Mastering Move-Outs: Keyrenter’s Seamless Moving Out Experience
The move-out process is a stressful experience for all parties involved. On one hand, most landlords don’t have processes and standard operating procedures to stay organized, such as carrying out a move-out inspection, assessing property damages, and determining whether to refund their tenant’s security deposit fully or partially.
On the other hand, tenants must give or be given notice to vacate well in advance (which doesn’t always happen), so they have enough time to sort out their living situation, pack up their belongings, and return the property in the condition they received it.
Juggling move-out formalities and the hunt for new tenants can lead to plenty of headaches and potential vacancy exposure for landlords. Working with a dedicated property manager is a great way to prevent this from happening, avoid the hassle, and even pre-lease your property. Doing so also reduces the risk of tenants owing money in the form of overdue rent, other pending charges, or the cost of repairs.
In this article, we’ll walk you through every step of Keyrenter Arkansas’s seamless move-out experience, from the notice to vacate to the disbursement and accounting of your tenants’ security deposit. You’ll learn how a meticulous move-out process helps set the right expectations with residents and avoid disputes during move-out procedures.
Keyrenter Arkansas’s Move-Out Experience
1. Notice to Vacate
A notice to vacate is the first step in our move-out process. The current resident(s) provides this notice, which must be submitted to Keyrenter roughly 60 to 90 days before the lease expiration date. This notice period gives us ample time to pre-lease a property, procure new residents long before the property is vacant, and reduce vacancy exposure for our clients in many instances.
2. Leasing Process Begins
As soon as a resident submits their notice to move out, our leasing process begins. Our team will conduct a thorough review of the listing, making changes as needed and re-listing the property on 60+ real estate online platforms such as Zillow.com, Abodo.com, social media, and many others.
Anytime a property is listed online, owners will receive a notification from our team with a link to review the live listing on one of the platforms we advertise through. Be sure to check out this article if you want to learn more about our leasing experience, and stay tuned for a blog post we’ll be sharing related to how our team has mastered the renewal process to ensure long-term success for our clients and quality service for their residents.
3. Communicating Expectations
Once a property has been relisted, we communicate with the current residents to plan ahead, align expectations related to specific dates, and ensure the move-out and their preparations go smoothly. This includes setting the final move-out date, coordinating key drop-off, and verifying that all outstanding balances and utilities have been paid off.
At this point, we reiterate our expectations regarding the property’s condition to residents. They need to ensure the property is then handed back in the condition they received it: clean, empty of furniture, with what would be considered normal wear-and-tear, etc.
Sometimes, residents may request to break their lease and move out ahead of time. When this happens, our team will act swiftly and work closely with the residents, explaining all of the associated costs related to breaking their lease agreement, and then, of course, make an attempt to find a new tenant quickly. Thankfully, this does not happen often, as we screen our applicants thoroughly. Throughout this process, our team will also communicate with the owner of the property, ensuring they are kept informed of any transpiring situations.
4. Day Of Move-Out
As the departure date approaches, a move-out inspection will be scheduled. One of our maintenance technicians will conduct a thorough walkthrough, taking notes and photos to compare the property’s condition at move-in versus move-out. This documentation helps determine if any repairs are needed that should be covered by the resident’s security deposit.
Based on the inspection findings, we will assess whether tenants are eligible for a full deposit refund or if deductions are required. If any deductions are necessary, a detailed deposit disposition letter will be sent, outlining costs for issues like carpet stains, broken doors, clogged drains, pet damage, or other needed repairs.
After this review, we’ll confirm that the security deposit covers the repairs or calculate the refund amount. Tenants will be required to return all keys, garage door openers, and other remotes, and provide their forwarding address for deposit refunds unless they’ve opted into our ACH option.
Finally, we’ll update our system to reflect the tenant’s departure and send a feedback form to continue improving our services.
5. Make-Ready Process
Once the move-out is completed, our next priority is preparing the house for the next resident. Guided by the move-out inspection report, we create a punch list of necessary repairs to meet Keyrenter’s Minimum Property Standards. Common tasks include touch-up paint, minor floor repairs, odor removal, and ensuring safety measures like fire extinguishers and smoke detectors are in place.
Repairs are handled by our in-house maintenance team or trusted vendors, who offer us preferential pricing due to our volume of work. Landlord approval is requested before starting any make-ready work. Although landlords may choose to handle repairs independently, this can often be more expensive, time-consuming, and may not meet our standards, potentially leading to extended vacancy and loss of rental income.
6. Deposits & Final Accounting
The final step involves managing deposits and completing the final accounting. We inform tenants of the move-out inspection results and whether they are responsible for any repair costs that will be deducted from their security deposit. While tenants are not liable for normal wear and tear or issues like roof leaks and foundation problems, damages beyond normal use—such as broken cabinet doors or damaged walls—are their responsibility. If repair costs exceed the security deposit, we will request the tenant cover the difference.
We take property inspections seriously and strive to document the condition of the home thoroughly before and after residents, as those help us solve disputes promptly and save our landlords thousands of dollars, hundreds of hours, and dozens of headaches.
Why Choose Keyrenter As Your Property Management Partner?
Keyrenter’s structured move-out approach handles everything for landlords promptly and efficiently. Our system minimizes their responsibilities to a bare minimum, keeps all parties well informed throughout the move-out timeline, and manages expectations effectively, preventing last-minute surprises.
Our philosophy is to solve problems before they even happen. By automating key aspects of communication and employing rigorous inspection standards, we safeguard the property’s condition and the financial interests of homeowners and residents, minimizing disputes, but also helping settle them swiftly with the use of well-documented inspections.
This careful approach has helped us eliminate the frictions common to owning rental properties, as well as alleviate the stress of thousands of independent landlords so that their experience is as passive and profitable as can be.
If you’re interested in teaming up with Keyrenter as your Property Management Solution and want to know other ways we can grow your wealth through real estate, be sure to schedule a discovery call with our local BDM through Keyrenter Arkansas’s website.