How Long Does it Take to Turnover an Apartment?

How Long Does it Takes to Turnover an Apartment

It usually takes seven days to complete an apartment turnover if all repairs are outsourced. 

However, if it is a DIY apartment turnover and with the basic maintenance tools, it can take up to 2 weeks, and you will probably have to subcontract some repairs if necessary, for example;

  • Bathroom and or closet mirror door replacement.
  • Carpet replacement and or shampoo cleaning.
  • Kitchen and Bathroom flooring replacement.
  • Bathtub and or Countertops Re-Glaze.
  • Air conditioning and heater repair.
  • Window glass replacement.

Table of Contents

How to Complete an Apartment Turnover in Seven Days

When all repairs are subcontracted to complete the turnover, usually all steps will be reflected as follows:

First, you will need to access the apartment. Let’s say the tenant has just returned the move-out keys, and you can now access the vacant apartment.

On the day of the move-out, you should make a thorough inspection of the apartment to create your schedule and have a clear view of what should be scheduled with your vendors.

Remember that the goal is to complete the turnover in seven days.

In some cases, you can even do apartment turnover in less than seven days. These are true when apartment properties are new.

Now that you have inspected the apartment and created your list of what should be scheduled let’s say the first day of the schedule will start on a Monday.

I recommend that on the first day, you schedule with the vendor as follows:

  1. Monday: Schedule Full Paint.
  2. Tuesday: Schedule Janitorial.
  3. Wednesday: On this day, you’ll have to be careful because, let’s say, for example, maybe the apartment needs a bathtub and or countertops re-glaze. If it needs re-glaze, then schedule the re-glaze first before you continue with any schedule. These also might prolong the finish goal by a day or two now; if the unit doesn’t need re-glaze, then for these days, schedule flooring replacement if required and carpet shampoo.
  4. Thursday: If the apartment only needed carpet shampoo on Wednesday, then on this day, Thursday is when the technician is going to start the turnover repairs. Remember, the older the property is, the more time will require to complete the turnover.
  5. Friday: On these is expected for the technician to be still working on the turnover repairs.
  6. Saturday: On this day, the technician should be finishing the turnover repairs, including locks rekey.
  7. Sunday: On this day, the porter performs and finish the spiff the same day.

What Is The Average Cost of an Apartment Turnover?

The average cost is about $1,845, from small studios to larger four or five-bedroom houses. 

After you or a tenant moves in, the average cost of your rental property is a question I get from the perspective and current owners.

It will depend on the condition, but I found it a sort of average turnover cost.

For example, some general costs when we need to do paint touch-ups on the property are usually around $100 per wall for standard paint preparation and paint touch-ups. 

I usually tell homeowners to budget around $500 in miscellaneous maintenance repairs just for odds and ends.

Refreshing the caulking by changing things here and there and just some of those various property items. 

Some other things to consider are getting the property to rekey, usually around a hundred and twenty dollars depending on your market. 

These will require to be done after the property is ready and before the new tenants move in.

Move Out Inspection Tips for Apartment Turnover

Once the tenant moves in and turns over his or her keys as indicated on the moving packet, it is time to perform the move-in inspection.

This can be done on a checklist or even on a mobile application on your phone or tablet if you are using a printed checklist or a mobile application that wants to follow a process for this.

The checklist includes:

  1. What to bring with you to reduce multiple trips to the property like a safe deposit box a signal from your camera as much as you want so you don’t come back.
  2. If you are doing the work yourself, bring necessary supplies with your light bulbs, call other minor repairs, or regularly show up in a turnover.
  3. Your checklist or application should include a place to document any damage or potential charges during any moving inspections you encounter.
  4. It also includes everything you should check while on the property.

I recommend using an app or even iPads to do the move-out inspections because you can take pictures and notes, it is very well documented, and it is difficult for the tenants to discuss it.

I want to give you a couple of techniques if you go to opposite corners as if you were standing in a corner. 

If you are doing video or photo inspections, you take a picture down the middle and up in a video camera that you want to pause every 3-5 seconds.

If you go to the opposite corner, do it again for that room, and you will have the whole room, all the walls, everything.

To make sure you haven’t missed anything, choose a direction. I like to start from the right wall. 

I would go in and follow the right wall that takes you through the whole property until you get back to the front door, and hopefully, you haven’t missed anything.

So I would look at the wall, back up, and look at the outlets’ cleanliness to start following my checklist and make my way through the entire property that way.

For example, to cover the entire property, an apartment with a two-bedroom one-bathroom takes five to eight minutes depending on the amount of damage and things to take note of.

Here’s a tip: take a photo or even a video of anything you find during the move-out inspection that you might have to charge the tenant for.

I use cell phones and tablets for this; if you are using an application, it will have a place to put the photos while you fill the room; it will insert the pictures and store them electronically.

A straightforward way to do this without having to have all the devices is to take a photo and send it to an email address for your photographs; this puts a date and time on each.

And in the subject line, you want to put the property or apartment number that they are all stored there. 

If the tenant has any questions, then just send them to the tenant; usually, these take care of most disputes.