant. Non-wear and tear items are typically forwarded to the Tenant for direct payment. This can sometimes reveal larger complications and not all Tenants will willingly and quickly provide payment to offset the cost of the needed repair. Should situations occur where collections for a Tenant are required and/or are overdue, the Owner will be notified and provided options on next steps from our office.
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