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Guides
Everything we know about getting a deposit back, written down. Use it to do the job yourself, or to know whether the quote you were given is fair.
Deposits and inspections
What Illinois law actually says, what landlords check, and what to do when a deduction is wrong.
- Illinois security deposit law, in plain EnglishWhat Illinois law requires of your landlord: the 30-day itemized statement, the five-or-more-units threshold, and what happens when they miss the deadline.
- Normal wear and tear versus damageThe line between wear a landlord absorbs and damage they can charge for, with the items that actually come up on walk-throughs here.
- What landlords actually check on a walk-throughThe order most landlords and property managers follow on an inspection, and the specific items that generate deductions.
- What to do when a deposit deduction is wrongA calm, documented sequence for challenging an unfair deduction in Illinois, and when small claims is worth the trouble.
- How to photograph a unit so the photos countA short method for move-out photos that hold up: what to shoot, in what order, and the mistake that makes photos useless.
- The final walk-through, and why you should be thereWhy attending changes the outcome, what to bring, and how to handle an item flagged in front of you.
- What move-out cleaning costs, and what changes the numberStarting prices by unit size in the Rockford area, what raises a quote, and how the cost compares to a typical deduction.
- The move-out timeline that keeps your depositA week-by-week sequence from notice to handover, including the one-day window most people get wrong.
How to clean it
One page per thing that gets inspected, in the order it costs people money.
- Cleaning an oven for a move-out inspectionThe single most cited item on move-out inspections, and the one people most often decide to skip. How to do it properly.
- Cleaning a refrigerator before handing back the keysShelves, seals, the drip pan, and the floor underneath. Plus the defrosting mistake that grows mould before the inspection.
- Cabinets, inside and outCrumbs, liner residue, and the greasy film on cabinet doors above the stove that people wipe around rather than off.
- Grout, shower doors, and the bathroom items that get chargedThe second most common source of deductions after the kitchen, and the difference between staining and mould.
- Cleaning blinds without wrecking themSlat by slat is the standard, and a bent slat costs more than a dusty one. How to get through them quickly.
- Windows, sills, and the tracks nobody cleansInterior glass is easy. The tracks and sills are where the deduction risk sits, and where a vacuum beats a cloth.
- Baseboards, door frames, and the sweep at eye levelSmall items that individually mean nothing and collectively decide whether a unit reads as professionally cleaned.
- Carpet: what you can fix and what you cannotWhere carpet is wear and tear, where it becomes a charge, and whether professional cleaning is worth paying for.
- Nail holes, scuffs, and when to repaintPatched and painted is fine. Patched and unpainted usually still gets charged. Where the line sits and how to do it.
- Exhaust fans and vent coversBathroom fans, range hood filters, and return-air vents. Two minutes each and almost universally skipped.
- Light fixtures, ceiling fans, and burnt-out bulbsInsects in the glass, dust on fan blades, and why a missing bulb costs more than a bulb.
- Why floors go last, alwaysThe order of operations that stops you cleaning the same floor three times, and how to finish so it dries clean.
- Garages, basements, and storage units on the leaseThe spaces people forget are on the lease at all, and the oil stain question.
- Pulling out the stove and fridgeHow to move heavy appliances without damaging the floor, and why the space behind them is checked.
Rather not do it yourself?
Tell us the address, the unit size, and your walk-through date. You get a fixed quote back, not a callback to schedule a callback.