Seller Move-Out Guide

As you move out of the property you sold, you may have questions about your responsibilities prior to leaving the property.

To start, you can refer to the executed Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA) to determine what stays with the property and what needs to be removed prior to close of escrow, as well as the condition in which you should leave the property. In general,  

a)      Property is to be maintained in substantially the same condition as on the date of acceptance.

b)      All debris and personal property not included in the sale shall be removed by close of escrow.

c)      Section 8 of your Residential Purchase Agreement identifies items that are included and excluded from the sale.  

d)     Section 8 of your Residential Purchase Agreement also addresses what should be done with brackets (including bolts, screws, nails, pins, and picture/mirror hangers) attached to floors, walls or ceilings.

e)      Repairs agreed to with the buyer should be completed.  If this isn’t possible, please let us know right away.

We often get questions about some items on the property that sellers are uncertain about whether they stay or should be removed.  Unless specifically excluded in the contract, here is a partial list of items that sellers often wonder about that stay with the property: lighting, gas logs and grates, windows coverings, satellite dishes, attached bookcases, TV wall-mounts, pool/spa equipment, water features and fountains, water softeners, and security systems and alarms.  If you have a question about any item in your home, please give us a call.

If you’re selling a residence (not land), the property should be left in “broom clean” condition, unless the contract specifies otherwise.  Sometimes, contracts require professional cleaning.

You can load your trash bins with stuff you won’t take with you, but don’t leave other debris, including unwanted personal items like furniture, on the property, even if next to the trash bins.

As a courtesy to the buyer, you can leave manuals for all the devices that have user’s manuals.  We suggest placing all manuals in one place, such as a kitchen drawer/cupboard or a garage cabinet.

Please leave keys and remote controls in a kitchen drawer.  Take a photo of the items left and send them to us so we have proof of the items left.  Remote controls are to be operational (with working batteries).  Keys are to be provided for all keyed locks on the property.