Move-out carpet cleaning and your security deposit

California lets a landlord take carpet cleaning out of a deposit only up to a point. This guide sets out where the state’s own publications put that point, what proof to keep, and what a move-out cleaning costs if you book one.

Published October 12, 2026. 17 sources, listed at the end.

The short answer

A California landlord may deduct only the reasonable cost of cleaning a rental back to how clean it was at move-in, and nothing for ordinary wear and tear; the state Department of Real Estate counts moderate dirt or spotting on carpet as wear and tear. Within 21 days after move-out, the landlord must return the rest, and deductions over $125 must be itemized with receipts or invoices attached.

What a landlord may deduct for carpet cleaning

California’s deposit law is Civil Code section 1950.5. Three state publications explain it in plain language: the Department of Real Estate’s 2026 guide to the rights of residential tenants and landlords, the Attorney General’s “Know Your Rights” sheet on security deposits, and the Judicial Council’s self-help guide on the California Courts website. On cleaning, all three draw the same line. A landlord can charge for move-out cleaning only as far as it takes to match the cleanliness the unit had on the day the tenant first moved in.

The Department of Real Estate adds two limits. The deduction can cover only the reasonable cost of that cleaning, and normal wear and tear to carpets can’t be charged against the deposit at all. The Attorney General draws the same distinction for repairs: damage caused by tenants or their guests can come out of the deposit, and ordinary wear and tear can’t.

Is it wear and tear or damage?

For carpet, the Department of Real Estate describes normal wear and tear as the plain wearing down that comes with use or age, and it counts moderate dirt or spotting as part of it. Large rips or indelible stains are another matter. Those can justify a deduction to repair the carpet, or to replace it where that is reasonably necessary.

How the Department of Real Estate’s guide sorts carpet at move-out
Condition	How the guide treats it
Worn down by ordinary use or age	Wear and tear: not chargeable
Moderate dirt or spotting	Wear and tear: not chargeable
Large rips	Can justify a deduction for repair, or replacement if reasonably necessary
Indelible stains	Can justify a deduction for repair, or replacement if reasonably necessary
Damaged beyond repair	Replacement; one common method prorates it over the remaining useful life

The guide’s worked example of proration: a carpet eight years into a ten-year life expectancy is damaged beyond repair, and a replacement of similar quality costs $1,000. The landlord could properly charge only $200, the value of the two years of use the old carpet had left.

Pet accidents are where the line gets tested. The Carpet and Rug Institute notes that when urine spots develop slowly and are found long afterward, the dyes and fibers may be permanently damaged. It also warns against a steam cleaner on urine, since the heat sets both the stain and the odor; a wet vacuum and a cool-water rinse are its suggestion instead. Pet stain and odor removal covers the treatment, and why pet odor comes back explains what a treatment has to reach.

How long the landlord has, and what comes with the refund

Twenty-one days. The Department of Real Estate puts it as 21 calendar days or less after the tenancy ends, by which time the landlord must refund whatever remains after lawful deductions. The Attorney General’s sheet adds an itemized statement explaining the deductions in detail, unless they total less than $125.

Proof travels with that statement. When deductions come to more than $125, the self-help guide says copies of the invoices or receipts have to be attached. If someone else did the work, the landlord supplies a copy of the bill for it, the Attorney General says; if the landlord or an employee did it, the self-help guide says the statement has to describe the work, how long it took and the hourly rate charged.

The photo rules that began in 2025

The Department of Real Estate’s 2026 guide describes two photo requirements for landlords:

Beginning April 1, 2025: photographs of the unit within a reasonable time after the tenant returns it, taken before any repairs or cleaning the landlord plans to deduct for, and a second set within a reasonable time once those repairs or cleanings are complete.
Starting July 1, 2025: a record of the unit’s condition in photographs taken immediately before a tenancy begins or as it begins.

For a carpet cleaning charge, that means one set of pictures from before the cleaning and another from after it. Tenants can keep a record of their own as well: dated photos of every carpeted room on move-in day and again on the last day.

How many households rent here

In the City of Thousand Oaks, the U.S. Census Bureau puts the owner-occupied share of occupied homes at 70.8 percent for 2020–2024, which leaves about 29 percent rented; that rented share is derived here, not printed by the Bureau. The City’s Housing Element shows renting on the rise, from 24.7 percent of occupied homes in 2000 to 29.9 percent in 2015–2019.

Owner-occupied share and median gross rent, 2020–2024
Place	Owner-occupied	Rented (derived)	Median gross rent
City of Thousand Oaks	70.8%	about 29%	$2,664
Oak Park	71.9%	about 28%	$3,149
Agoura Hills	81.8%	about 18%	$3,218
City of Westlake Village	80.6%	about 19%	$3,500 or more

U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts. The rented share is 100 percent minus the owner-occupied rate.

Civil Code section 1950.5 is state law, so the same rules hold in Oak Park, which is unincorporated Ventura County, in the Los Angeles County cities of Westlake Village and Agoura Hills, and across the city from Newbury Park to central Thousand Oaks.

What to do before you hand back the keys

Find your move-in photos or checklist, then take dated photos of every carpeted room, with close-ups of any spots.
Ask the landlord in writing what condition they expect the carpet in, and keep the reply.
If you book a cleaning, keep the invoice, showing the date, the company, the rooms and the method.
Point out pet spots to the cleaner and say what caused them, since urine calls for a different treatment from a food spill.
Leave drying time before the final walk-through: the Carpet and Rug Institute says wet-cleaned carpet should be dry within 12 hours.
Keep the landlord’s itemized statement and any receipts together with your photos.

There is more on timing in how long carpet takes to dry, and on choosing whom to book in hiring a carpet cleaner.

What a move-out carpet cleaning costs

The national figures used here are general carpet cleaning rates, not move-out prices, so the arithmetic is the usual one. At HomeAdvisor’s $75–$125 per room, with these assumed room counts:

Worked examples at published rates
Home	Carpeted rooms (assumed)	National, by the room	Maid VIP’s estimate
One-bedroom apartment	2: bedroom and living room	$150–$250	$150, its visit minimum
Two-bedroom apartment	3: two bedrooms and living room	$225–$375	$150–$225
Three-bedroom house	4: three bedrooms and family room	$300–$500	$150–$300

Worked examples on published rates, not quotes. The cleaning company confirms the price before any work.

HomeAdvisor’s own average job, $183 for a standard three-bedroom home, sits well below that room-rate math; priced by area instead, 800 square feet of carpet at $0.20–$0.40 per square foot would be $160–$320. Stain treatment adds $40–$300 by severity on Angi’s figures, and deodorizing $0.10–$0.30 per square foot on HomeAdvisor’s. Maid VIP, our affiliated partner, estimates $30–$75 per room, with most whole-home jobs at $150–$400 and a $150 visit minimum. More homes are priced out in the Thousand Oaks cost guide, and the carpet cleaning page covers the visit.

Sources

Each was opened and checked in October 2026. General information about California law and local rules, not legal advice. Prices are national figures or Maid VIP’s labeled estimates, not quotes.

Questions

Short answers drawn from the sources above.

Can a landlord deduct for carpet cleaning if the carpet is as clean as at move-in?

The state’s publications limit cleaning deductions to restoring the unit’s move-in cleanliness and rule out charges for ordinary wear and tear, a category that takes in moderate dirt or spotting on carpet. Dated photos from both ends of the tenancy, and a cleaning invoice if you booked one, are your record of its condition.

How long does a landlord in California have to return a deposit?

21 calendar days or less after the tenancy ends, by the Department of Real Estate’s guide. The landlord refunds what is left after lawful deductions, and deductions over $125 come with copies of the invoices or receipts.

Are carpet stains normal wear and tear?

Moderate dirt or spotting is, by the Department of Real Estate’s guide. Large rips or indelible stains can justify a deduction for repair, or for replacement where reasonably necessary, and one common method prorates a replacement so the tenant pays only for the useful life that was left.

Does a landlord have to photograph the unit before charging for cleaning?

Yes, by the Department of Real Estate’s guide. Since April 1, 2025, a landlord must take photos within a reasonable time after the tenant returns the unit, before any cleaning or repairs to be deducted, and again once that work is done. Since July 1, 2025, landlords must also photograph the unit at the start of a tenancy.

What should a move-out carpet cleaning invoice show?

The date, the company’s name, the rooms cleaned and the method, plus any spot or pet treatment. Keep it with your move-out photos: if the landlord’s statement includes a carpet cleaning charge, it is your record of what was already done.

More in common questions, or read how a referral works.

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