Move-Out Instructions

Notice must be in writing, and we must receive it before the day your rent is due. It then takes effect on the last day of the following rental period. So if rent is due on the first and you want to leave at the end of March, we need your notice by the end of February, not on March 1st. Allow time for it to reach us.

You can deliver it to our office in person, mail it, or email it to an address that has been designated for service. Posting and deemed receipt are different dates, so ask us to confirm in writing that we have it. A fixed-term agreement that says you must move out on a specific date is a separate case. Check your agreement and ask us if it is not clear.

We inspect the property with you at the end of the tenancy, the same way we did at the start, and we complete a written report comparing the two.

This is not optional for us: we are required to offer you at least two opportunities to schedule it, and you are entitled to take part. We will propose times and work around your moving day where we can. If you cannot attend, tell us and we will arrange it another way. Do not simply leave, though, because the inspection protects both of us. It is the record of what the property was like when you handed it back.

Please have everything out and the property cleaned before the inspection, and bring all keys, fobs, garage remotes and mailbox keys with you, or return them to the office beforehand.

Give us your new address in writing. This matters more than it sounds: the clock on returning your deposit starts from the later of the day the tenancy ends and the day we receive that address. Without it, we cannot start.

Within 15 days of the later of the tenancy ending and receiving your written forwarding address, we must either return your deposit, with any interest the regulations require, or apply to the Residential Tenancy Branch for permission to keep part of it.

We can only deduct from your deposit in one of two ways: you agree in writing to a specific amount, or the Residential Tenancy Branch orders it. We do not decide deductions on our own, and you are never obliged to agree to one. If we disagree about the condition of the property, that is what the dispute resolution process is for.

A pet damage deposit, if you paid one, is a separate amount with its own rules and is handled the same way.

Leave the property reasonably clean and undamaged, with everything that came with it still there.

You are not responsible for reasonable wear and tear: carpet that has thinned over four years of ordinary use, paint that has dulled, small marks from normal living. You are responsible for damage beyond that, and for cleaning you did not do.

We do not require a professional cleaning receipt. We require the property to be clean. If you would rather hire someone, that is your choice.

If you leave before a fixed term ends, you may be responsible for rent until the term ends or the property is re-rented, whichever comes first.

We are required to make reasonable efforts to re-rent it rather than let it sit empty at your expense, and we will. Talk to us as early as you can. The sooner we know, the sooner we can start, and the less this is likely to cost you.

Keep utilities connected through the condition inspection; we cannot properly check appliances, heat or lighting otherwise. Arrange final meter readings for after the inspection.

We usually begin marketing the property about 30 days before the end of the tenancy. We will give you proper written notice before any showing and work around your schedule where we can.