When the tenant who has been in your property for a year or longer gives notice that they will be moving out, there’s a process that should be followed. Some companies offer pre-move out inspections, where you can take a look at the home and let the tenant know what needs to be done before the move out inspection is conducted. We offer this to our tenants, but it’s completely optional. Some tenants like it and others do not.
Move Out Procedures
We always send tenants a move out procedure letter. It lets them know what is required before they move out. These are things like having the carpets professionally cleaned and having the unit professionally cleaned. We provide some referrals to companies we’ve used for these services before. When they moved in, we left them touch up paint they can use to take care of any marks or spots on the walls. It may or may not work so well, but they have it there so the property can be kept in good condition. We ask that everything is working and the utilities are kept on for the move out inspection. We tell them that we’ll be testing light bulbs, checking the plumbing, and inspecting the appliances. We want to know if there have been any problems at the property.
Move Out Inspection
After the tenant has had time to prepare for the move out,
we conduct the inspection, using a rental walk through checklist. We make sure we get all the keys back, including the garage door opener and the mailbox key. If they don’t have those, they will be charged from the security deposit, and that’s explained to them in the move out letter. We check the air filter to see if it was changed and maintained. We take photos of the condition of the property and note the cleanliness. We do this inspection with the tenants.
That way, they are aware of what’s happening and what we’re noticing. It also gives them a chance to say if anything has been causing issues recently. When we have completed the inspection, we give them a copy and the owners get a copy as well. We use our inspection report to schedule any maintenance and identify things that are the tenant’s responsibility and will be reconciled against the security deposit. We always ask for a forwarding address so we can send their security deposit reconciliation.