Seven Things You Need to Do Before Leaving Your Dallas Rental

Seven Things You Need to Do Before Leaving Your Dallas Rental

Congrats…you’ve found the Dallas apartment of your dreams. You’re moving up in the world, and in the process, will be leaving your old Dallas rental property behind. Preparing as much as possible in advance and knowing what to expect ahead of time can help improve your chances of getting your security deposit back and also facilitate a smooth and uneventful transition from one place to another. That being said, here are 7 things to add to your moving to-do list.

Get yourself organized. Before you find yourself buried in boxes and running out of precious time, make a point to get organized about the moving process. Create a checklist of everything you need to do in your current Dallas rental in order to get out on time and without incident, as well as what will need to be taken care of in the interim, such as packing and switching over utilities.

Go over your lease. Not all Dallas apartments are created equal. One property manager might be fine with a 30 day notice in writing, while others might require longer lead-time. Another lease might mandate that certain things are restored to how they were prior to your tenancy, such as paint color. Getting your hard-earned security deposit back depends on sticking to the legally binding document you signed, so understand ahead of time what’s expected of you and what your rights are.

Get your clean on. At the very least, you’ll need to make sure your current Dallas apartment is clean as a whistle before moving that last box out the door and handing over the keys. Allow yourself adequate time following the physical move to go back and conduct a thorough cleaning. If there are any repairs that need to be made, such as patching holes where pictures were hung, put those on your list as well.

Move everything out. Most rental properties – Dallas apartments included – require that every single piece of property you own be removed from the premises no later than the final day of your tenancy. That includes cleaning supplies, trash and anything else you may no longer need. Depending on what your lease requires, if you leave anything behind, you could be on the hook for additional rent or other ancillary fees, so don’t take any chances.

Take pictures. Once your soon-to-be-former Dallas rental is all cleaned out and ready to go for the next tenant, take a few moments to snap some photos (and make sure they can be date verified). These may come in handy should your former landlord try to claim any portion of your security deposit due to the way the place was left. Pictures of a clean unit with no damages (or pre-existing ones that can be proven) could save you in court.

Schedule and stick to a walk-through. Before you drop those keys off to your former landlord or property manager, make sure you’re both on the same page as far as the state of the Dallas rental unit you’re relinquishing. This will provide you the opportunity to demonstrate how clean and in-good-order the apartment is and also go over any questions or concerns you or the other party may have.

Provide a forwarding address. Before you get settled into your brand-spanking new Dallas apartment, the last step should be providing your previous landlord with your new address. This is critical because he or she will need it to mail you your deposit.

Itching to leave your current Dallas rental but can’t seem to find the perfect apartment for your needs? Give Dallas Apartment Locators a call. We can help find you the ideal new residence.

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