What Do I do when the tenant leaves a lot of junk in my rental after moving out?

After a tenant moves out, the rental is supposed to be returned to the landlord in clean and undamaged condition. That means all the tenants belongings and debris, junk and large items are gone from the premises.

BUT, we are in the Landlord Business. In this business, things don't always go as planned. Tenants don't always honor their word, their signature, and they don't always clean out the place on the way out.

Leaving the rental a mess or leaving the tenant's discarded items is NOT acceptable. The charge for clean up and removal of items from the property should be billed to the tenant and added to any balance owed on the tenant's account. These charges are normally added to the Security Settlement Statement and deducted from the tenant's security deposit.

Sending a pre-moveout letter of instructions to the tenants in the weeks before they vacate has greatly improved the performance of tenants in returning the rental property as it should be: Clean and Free of debris.

Move Out Clean Up & Debris Letter
Have you ever wondered if the tenants would have done a better job vacating if you gave them specific instructions? Much like the LPA Move Out Reminder Letter, this reminds the tenants to not wait until their last day of tenancy to put out garbage and debris. They are urged avoid clean up charges and deductions from their security deposit and to make arrangements as soon as possible to get rid of their unwanted items, rather than leave them behind in or around the property.

Copyright © 2006 The Landlord Protection Agency, Inc. All Rights Reserved.