Below is an outline for the process of moving out of West Main Flats.
1. TENANT(S) SUBMIT A “Tenant’s 30-Day Notice of Intent to Vacate” Form.
Our green 30 Day notice forms can be found in the West Main Flats laundry room. You do not need to wait until 30-Days prior to your move-out to submit this form. You should submit this form as soon as you know you will be moving out. The earlier the better. Only one form is to be submitted, but all vacating tenants must sign this form.
- Determining what move out date to give on a “30-Day Notice of Intent to Vacate” form- The day that you give the keys for the premises to the Property Manager is considered the move out date. The move out date and lease end date do not have to be the same date. Move out dates are to be scheduled Monday through Friday starting on the hour between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm on non-major holidays.
2. RECOGNITION OF INTENT TO VACATE
Once West Main Flats has received a “Tenant’s 30-Day Notice of Intent to Vacate” form, a recognition of the 30-Day notice will be placed in the apartment door. Attached to this recognition form will be further moving instructions and helpful tips including cleaning suggestions. Per Montana Landlord Tenant Law, West Main Flats requires the apartment to be returned in the same clean condition it was at move-in. Following these cleaning suggestions closely will help you return the unit to the same state of cleanliness as when you moved in. If you do not want to do the cleaning, contact the West Main Flats Office at lease 2 weeks prior to your move out date to inquire about current rates & make arrangements to have West Main Flats complete your apartment cleaning. Do not perform repairs or paint anything (i.e. fill nail holes).
3. PRE-MOVE-OUT CHECK FOR MAJOR REPAIRS
When your “Tenant’s 30-Day Notice of Intent to Vacate” form is received, West Main Flats Management will contact you to arrange a time to do a quick inspection of the apartment for any major repairs or renovations that will need to be scheduled in the time between your move out and the next tenant’s move in. This is NOT the final check out for cleaning and damages inspection. We are only looking for major maintenance issues such as if the water heater or carpets need to be replaced. This inspection takes less than 10 minutes.
4. CARPET CLEANING
The carpets need to be professionally steam cleaned after the apartment has been inspected for cleanliness and damages. There are two (2) options for taking care of carpet cleaning.
- Option 1 – Landlord Scheduled Carpet Cleaning. West Main Flats Property Management can schedule for the carpets to be cleaned after you move out and the cost will be deducted from your security deposit. Contact the office for an estimate on the cost of carpet cleaning. Our costs are usually significantly less than what most tenants can negotiate on their own.
- Option 2- Tenant Scheduled Carpet Cleaning. You may arrange for a different company to clean the carpets. You need to schedule the carpets to be cleaned after the apartment has been inspected by the management and declared clean. The following is a required timeline of events for this process.
i. Remove all items from the apartment.
ii. Clean the apartment
iii. Have the apartment inspected by West Main Flats Management for cleaning and damages. The original condition of premises report is used to determine damages and cleaning.
iv. Finish any cleaning required by West Main Flats Management
v. Have carpets professionally steam cleaned
vi. If carpet cleaning is not scheduled through West Main Flats, Provide a receipt showing that the carpet cleaners have been paid. Hand keys to West Main Flats Management. If no receipt showing that the carpet cleaners have been paid is provided, then carpet cleaning scheduled by the West Main Flats Management will be deducted from the security deposit.
5. FINAL CHECK OUT INSPECTION FOR CLEANING AND DAMAGES
Call the office at least one (1) week before your move out date to schedule a final cleaning and damages inspection for a Monday through Friday starting on the hour between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm. Inspections are not performed on the weekend or on major holidays.
- If your move out date is a Monday the cleaning and damages inspection will take place at that time, then you will have 24 hours from the inspection to finish the cleaning.
- If your move out date is on a day from Tuesday to Friday the cleaning and damages inspection can take place the day before, then you will have 24 hours to finish the cleaning.
At this appointment, a thorough inspection of the apartment is performed for cleanliness and for any damages as compared to the original yellow condition of premises report given to you at check in. We ask that you please DO NOT attempt any repairs or painting of the unit yourself before this appointment. Plan on this check out inspection taking a full hour. The expectation is that all items will have been removed from the apartment and the unit has been thoroughly deep cleaned before the inspection takes place. At this appointment, West Main Flats Management will tell you exactly what cleaning, if any, needs to still be done to return the unit to the condition it was at move in. West Main Flats follows Montana Landlord Tenant Law and gives tenants a list of any cleaning that is still required and 24 hours after the inspection to finish any additional cleaning that may be required. If a tenant chooses not to clean, West Main Flats will finish cleaning the unit after the tenant has vacated and deduct the charges per hour spent cleaning from the security deposit refund.
6. KEY RETURN Keys may be returned at the final check out inspection for cleaning and damages. If tenants choose to stay and use the 24 hours to do any further cleaning as deemed necessary at the checkout, they may return the keys when they are done by placing them in an envelope with their apartment number written on it and then dropping the envelope into a rent box. You must return the same number of keys as originally checked out. Charges for lost keys will be deducted from the security deposit refund.
7. SECURITY DEPOSIT REFUND Within 30-Days of your final move-out date, your security deposit will be mailed out to the address you give Property Management at your final check out. The security deposit refund will be split equally between all tenants unless instructed otherwise by ALL vacating tenants.