The tenant is liable for damage that goes beyond normal wear and tear, measured by comparing the exit inventory with the entry inventory. The deposit covers the cost first, and if it is not enough the landlord can claim the balance, ultimately before the justice of the peace. Normal ageing is not the tenant’s responsibility.
A Walloon tenant must return the property in the state described in the entry inventory, allowing for normal wear and tear (usure normale). Damage beyond that ordinary ageing, a burn in a worktop, a broken door, unexplained holes, is the tenant’s responsibility, and the reference point is the comparison between the entry and exit inventories drawn up under the decree of 15 March 2018 (logement.wallonie.be, 2018).
The distinction between wear and damage is where most disputes live. Faded paint after years of occupation, minor scuffing or an ageing carpet are normal and fall on the landlord; deliberate or negligent harm falls on the tenant. This is exactly why the entry inventory is so important: without a detailed baseline, the tenant is presumed to have received the property in its exit condition, and the landlord struggles to prove any damage at all (logement.wallonie.be, 2018).
Financially, the deposit is the first line of recovery. The landlord and tenant agree on the deductions and release the blocked account accordingly; if the deposit does not cover the cost, the landlord can pursue the balance, and where there is no agreement the matter goes to the justice of the peace (droitsquotidiens.be, 2026). The landlord cannot simply help themselves to the deposit, since the blocked account only unlocks with both signatures or a court order.
The counter-intuitive reality is that landlords lose winnable claims through paperwork, not through the law. A tenant who genuinely caused damage can walk away paying nothing if there is no proper entry inventory to compare against. The lesson repeats across the whole rental process: the document you drew up on day one decides the argument on the last day. These principles are Walloon; Brussels and Flanders apply comparable but separately codified rules.
At a glance
| Situation | Who bears the cost |
|---|---|
| Normal wear and tear (usure normale) | Landlord |
| Damage beyond normal use | Tenant |
| How it is assessed | Exit inventory compared with entry inventory |
| First source of payment | The rental deposit |
| Deposit insufficient | Landlord claims the balance |
| No agreement on deductions | Justice of the peace decides |
| No entry inventory | Tenant presumed to have received property as-is |