Carpet Depreciation and Bond Claims in Queensland

A tenant moves out and the carpet is stained beyond cleaning. You get three quotes for replacement, and the cheapest is $2,800. But the carpet was installed eight years ago — and if you claim the full amount at QCAT, the adjudicator will reject most of it.

Queensland bond law prohibits betterment. You can recover only the depreciated value of the damaged asset, not the cost of a brand-new replacement. Carpet is where this rule bites hardest, because carpet depreciates fast and landlords routinely overclaim.

How Depreciation Works for Bond Deductions

Under the RTRA Act, a landlord's bond deduction for property damage is limited to restoring the property to its economic value at the time of the breach — adjusted for age and wear. The principle is straightforward: if an asset had three years of useful life remaining out of a ten-year lifespan, you can claim at most 30% of the replacement cost.

QCAT adjudicators apply this rule strictly. A claim for full replacement of an old carpet is treated as betterment — making the property better than it was — and is disallowed.

Estimating Carpet Useful Life

The ATO's effective life schedule for residential rental carpets is 10 years. This provides one benchmark; the carpet's actual age, condition, and useful life still matter when calculating a bond claim.

A practical calculation:

If the carpet is at or beyond its estimated useful life, its depreciated replacement value may be zero. That does not automatically eliminate a supported claim for a reasonable cleaning or repair cost; the amount depends on the loss and the evidence.

Building a Defensible Claim

A carpet depreciation claim that survives QCAT scrutiny needs four things:

Proof of installation date. A receipt, invoice, or building record showing when the carpet was installed. Without this, the adjudicator has to estimate — and estimates tend to favour the tenant.

Entry condition report. Your Form 1a with dated photographs of the carpet at move-in. This establishes the baseline. If you did not take close-up photos of each room's carpet at entry, your claim is weaker regardless of the damage.

Exit condition report and photographs. Form 14a plus clear, date-stamped photos showing the damage. Side-by-side comparison with entry photos is the most persuasive evidence format.

Itemised quotes. At least one professional quote for like-for-like replacement (same quality, not an upgrade). Then apply the depreciation percentage yourself before stating your claim amount. An adjudicator who sees you have already accounted for depreciation takes the claim more seriously.

The Section 136AA Evidence Deadline

Since 30 September 2024, all of this evidence must be delivered to the tenant within 14 calendar days of lodging your bond claim. That means having the installation date, condition reports, photos, and quotes organised before the tenancy ends — not scrambling to assemble them afterwards.

The transitional period for older bonds expired on 30 September 2025, so the 14-day evidence rule now applies to every bond in Queensland.

Common Mistakes

Claiming full replacement cost. This is the single most common reason bond claims fail at QCAT. A 2024 Reddit thread from r/AusPropertyChat captures the standard tenant defence: "Ask them to produce a receipt showing when and how much it cost to have the carpets installed. If it's more than 10 years old they have 0 value."

Ignoring fair wear and tear. Light traffic wear, minor pile compression in hallways, and gradual fading are not damage — they are the natural result of someone living in a house. Stains, burns, tears, pet damage, and heavy soiling beyond normal use may support a claim, subject to the reasonable cleaning or repair cost, depreciation, and evidence.

No installation records. Without proof of when the carpet was laid and what it cost, you are relying on the adjudicator's estimate of age. That estimate rarely favours the landlord.

Beyond Carpet: Other Depreciating Assets

The same depreciation principle applies to every fixture in the property — blinds, curtains, vinyl flooring, appliances, and paint. The ATO effective life varies by asset class, but the logic is identical: remaining useful life divided by total useful life, multiplied by replacement cost.

The Queensland Rental Bond Guide includes a depreciation log worksheet that tracks installation dates, useful life, and current depreciated value for every fixture that commonly appears in bond disputes.

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