Moving in and moving out of an EPG rental: the checklist

You get keys once the lease is signed, the move-in invoice is paid and the move-in inspection is done with you present. At the other end, Maryland law gives us 45 days after you leave to return your deposit with interest and an itemized list of any deductions.

This page walks through both ends of the lease and the basics in between. Keep it with your lease.

Before move-in day

• Utilities. Put electric, gas and water in your name unless your lease says a utility is included. Our lease gives you 7 days after you receive keys to make the switch. Doing it before move-in day avoids a gap in service. The Renter Resources page lists the utility companies for each county.
• Renters insurance. Our lease requires proof of an active renters insurance policy within 5 days after you receive keys. The policy must name Eastern Properties Group as an interested party, carry at least $100,000 of liability coverage, and stay in force for the whole tenancy. Email the declarations page, or a screenshot of your insurer’s app, to [email protected]. The owner’s policy covers the building, not your belongings.
• Lease and invoice. You sign the lease first in DocuSeal at sign.eastern.properties, then we countersign. The move-in invoice covers the security deposit and first month’s rent and is paid through the Stripe link in the invoice. We do not take cash or personal checks. There is no holding deposit.
• Deposit limits. Maryland caps the security deposit at one month’s rent, and the total due at signing, deposit plus first month, cannot be more than two months’ rent. You receive a written receipt for the deposit.
• Documents you receive. The current Maryland Tenants’ Bill of Rights, the security deposit receipt and, for a home built before 1978, the lead paint certificate and notices.

Keys and the move-in inspection

Keys are released only after three things are complete: the lease is signed, the move-in invoice is paid, and the move-in inspection is done and signed with photographs of the unit’s condition. A field partner or our General Manager meets you at the home, walks it with you and hands over the keys.

Take your own photos too, dated, of every room, the floors, walls, appliances and any mark you notice. Under Maryland Real Property 8-203.1, your deposit receipt must tell you that you may ask for a written list of existing damages within 15 days of moving in. Use that right if anything was missed on inspection day.

Your welcome kit includes a how-to sheet, the Maryland documents listed above and a 30-day check-in from us.

During the lease

• Rent is due on the 1st and late after the 5th. Pay through the link in the invoice email from Eastern Properties Group. If anyone asks you to pay another way, call us before you send money. If you are going to be short, call (240) 916-6008 before the 5th.
• Repairs go through the maintenance request form. For a major leak, no heat, no power, a sewage backup or anything that is damaging the home, call (240) 916-6008 and choose the emergency option, any hour, then send the form too. Fire or a gas smell: leave and call 911 first.
• Alarms. Do not remove or disable smoke or carbon monoxide alarms. Test them, and tell us in writing if one chirps or fails a test. Maryland law makes the landlord responsible for installing, repairing and replacing alarms, with 5 days to fix a reported failure (Public Safety 9-104 and 9-106).

Giving notice

Read the term and the notice clause in your lease first. EPG leases signed from October 2026 require 60 days’ written notice; check your own lease for its notice period. Put your notice in writing, by email to the office, and keep a copy.

On our side, Maryland Real Property 8-402(c)(2)(i) requires the landlord to give 60 days’ written notice to end a month-to-month tenancy or to not renew a lease. In Baltimore City, the landlord must send a renewal offer, or a non-renewal notice with good cause, 75 to 100 days before the lease ends (Baltimore City Code, Article 13, 8C-2). You will hear from us about renewal within those windows.

If you have a Housing Choice Voucher, tell your caseworker at the same time you tell us.

Move-out cleaning and keys

• Remove everything, including items in the basement, attic, shed and yard.
• Clean the kitchen and bathrooms, wipe out the fridge and oven, sweep and mop the floors, and take out all trash. Normal wear is not charged. Dirt and damage are.
• We ask you to keep electric, gas and water on through the move-out inspection, not just through your last night, so the inspection can test lights, water and heat.
• We ask you to return every key, fob and garage remote at the move-out inspection. The locks are rekeyed before the next tenant moves in.
• Give us your forwarding address in writing. The deposit and the itemized list go by first-class mail to that address.

The move-out inspection

Our move-out checklist mirrors the move-in checklist, and a field partner meets you at the home to complete it. Maryland law gives you the right to be present. To lock that in, send us written notice by certified mail at least 15 days before your move date. We then set the inspection within five days before or after that date and confirm the time in writing. A landlord who ignores that request loses the right to withhold anything from the deposit (Real Property 8-203(f)).

Getting your deposit back

Within 45 days after the tenancy ends, we return the deposit with simple interest, less any damage beyond normal wear and tear. Interest is the greater of 1.5% a year or the one-year Treasury yield on the first business day of the year, accruing monthly, on deposits of $50 or more held at least six months. The deposit itself is held in a federally insured account at a Maryland bank, placed there within 30 days of receipt. If anything is deducted, you receive a written, itemized list of the damage and the cost within the same 45 days, by first-class mail.

A landlord who withholds without a reasonable basis, or misses the 45-day list, can owe up to three times the amount withheld plus attorney’s fees. Our move-in and move-out photos protect you as much as they protect the owner.

Common questions

When do I get the keys?

After the lease is signed, the move-in invoice is paid and the move-in inspection is done and signed. All three happen before keys change hands.

How long do I have to set up utilities and insurance?

Insurance proof within 5 days after keys, emailed to [email protected], with Eastern Properties Group named as an interested party and at least $100,000 of liability coverage. Utilities in your name within 7 days after keys, where the lease requires it. Earlier is better for both.

How much notice do I give before I move out?

EPG leases signed from October 2026 require 60 days’ written notice. Check your own lease for its notice period. We must give you at least 60 days’ written notice if we will not renew (Real Property 8-402).

Can I be there when you inspect at move-out?

Yes. Send written notice by certified mail at least 15 days before you move and we schedule the inspection within five days either side of your move date.

When does my deposit come back?

Within 45 days after the tenancy ends, with interest, by first-class mail to the forwarding address you gave us.

What counts as damage?

Holes in walls, broken fixtures, stained carpet and trash left behind. Faded paint, light carpet wear and small nail holes are normal wear and are not charged.

Do I need to repaint or shampoo carpets?

Clean the floors and walls as part of your normal move-out cleaning. Faded paint and light carpet wear are normal wear and are not charged. Stains, marks or damage beyond normal wear are charged against the deposit.

Sources

• Maryland Real Property 8-203 (security deposits): https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-203&enactments=false
• Maryland Real Property 8-203.1 (deposit receipt and inspection rights): https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-203.1&enactments=false
• Maryland Real Property 8-402 (notice to end a tenancy): https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-402&enactments=false
• Baltimore City Code, Article 13, Subtitle 8C (renewal offers and non-renewal notice): https://codes.baltimorecity.gov/us/md/cities/baltimore/code/13/8C-2
• Maryland Public Safety 9-104 (smoke alarms): https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=gps&section=9-104&enactments=false
• Maryland Attorney General, Landlords and Tenants: Tips on Avoiding Disputes (rev. Feb 2025): https://oag.maryland.gov/resources-info/Documents/pdfs/CPD%20Publications/Landlords_and_Tenants_Tips_on_Avoiding_Disputes.pdf
• EPG, Maryland security deposit rules: https://eastern.properties/maryland-security-deposit-rules-landlords/
• EPG, Pay rent: https://eastern.properties/pay-rent/
• EPG, Renter resources: https://eastern.properties/renter-resources/
• EPG knowledge base: Leasing Model (move-in and move-out sequence), Policy Book 03 section 4; notice period and insurance proof confirmed by EPG management, 7 October 2026