2. CLEAN AND REPAIR YOUR APARTMENT

Don't worry, you're not responsible for leaving your landlord an apartment that looks absolutely and utterly impeccable. Reasonable wear and tear is generally expected. You can find out exactly what condition your apartment should be left in by looking at the lease.

If you notice that any of the repairs you are required to make are grossly unfair (e.g., you must re-tile your entire bathroom), you should first kick yourself for signing a bum lease, and then heave a sigh of relief as you realize that you might be able to get out of it. The legal regulations of what kinds of repairs your are responsible for change from city to city and state to state. So click here to find out what the legal requirements are in your city.

Chances are, though, that your lease will be legal and that you'll be responsible for doing some light cleaning and easy repairs (anything that the landlord feels wasn't up to snuff will be deducted from your security deposit). Here's how to go about it:

  1. Look around your apartment and assess its status. Would you move in there if it was left in that condition? Did any major catastrophes occur (e.g., holes in the walls, doors falling off hinges, etc.)? Basically you want to leave the apartment relatively close to the same condition it was in when you moved in.

  2. Check to see if there are any areas that could use a little paint, and paint those areas (with the right colored paint). Don't add any creative details like happy faces or unicorns. Just paint.

  3. If you have small holes (from hanging pictures, attaching coat hooks, etc.) then you don't have to worry about painting. Just use a spackling compound to fill in the holes. If you don't want to worry about spackling (and you're willing to risk getting caught), consider filling the holes in with toothpaste or soap (if your walls are white) - they fill in holes very quickly and very easily.

  4. For larger holes (from, say, your friend's fist during his weekly drunken rage), you might need to install wallboard.

  5. Directions for painting, spackling, and wallboarding on your own, visit www.homedepot.com and www.lowes.com. Of course you could also just hire someone.

  6. Many leases require you to clean your floors (wax for hardwood, shampoo for carpets). These can be quite tough tasks to handle on your own, so we suggest that you hire a professional. Just realize that it's something that you may get charged for if you don't do it.

  7. Clean your bathroom as well as you can. This especially means getting rid of the fungus and mold on the walls.

  8. Defrost, clean, and turn off the refrigerator.

  9. Leave the apartment as empty as it was when you got there; the landlord will charge you for the removal of anything you leave behind (even if it's little-like your sister). If you have something that you don't want (a table, a sofa, whatever), you can either call the future tenant and offer to sell it to them, or you can find a Goodwill and give it to charity (we recommend the second option).