End-of-tenancy checklist for landlords - Richard Kendall Estate Agents

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Inspect the property

Inspecting the property is one of the most important steps when it’s the end of a tenancy. This will allow you to identify if they have cared for and maintained your property. Once they have removed all their belongings from the property, you need to ensure you complete a thorough inspection. This inspection will allow you to confirm whether you return their deposit or not. As a landlord, you will need to provide a good reason with evidence to not return their deposit; otherwise, they could penalise you and involve the court. During this inspection, it is also important that you make sure the past tenants have removed all their items from the property.

Check previous payments

Finally, before exchanging the keys and returning the deposit for the property, we would recommend going through all your previous payments with them. This will allow you to guarantee that they have completed all their payments. We would also recommend checking if there are no outstanding council tax and utility bills under the address of the property before parting ways with the tenants. This will allow you to once again be certain they were good, respectful tenants before returning their deposit.

Deep clean

Once you have completed the process with the previous tenants and you are happy, we advise deep cleaning your property in preparation for new tenants. This is not a required step, but if the past tenants have not returned the property to its original state, you can claim part of the deposit towards the cleaning costs.

Re-list your property

Are you happy with your property? If so, the next step is to get it back on the market! After taking updated pictures of the property, it can then be listed and show encouraging new tenants for the future.

If you are an independent landlord or a new landlord entering the market for letting, we advise collaborating with an estate agent. This will reduce your involvement with clients and leave fewer tasks on your to-do list. Allowing you to rent out your properties stress-free.

Get in touch with us today if you are seeking advice

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I’ve been using Richard Kendall in Horbury to manage my buy-to-let properties and have been extremely impressed with the service, particularly from Alice. As a landlord, what I value most is having someone I can trust to simply get things dealt with properly, without me having to constantly chase or get involved. Alice is excellent in this respect. She’s professional, responsive, proactive and always keeps me informed when something needs my attention. She clearly understands lettings from a landlord’s perspective and makes the whole process straightforward. Any issues are handled quickly and efficiently, communication is excellent, and I have complete confidence that my properties and tenants are being looked after properly. Having dealt with various people and businesses in the property sector over the years, genuinely good service stands out. Alice is a real credit to Richard Kendall and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Horbury team to other landlords looking for a reliable managing agent. Five stars and thoroughly deserved. Jon 15/09/2026

Amanda Holt was absolutely amazing at handling the sale of our house. Every step of the way she kept us informed and updated us the minute she heard any news and was super lovely. Everything was swift, easy and stress free and I would highly recommend them. Thank you so much again. Eleanor 14/09/2026

We had a lovely experience with Miranda at Richard Kendall. She was so helpful throughout the whole process and always kept us updated. Everything felt well organised, which made buying our home so much easier. We’re very happy with the service we received and absolutely love our new home! Thank you Miranda for all your help, we would happily recommend you. Karolina 12/09/2026

Karen at Richard Kendall Pontefract has been nothing short of exceptional. Due to a number of reasons my house was on and off the market a number of times. Most people could have given up hope but Karen was amazing. She was a great source of support, she understood my situation and thankfully we did get my house sold. I’ve no doubt that’s down to Karen. She provided a truly personal and amazing service and made sure I was at ease throughout. I can’t thank Karen and the team enough. I’d highly recommend Richard Kendall to anyone. They will look after you and make your home selling journey stress free. Thanks Karen. SH 12/09/2026

Jessica has been absolutely fantastic throughout the whole process. She has always been very receptive to our queries, responding promptly and efficiently, and has been proactive in progressing the tenancy agreement with our new tenants. She is a genuinely lovely person to deal with, and her professionalism, responsiveness and helpful approach have made the entire process smooth and stress-free. Amazing service—thank you, Jessica! Dr. Prateek 09/09/2026

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