"First of all, we would like to sincerely thank you for being our tenant and we wish you the best of luck in the future.

This FAQ is meant to help make this transition a smooth one for all involved so please read it carefully."

Please let us know the exact date that you will be moving out as soon as you can.

You have until Noon on the day of your lease expiration to be fully moved out with your apartment clean as the new tenants may be moving in immediately after you vacate. If however, you plan on being out earlier than that, it would be great for us to know that in advance so we can do any necessary painting or repairs etc., before the new tenants move in. PLEASE do not have your utilities turned off before your lease end date, even if you move early.

Showings- (Disregard if we've already re-rented your apartment)
We like to show and rent apartments as far in advance as possible.  We will try to make this process as painless as we can for you by giving you advance notice of showings.  We generally will try to set up a group showing with plenty of notice and often we are able to rent apartments during this period. We also do sometimes need to show the apartment to individuals (usually current tenants who want to move to another apartment of ours). Sometimes we will need to show your apartment with very short notice (as little as 1 hour as per your lease). This is not common and please let us know if you absolutely cannot accommodate us. Some prospective tenants have very limited schedules and are often visiting from out of the area. The advantage of showing the apartment to these people is that they often make fast decisions and your apartment could rent much faster after only one or two showings resulting in less inconvenience for you in the long run.

If you have any special requests that you want us to try to adhere to such as removing shoes or if you have pets that need to be monitored, etc. please let us know.

We always knock a few times before entering apartments and loudly announce that we are the "Landlord".

During the showing period, we ask that you try to keep the apartment clean and organized so that it shows well and allows us to quickly re-rent thus saving us both a lot of time and trouble.

Prior to move-in your apartment was thoroughly cleaned. It is required that you leave it in the same condition upon move-out.  Please let us know if you will do a thorough cleaning yourself or if you prefer to have us schedule our cleaning people to have your place cleaned and have us deduct the cost of this cleaning from your Security Deposit.  (While the cost for this can vary, generally it’s about $125 for a one bedroom, $135 for a two bedroom and $165 for a three bedroom).  If you need us to clean then it may be necessary for you to be fully moved out the day before your lease expires so that we have time to clean before the new tenant moves in.  This will only be necessary if the new tenant is moving in the same day you are moving out.  Keep in mind that often people say they are cleaning but at the last minute decide they are more interested in getting settled in their new place than cleaning their old place and then it's difficult for us to get our cleaning people there in time on short notice so if you think that might happen please let us know ASAP.

It is very important to remember to drop off all keys, including not just the unit keys but the mailbox and common area keys and any copies that you have made, in our mailbox at 1517 W. Haddon Ave. (1517 W. Haddon is one block south of Division and 1/2 block east of Ashland- Our mailbox is on the wall to the right of the main building entrance at 1515 W. Haddon).

Please drop keys by Noon on the 1st (unless you have made other arrangements with us).

In cases where you are asked to meet the new tenant to give them keys, please mail or email us your forwarding address."

There are often multiple sets of keys in our mailbox at the end of the month and it is imperative that you label your keys so we know which apartment they are for and also that we have your forwarding address so we know where to send your Security Deposit!   FYI: Per City of Chicago Ordinance, the landlord has 45 days to return your Security Deposit, with interest, less any deductions. We do, however, normally send it out the second or third week after you vacate your apartment and following the instructions in this email will ensure that we do so.