How To Streamline The Tenant Move-Out Process

Let’s discuss the move-out process, so tenants can avoid some of the most costly mistakes that we at Advanced Solutions Property Management in Salt Lake City often see.

Tenants obviously want to get their security deposit back. Having repair work and clean-up during turnover costs time and money associated with having vacant units, and this is compounded by having unhappy tenants who were not sure what was expected of them at move-out.

The best case scenario is to have a unit ready for rent when we do the exit inspection.

This is less work, less cost and less headaches for everyone involved.

We highly advise you to get your move-in inspection report that you conducted at lease up.

This will tell you what you are responsible for, and not responsible for at move-out.

Remember that the owner requires we subtract any costs associated with cleanup and repair, and during move-out I think we can all agree that the owner should not pay for cleaning or repair of the rental unit.

We have put together this video to help you, the tenant, avoid costly mistakes that we see time after time.

Make sure you return any keys and all garage remotes to the property.

Remotes can run anywhere from $100-$200 a piece.

Yards are always forgotten by tenants. If you live in a rental unit where you were responsible for yard care, the yard must be in good shape at move-out.

You will not be charged for a few weeds or less than perfect lawn care, but what we are not able to overlook is dead or very overgrown grass, heavy weeds or pet waste being present in the yard.

Inside the rental, the most common issues we find in the kitchen are grease still on the range hood, items left in the cupboards, and greasy or dirty baseboards.

In the living and sleeping areas easily the most common mistake tenants make is not hiring a professional carpet cleaning company.

Just vacuuming and running a rented carpet cleaner over the carpet is not enough! We require a receipt from a legitimate carpet cleaning company.

Turning in a handwritten receipt with carpet cleaning written on it will not be accepted.

The bathroom is another area where we see many issues.

We understand that nobody wants to really clean a bathroom, but bathroom cleanliness is paramount for the next tenant.

You will not be charged for wear and tear issues.

Wear and tear is the normal use of a property, but what you could be charged for is damage.

Examples of damage are tears in the carpet, burns on a vinyl floor, and nail holes in a wall.

These will need to be repaired and possibly replaced, which may be very expensive.

Another issue we see quite a bit is tenants not reporting a maintenance issue that has caused more damage.

This can be considered tenant cause, and may come out of the security deposit.

Changing the physical character of a property is another problem, and the largest example of this is painting.

Your favorite color will not be the favorite color of the tenant moving in, and you will be responsible for the repainting of the affected area, and that includes supplies and labor.

State law requires that we process and send out security deposits within 30 days of move-out.

The more work we have to do in a turnover, the longer this process will take.

We want you to receive your deposit as quickly as possible, so if you have not received your deposit by the 20th of the month after you moved out please contact us to find out the status of your security deposit.

If you’re a residential property owner, and would like to discuss having Advanced Solutions Property Management manage your rental property, click here to get in touch with us.