Move-Out Checklist: Returning a Rocklin Tenant's Deposit the Right Way

The clock starts with the notice, not the move-out

Your tenant just sent a 30-day notice, or the lease on your Rocklin house ends in two months and they are not renewing. Most owners think about the deposit after the keys come back. The law expects you to act much sooner.

Within a reasonable time after either side gives notice to end the tenancy, or before a fixed-term lease ends, you must tell the tenant in writing that they may request an initial inspection and be present for it (Civil Code 1950.5). If the tenant paid the deposit or rent electronically, a second written notice is now due in the same window: the tenant's right to get the deposit back electronically.

Send both notices together, keep copies, and note the date. That one letter sets up everything that follows.

The checklist, in order

Work through these steps for every move-out. Dates come from Civil Code 1950.5 as amended through 2026.

• Right after notice: send the written offer of an initial inspection, plus the electronic refund notice if money came in electronically. Ask the tenant to name, in writing, the account the refund should go to.
• If the tenant asks for an inspection: schedule it at a reasonable time, no earlier than two weeks before the tenancy or lease ends. Give at least 48 hours' written notice of the date and time unless you both sign a written waiver.
• At the inspection: walk the home and hand over an itemized list of the repairs or cleaning you would deduct for, with the text of the statute's allowed uses. The tenant may fix those items before leaving. You may inspect even if the tenant does not show up.
• When you get possession back: photograph the home within a reasonable time and before any cleaning or repair work you plan to charge for.
• After the work is done: photograph the same areas again within a reasonable time.
• By day 21 (calendar days, not business days): send the itemized statement, the refund of whatever remains, receipts or invoices, and the photos.
• If work cannot be finished in time: deduct a good-faith estimate, then send the final statement and invoices within 14 calendar days of finishing the work or receiving the bill.

What you can charge for, and what stays your cost

The deposit can cover four things: unpaid rent, damage beyond ordinary wear and tear caused by the tenant or guests, cleaning to bring the home back to the level of cleanliness it had at move-in, and (only if the lease allows it) restoring or replacing personal property such as furniture.

Faded paint, light carpet wear and worn finishes after years of normal living are wear and tear, and you cannot deduct for them. Nor can you charge for conditions that existed before the tenancy or for the cumulative wear of past tenants. Since 2025 the law also limits charges to a reasonable amount needed to restore the home to its move-in condition, and it bars charging for professional carpet cleaning or other professional cleaning unless that work is reasonably necessary to get there.

One more limit catches owners off guard. If the tenant asked for the initial inspection and the home was empty enough to inspect, you generally cannot later deduct for repairs or cleaning that were not on your itemized list. The exceptions are new damage after the inspection and items that belongings hid from view.

Receipts, photos and the $125 line

With the itemized statement, include copies of receipts or invoices for repair and cleaning charges. If you or an employee did the work, describe it and list the time spent and a reasonable hourly rate. The state's tenant guide adds that invoices from an outside business should show its name, address and phone number (DRE guide, moving out).

Receipts are not required when repair and cleaning deductions together come to $125 or less, or when the tenant signed a valid waiver. Even then, a tenant who asks within 14 days of getting the statement must receive the documents within 14 days of asking. Keep every receipt regardless.

Photos are now part of the paperwork. Whenever you deduct for repairs or cleaning, send the before and after photos with a short written explanation of the charges, by mail, email, flash drive or an online link. For tenancies that began on or after July 1, 2025, you also had to photograph the home at the start of the tenancy, which gives you a clean comparison at move-out. For older tenancies, your signed move-in checklist and any photos you took are the baseline.

Sending the money: check, deposit or transfer

The default return method is personal delivery or a check payable to the tenant sent by first-class mail. AB 414 changed that for 2026: if you received the deposit or rent electronically, the remaining deposit generally goes back electronically, to an account the tenant names in writing, unless you and the tenant agreed in writing to another method. Owners whose tenants pay through an online portal should assume this rule applies.

When two or more adults are on the lease, the refund is one check payable to all adult tenants unless every adult tenant signs a written agreement on how to split it. The statement itself can go to any one of them, and you may email it if the tenant provided an email address and you both agreed.

If you never received a forwarding address, the state guide says the statement goes to the tenant's last known address, which can be the rental itself. Mail it anyway and keep proof.

What a careless accounting can cost, and when to hand it off

A landlord who in bad faith fails to follow the itemization rules is not entitled to keep any part of the deposit. A court can also award the tenant statutory damages of up to twice the deposit for bad-faith retention, plus actual damages, and the landlord carries the burden of proving the charges were reasonable. Deposit disputes often land in small claims court, so write every statement as if a judge will read it.

Plenty of owners handle one move-out a year well on their own, especially when the tenant leaves the home clean and nothing is deducted. A manager earns its keep when you live out of the area, when damage is real, or when the timeline collides with a new tenant moving in. SPMG's published plans list move-in and move-out inspections (Our Pricing), and the move-out procedures page describes the inspection reports, photos and deposit refund handling. If belongings were left behind, start with the abandoned property guide before you clear the garage. To talk through a specific move-out, use the contact page.