When you live in a rented home or apartment, there are of course certain rules about what you can and cannot do with the space. You wouldn’t expect to paint it without the landlord’s permission, for example, and you want to avoid doing any damage to the property that may impact your security deposit.
In order to best increase your chances of having your full security deposit returned to you, here are 5 tricks to keep in mind:
1. Keep It Light
When choosing artwork or wall fixtures to hang in your home, remember to keep them as light as possible so that they can be held up by only the tiniest of nails. Using thin, small nails will make the holes easier to cover up when it’s time to move out. Heavier pieces may require larger nails or even double-sided tape to remain in place, both of which will result in significant damage to the paint upon removal.
2. Get Low
Whether it’s a dining table, a couch, or bedside drawers, any piece of furniture you have can risk damaging the floors. To avoid costly scratches and scrapes, take the time to put rubber or moleskin grippers under all of your furniture. As an added bonus, this will protect the legs of your furniture from damage as well.
3. Cover Creatively
As mentioned above, floors are particularly prone to damage in a rental property. To further reduce the risk, add rugs and floor mats to as many surfaces as you can. This protects from physical damage as well as spills.
4. Believe in Magic
It’s amazing how easy it is to scuff up a freshly painted wall! Sometimes all it takes is a chair brushing past it or a purse pressing against it in the wrong way. To instantly refresh your walls and avoid the landlord needing to repaint, use a Magic Eraser or other cleaning eraser to rub out the scuffs as they happen.
5. Clean It Up
Perhaps the best way to guarantee the return of your security deposit is to regularly invite professional cleaners to give it a thorough clean. The expert team at Nashville Brighthouse, for example, will keep your space spotlessly clean, helping to preserve the shine of appliances, avoid the growth of bacteria and mold, and eliminate any built-up dirt or grime.
Whether you live in a rented property for a few months, a year, or a decade, you hope to retrieve your security deposit at the end of your stay. By staying conscious of what you hang on the wall, properly protecting your floors, rubbing out scuffs as they happen, and regularly having the place cleaned by professionals, there’s no reason you shouldn’t see 100% of that money come right back to you.
