Tenant Move-Out Checklist

Capture the written notice in the tenant file with date received. If the lease requires 30 or 60 days notice, confirm the notice date satisfies the period — short notice is the most common dispute at deposit-accounting time.

Compare the tenant's notice date to the lease's required period (commonly 30 or 60 days). Flag a holdover risk if the lease term ends before the move-out date with no renewal signed — state rules vary on automatic month-to-month conversion.

If notice is short, send a written letter documenting the lease's notice clause and the rent owed through the required period. This creates the paper trail for deducting the shortfall from the deposit.

State law sets a hard window (commonly 14-30 days from move-out) to send the itemized statement and refund. Calendar the drop-dead date with a 5-day buffer — missing it can forfeit deduction rights and trigger 2-3x statutory damages.

Cover cleaning expectations, key return, utility transfer, the forwarding-address request, and the walk-through scheduling. Setting expectations in writing now reduces deposit disputes later.

Use Zillow Rental Manager comps and recent leases in the building to set asking rent. Pricing too high lengthens days-vacant; the carrying cost of a 30-day vacancy usually exceeds a $50/month rent concession.

Photograph after make-ready completes, not while the current tenant is in place or during repairs. Listing photos with maintenance materials or personal belongings cause measurable showing-to-application drop-off.

Push to Zillow Rentals, Apartments.com, Realtor.com Rentals, and the firm site. Verify the required disclosures are in the listing copy: lead-paint notice for pre-1978 buildings, source-of-income language in protected jurisdictions, accessible-features note where applicable.

Offer the tenant a joint walk-through on or before move-out day. Some states (CA, e.g.) require the landlord to offer an initial inspection 2 weeks before move-out so the tenant can cure damage — confirm your state's rule.

Without a forwarding address the deposit refund and itemized statement get sent to the unit and bounce back. State law generally protects the manager who mailed to the last-known address, but a confirmed forwarding address closes that loop cleanly.

Use HappyCo or zInspector to capture room-by-room photos and notes, then compare against the move-in inspection. Pre-existing damage charged to the current tenant is the most common deposit-deduction lawsuit — the move-in baseline decides every dispute.

Inventory all returned items against the move-in key log. Missing items become a deposit deduction at the per-item rate stated in the lease (or the actual replacement cost if the lease is silent).

Walk the unit and itemize paint, flooring, appliance, fixture, and hardware work. Tag each line as tenant-chargeable damage or owner-paid wear-and-tear; this drives the deposit statement and the owner approval for any capex.

Pull the Certificate of Insurance for every vendor on the punch list — general liability and workers comp, with the property listed as additional insured. A lapsed COI on file leaves the manager personally exposed for any vendor incident on premises.

Schedule paint, carpet, and trades in dependency order — paint before flooring, flooring before final clean. Use AppFolio Work Orders or Latchel so labor and materials post against the unit for the owner statement.

Most states require working smoke and CO detectors before a new tenant moves in; some (MA) require a written certificate. Replace batteries, test each device, and log the test date in the unit file — this is a habitability defense if a future incident occurs.

Build the itemized statement with each charge, the supporting invoice or estimate, and the dated photo evidence. Distinguish damage from normal wear and tear — courts routinely strike paint and carpet deductions for tenancies over 2 years on the wear-and-tear theory.

Issue the refund check (or ACH) to the forwarding address along with the itemized statement. Confirm the send date falls inside the state-required window — CA Civil Code §1950.5 is 21 days, TX Property Code §92 is 30 days, FL Stat. §83 is 15-30 days depending on dispute.

If charges exceed the deposit, send a demand letter to the forwarding address with the itemized statement and 30-day pay deadline. Decide with the owner whether to send to collections or small-claims court if unpaid — both options preserve the claim under most state statutes.