When a tenant moves into a rental property most landlords do a written report to document the wall condition as well as many other conditions. They might note for the living room, for example, that the walls have "New Paint". This would be done for each room in the house. If the tenant disagrees, if there was a hole in one wall for example, the tenant could amend the form to allow for the exception.
When the tenant moves out at the end of their lease the walls are reinspected by the landlord to determine the difference between the condtion the tenant originally received the property, and what the end of tenancy condition is.
Here in California an allowance must be made by the landlord in the tenants favor for "normal wear and tear". So the landlord cannot bill the tenant for repainting without making an allowance for this "normal wear and tear". The law never defined what "normal wear and tear" was, so each landlord must set their own policy.
At HomePointe we give the walls a three year life. So, if the tenant received the property with new paint and the tenant lived in the property for three or more years, they would not be charged for any painting. But if the tenant lived in the house for only one year and the interior had to be repainted, the tenant would pay for 2/3 of the paint bill and the owner would have to absord the other 1/3. The tenant would get credit for the year they lived in the house, but would have to pay for painting for the two years they did not live there.
This policy has worked in court although there is always the subjective fight as to whether the house really needed painting that second time.
