Move-Out Checklist for Tenants

When to use this checklist

Start a few weeks before your move-out date, while there’s still time to give notice, book a pre-move-out inspection and plan the cleaning. To budget the move itself, the moving cost calculator compares your quotes for a truck, movers and a moving container, and the moving checklist dates the rest of the move, from utilities to your change of address. The checklist runs in order: the weeks before, the last week, cleaning room by room, moving day and the weeks after you leave.

Moving out is when your deposit is on the line. Two things matter most: a record of the unit’s condition, and giving your landlord what they need from you, like your forwarding address. This checklist covers both.

How to use the generator

1. Add your name, the address and your move-out date, and your landlord’s or property manager’s name.
2. Pick your layout so the cleaning sections match your home: bedrooms, bathrooms, and a laundry area, balcony or storage if you have them.
3. Check off tasks as you finish them. Use the notes for dates, names and reminders, such as the day you sent your notice.
4. Print it or download the PDF if you’d rather work on paper. Your notes print under each task.

Your answers stay in your browser. A draft is saved on this device so you can come back to it over the weeks of your move. Press Clear to delete it.

Sample move-out checklist

Here’s a checklist part-way through a move, made with the generator. The names, address and notes are made up.

The steps that protect your deposit

• Find your move-in checklist and photos before you clean. They show what was already there when you moved in. If you don’t have one yet for your next home, use the move-in checklist.
• Ask for a pre-move-out inspection. The Federal Trade Commission suggests requesting one to find out about any potential deductions, and some states give you that right (see below).
• Give your forwarding address in writing. Your landlord needs it to send the deposit or a list of deductions. The security deposit calculator shows how long your landlord has in your state.
• Take dated photos or video of every room once it’s empty and clean, including inside the oven, refrigerator, cabinets and closets.
• Return every key, fob and remote, and ask for a receipt that lists them.
• Keep copies of your notice, your photos and every message about the deposit.

Cleaning and small repairs

The checklist’s cleaning sections are for handing the unit back. For your next place, the apartment cleaning checklist has a move-in clean and a weekly list.

• Read your lease first. Some leases list what you have to clean or replace, so follow them.
• Test any cleaner on a hidden spot before you use it on walls, cabinets or floors.
• Take down hooks and adhesive strips with the maker’s removal steps. Pulling them off the wrong way can take paint with them.
• Ask before you patch or paint. A patch or touch-up that doesn’t match can stand out more than the hole. Get your landlord’s answer in writing. If you agreed to repaint, the paint calculator works out how much paint the walls take.
• Don’t forget the hidden spots: inside the oven and refrigerator, the range hood filter, window tracks, baseboards and the tops of door frames.

How to send notice and your forwarding address

Put both in writing, and send them the way your lease asks for notices. The 30-day notice letter writes the notice for you, with a line for your forwarding address.

• Email gives you a dated copy right away. Save any reply.
• Mail with proof gives you a record that it was sent. A Certificate of Mailing costs $2.45 and shows the date you mailed it. Certified Mail costs $5.55 plus postage, and a paper return receipt adds $4.65 (USPS prices from Oct 4, 2026).
• Keep a copy of everything you send, with the date.

If your move is mid-month, the prorated rent calculator shows what a partial last month comes to, and the break lease cost calculator helps if you’re leaving before your lease ends.

What some states require

A few states set rules that matter at move-out:

• California: you can ask for an inspection before you move out, no earlier than 2 weeks before the end of the tenancy. The landlord then lists the repairs or cleaning they would charge for, so you can do them yourself. (Civil Code 1950.5(f))
• New York: you can ask for an inspection between 2 weeks and 1 week before the tenancy ends, with at least 48 hours' written notice of the time. You get a list of what to fix and a chance to fix it. (General Obligations Law 7-108(1-a)(d))
• Maryland: if you tell the landlord by certified mail at least 15 days before you move, with your move date and new address, you can be there when they inspect the unit. (Real Property 8-203.1)
• Texas: the landlord doesn't have to return the deposit or describe deductions until you give them your forwarding address in writing. (Property Code 92.107)
• California: since April 1, 2025, the landlord takes photos after you move out and before repairs or cleaning, then again after the work is done. (Civil Code 1950.5(g))

These are examples, not a complete list. Your lease and your state’s law decide your deadlines and your rights, so check both. If your state’s deadline passes without your deposit or a list of deductions, ask for it in writing with the security deposit demand letter.