Landlords can usually charge for labor, within limits
When a landlord — or the landlord's own maintenance staff — does repair work personally instead of hiring an outside contractor, deposit deductions still generally cover that labor, not just materials. The deposit exists to cover the real cost of fixing damage beyond normal wear and tear, and labor is part of that cost whether it comes from a contractor's invoice or the landlord's own time.
What isn't allowed is using "labor" as a way to inflate a deduction — charging a fee that doesn't reflect real time spent on real, chargeable work.
What "reasonable" means for a landlord's own time
A charge for a landlord's own labor generally has to reflect time actually spent, a defensible hourly rate for the type of work involved, and a connection to actual damage rather than normal wear and tear, which isn't billable no matter who performs the work. A landlord charging two hours at a plumber's hourly rate to patch a nail hole is a different situation than a landlord charging two hours at a handyman's rate to repair a hole punched in drywall.
What a landlord has to show you
Because a landlord's own labor charge is easy to inflate compared to a third-party invoice, some states require more documentation for it, not less. If a landlord's itemized deposit statement lists labor with no description of the work, no hours, and no rate, that's a weaker basis for a charge than one that spells all three out.
Materials and labor are usually billed separately
A repair invoice — whether from an outside contractor or from the landlord's own itemized statement — typically separates the cost of materials (the replacement part, the paint, the hardware) from the cost of labor (the time it took to install or repair it). That separation matters because it lets you check each piece on its own: does the material cost match a receipt, and does the labor reflect a reasonable rate for reasonable time? A single lump-sum number that blends both together, with neither broken out, is harder to verify and worth asking to see itemized before you accept it.
A realistic example
Say a cabinet door comes off its hinges during your tenancy, from something other than normal use. If the landlord's handyman spends 45 minutes reattaching and adjusting it, a charge in the range of $40 to $60 — reflecting a modest hourly rate and the actual time involved — is the kind of labor charge that holds up under scrutiny. A charge of $250 for that same 45 minutes, with no explanation of the rate or the work performed, is the kind of number that invites a dispute, even when the underlying repair itself was legitimate. The exact dollar figures will vary by your area and the type of repair, but the pattern is the same: real time, a defensible rate, and a description of the work are what separate a fair labor charge from an inflated one.
What one state's rule looks like in practice
California Civil Code § 1950.5(h)(2)(A) requires that "if the landlord or landlord's employee did the work, the itemized statement shall reasonably describe the work performed. The itemized statement shall include the time spent and the reasonable hourly rate charged." That's about as direct a confirmation as exists that a landlord can bill for their own labor — but only with the work described, the hours listed, and a rate that's reasonable, not just asserted. California's law separately caps any deduction, for labor or materials, at "a reasonable amount necessary to restore the premises... exclusive of ordinary wear and tear."
Texas doesn't have a rule about repair labor specifically, but its law recognizes the same underlying idea in a different context: when a tenant cancels before moving in, Property Code § 92.1031(b)(2) lets a landlord keep "actual expenses... including a reasonable amount for the time of the landlord" spent finding a replacement tenant. The concept is the same — a landlord's own time has a real, billable value — even though the situation there is a cancelled move-in, not a move-out repair.
How to check whether a labor charge is fair
Ask for the breakdown behind any labor charge: what work was done, how many hours it took, and what hourly rate was used. Compare that rate to what a local handyman or contractor would reasonably charge for similar work in your area. And remember that normal wear and tear is off the table regardless of who does the labor or how carefully it's documented — a well-itemized charge for un-billable work is still un-billable.
If a labor charge looks inflated, undocumented, or tied to ordinary wear rather than real damage, dispute it in writing and ask for the same specificity your state's law expects. Honestkey™ reads your uploaded lease and flags deduction-related clauses worth double-checking, and gives you a template letter if you need to push back on a move-out charge.