I think when it comes to financial related matter, “reason” shouldn’t be the bar for determining the outcome. “Reasonable” is highly subjective. If I were you, I would do what the tenants rights site suggests, which is schedule a walk through “before” you move out and the owner has to present you with a list of things they want fixed. This way, you can “fix” the simple things and the list goes through things that are considered normal wear and tear. I’d suggest you print this list out – don’t assume your owner knows the rules. This is from the website I included earlier- here’s the link to the specific page. Put everything in writing as others have suggested.
Initial Inspection Before Tenant Moves Out
A tenant may ask the landlord to inspect the rental unit before the tenancy ends to identify defects or conditions that justify deductions from the tenant’s security deposit. The purpose of this “initial inspection” is to give the tenant an opportunity to repair the defects or do the cleaning identified during the inspection in order to avoid deductions from the tenant’s security deposit. The tenant has the right to be present during the inspection.
The landlord must perform an initial inspection as described in this sidebar if the tenant requests it, but cannot make an initial inspection unless the tenant requests it. However, the landlord is not required to perform an initial inspection if the landlord has served the tenant with a three-day notice (an eviction notice) for one of the reasons specified in footnote 204.204
Landlord’s notice
The landlord must give the tenant written notice of the tenant’s right to request an initial inspection of the rental and to be present during the inspection. The landlord must give this notice to the tenant a “reasonable time” after either the landlord or the tenant has given the other written notice of intent to terminate (end) the tenancy (see Moving Out). If the tenant has a lease, the landlord must give the tenant this notice a “reasonable time” before the lease ends. If the tenant does not request an initial inspection, the landlord does not have any other duties with respect to the initial inspection.205
