It is very common for tenants to need to be out of their old apartment at 5pm on the last day of the month, but they can’t move into their new apartment until 8am the next day.  This can be a stressful time to be without a home and have all your stuff loaded in a moving van overnight.

Many landlords will allow tenants to move their belongings into their new apartment early if possible.  I do this all the time.  Unfortunately, it is common for landlords to forget several key points when they allow their new tenant to do this:

• If your tenant is actually moving in early, make sure to sign an addendum to the lease for the additional days.  You may or may not be collecting rent, but you want something in writing that holds the new tenant to the same requirements they will be under during the rental period.  Evictions can be complicated with no written lease in place.
• If you are allowing them move furniture onto to the property only, have the tenants sign a waiver of responsibility.  You are only responsible for giving them a key, not for the contents of their apartment.  Again, your full lease will have this language.  Also specify in writing that they are not authorized to live there.
• Set a concrete date for their arrival to insure you will have the apartment ready.  You may need to negotiate the opportunity to continue to work on the unit despite the tenant beginning to move in.

Following a few simple rules when allowing a tenant to move in early will make the process easy for both you and the tenant.