Security deposits rarely disappear over big damage. They disappear over an oven that wasn't degreased, a refrigerator nobody wiped out, and dusty blinds. Inspections follow a predictable pattern, and if you know the pattern you can beat it. Here's what gets checked in a North Alabama rental turnover, room by room.
Kitchen — this is where deposits are won and lost. Inside the oven, including the racks and the glass door. Inside and underneath the refrigerator, with the drawers pulled out and washed. Range hood filter degreased. Every cabinet and drawer wiped out, inside as well as on the face. Countertops, backsplash, and the sink including the drain and faucet base. Pull the appliances out and clean the floor behind them — inspectors do look.
Bathrooms — soap scum on the shower glass and tile grout is the first thing checked. Then the toilet base and the bolts behind it, the sink overflow hole, the vanity interior, the mirror, the exhaust fan cover, and the tub or shower drain. Any mildew in the caulk line needs to come out.
Floors — vacuum all carpet, and pay attention to the edges where the carpet meets the baseboard, since that's where pet hair and dust collect. Hard floors get swept and mopped, corners included. If the carpet is stained beyond cleaning, tell your landlord before the inspection rather than hoping it goes unnoticed.
Walls, trim, and doors — scuff marks on walls, dust on top of door frames, fingerprints around light switches and door handles, and the baseboards throughout. Baseboards are the single most commonly skipped item in a self-performed move-out clean.
Windows — interior glass, sills, and the tracks. Window tracks fill with grit and dead insects, and they're an easy thing for an inspector to point at.
The forgotten list — ceiling fan blades, light fixture globes (which collect insects), air vent covers, the inside of the washer and dryer plus the dryer lint trap, closet shelves and rods, the water heater closet, the garage floor, and the patio or balcony.
One order-of-operations tip that saves a whole second pass: work top to bottom in every room, and do all the floors last. Dust falls. If you mop first and then dust the blinds, you're mopping twice.
If you'd rather hand the whole thing off, that's exactly what our move-out service is for — the house is empty, we can reach everything, and we work from this same list. Call (256) 791-1564 in Huntsville, Madison, Athens, or anywhere in our service area for a free estimate.