Transitioning a home from resident to resident is one of the most difficult parts of managing a property. In fact, many investors are often surprised by the complexity of the overall process. That’s because doing it well involves a number of steps: screening new residents, moving out former residents, and tackling some administrative tasks that seem minor, but aren’t. At Haven Homes, we’ve learned from experience that having an effective process in place can make all the difference in terms of your profit.  

Here are five often-overlooked administrative tasks that will keep your resident transitions smooth: 

• Scope the property. Once your resident moves out, you will need to scope your property room by room. At Haven Homes, we use very detailed scope sheets to help us catch everything and estimate the repair costs. Without written guidelines, even the best inspector might overlook a minor repair. For example, did your last resident have children? We have found colorful art in some of the most unlikely places.   

• Issue an itemized move-out statement. When the former residents moved out, you should have conducted a move-out inspection with them. At the end, you both must sign the inspection to signal that you’re in agreement on any issues. After that, you are legally obligated to quickly issue an itemized move-out statement that details the cost of any damage. While guidelines vary from state to state, the window of time is usually quite limited. 

• Issue security deposits. Along with the itemized statement, your prior residents will know exactly how much of their security deposit—if any—will be returned. After all, the costs will be deducted from the original amount, so they should be very clear. You must issue any refunds to them along with the move-out statement.  

• Hire contractors early.  As you may have read on our blog about the move-out process, it’s important to do a preliminary (but brief) walkthrough of the property as soon as you get notice that the residents will be moving out. That way, you can reach out to contractors and vendors to get on their schedules, which can be crucial if the property is in an area with limited options. It’s smart to think about it early because you want your property to be move-in-ready as soon as possible. At Haven Homes, we’ve discovered that this process minimizes vacancies, allowing you to keep your income consistent.  

• Evaluate repairs and renovations. The scope sheet allows you to get a handle on what vendors need to fix—but once the work is done, there’s more for you to do. It’s always smart to take your scope sheet and double-check that all repairs meet your standards. (After all, you don’t want to discover something wasn’t done properly after the vendors are off to their next jobs.) Catching issues early not only saves time and money, it guarantees that the new residents feel at home from the very first moment that they step foot in your property.  

As you can tell, it’s important to meet your legal obligations to former residents, while ensuring new residents are taken care of. Follow our tips to protect your investment by guaranteeing that resident transitions go as smoothly as possible.   

Want to make sure that you have all your bases covered? Be sure to download our Comprehensive Guide to Property Management.