Renters: 7 Things To Do Before Moving Out
Getting the deposit back after moving is something we always look forward to. To us, it’s kinda like “found money” and can be quite useful to balance out moving costs. Here are 7 things we do before moving out which helps ensure our deposit check is in the mail.
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Patch up holes Once you’ve taken your artwork down, remove nails and screws and patch with spackling paste. Don’t forget to sand each spot for a smooth wall that your landlord can easily paint over.
Repaint This all depends on your landlord, the lease and what both parties agreed to when you first moved in. But if you weren’t supposed to paint or you agreed to repaint when you moved out, unfortunately you’ll have to tackle this big chore. We like to have “painting parties” and get friends involved or hire day laborers for a budget friendly option.
Clean out the oven and fridge We always like to leave the apartment how we found it (which means cleaning the oven and the fridge). Schedule these tasks at least a month to two weeks before you move since they can be time consuming. You can line the oven with tinfoil to protect it from future spills.
Clean Don’t forget to give the apartment a good cleaning after everything has been moved out. Since we can barely stomach mopping after a long day of moving all our belongings out, we usually indulge in a cleaning service.
Leave an empty apartment You may think you’re doing the landlord or future tenants a favor by leaving a spare broom or baking soda but it’s best to donate/recycle/toss any belongings that you don’t plan on taking with you.
Round-up the keys Don’t forget to gather all the keys to your apartment building (even the spare set that you had made for the neighbors).
Plan a walk-through Schedule a time for you and your landlord to walk through the apartment building. This will give you a chance to show your landlord that you’ve taken care of everything and ensure that the deposit check will be returned.
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(Image: Beth Zeigler)