The Landlord's Turnover Checklist for DeKalb County Rentals

Every vacant day is rent you don't collect. Around NIU, where DeKalb leases mostly turn over in a rush, the landlords who win are the ones with a checklist and a crew booked before the old tenant is out. Here's the list we work from — steal it freely, or hand it to us and go do something better with your August.

The walkthrough (do it before move-out if you can)

• Photograph every room — your baseline for the deposit and your punch list in one pass. Time-stamped photos have ended more deposit arguments than any strongly worded email.
• Test every door, window, faucet, toilet, outlet cover, and appliance. Tenants report maybe half of what breaks; the other half waits for you.
• Check smoke and CO detectors — batteries and expiration dates. Illinois law is not flexible here, and neither are we.

The standard turnover scope

• Patch and paint — nail holes, scuffs, the wall behind the couch (there is always a wall behind the couch). Full repaint every few tenants, touch-up between.
• Doors and hardware — tighten hinges, replace worn locksets, re-key or swap locks. New tenant, new keys — every time, no exceptions.
• Plumbing small stuff — running toilets, drippy faucets, slow drains, fresh caulk in the tub surround. A running toilet on your water bill is a tenant problem that became your problem.
• Fixtures and safety — dead bulbs, loose towel bars, wobbly railings, GFCI tests.
• Flooring — re-stretch loose carpet, replace damaged planks, deep clean.

The order of operations matters

Messy first, clean last: repairs and patching, then paint, then flooring, then final clean. Do it out of order and the painter is standing on your new carpet. This sequencing is half of why a coordinated crew beats piecemeal subs on turnover speed.

Document everything

Photos of completed work attached to one clear invoice per unit — that's what keeps deposit disputes short and your files clean. It's standard on every rental turnover we do, and multi-unit owners get one point of contact and batched pricing. For ongoing needs, see our property management services.

Questions we actually get

How fast can you turn a unit?

Standard cosmetic turnovers run 3–7 days depending on scope — and the clock starts fastest when we've walked the unit before move-out and quoted in advance. The expensive turnover is the one that starts with a surprise.

What can I bill against the deposit?

Damage beyond normal wear — and your evidence is the photo pair: move-in condition vs. move-out condition. We're not your attorney, but our before/after documentation has backed up plenty of legitimate claims.

Do you work with out-of-town owners?

Constantly. Photos before, photos after, one invoice, keys handled — some owners haven't seen their DeKalb property in years and their units still turn on time.

Is it worth painting every turnover?

Full repaint? Usually not. Touch-up plus one accent-scuff wall? Almost always. We'll tell you which walls actually need it — paint you don't buy is the cheapest paint there is.

The math that matters

A turnover crew that compresses two weeks of piecemeal fixes into a few scheduled days pays for itself in saved vacancy alone — before you count your weekends back. Send us the punch list (photos help) and you'll get a free written quote — one clear number — usually within 24–48 hours.

Get your turnover quoted or text (331) 265-7388. We turn units in DeKalb, Sycamore, Des Plaines, and across Northern Illinois.