UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi,

I'm a 'new' landlord, live abroad, been renting my flat for 30 months to a lovely couple who are now moving on, on the 22nd Dec. I have done everything myself remotely as my tenants (and mother!) have been great. I'm going to use a management agency from now and need a little time to do some minor renovations, but I would like some help with some basic questions.
1. Before I get new tenants what do I do about utility bills and council tax? Transfer them back to my name?
2. How do I return the deposit? I remember filling in the details with the tenancy deposit scheme, but do I just give the cash back (it was one months rent) after checking the house?
3. Do I wait until all the bills are paid before returning the deposit?

Any help gratefully received. This is an excellent forum and I wish I had found you 2 years ago!
Best wishes,
Kathleen

1. Yes, you are liable for them in the void period.
2. The scheme you used should tell you how to go about this... if it's the DPS Custodial then it's easy, log in and just follow the process.
3. Shouldn't matter too much, get the readings on the day and ensure you both agree that bit... the closing bills are in the Tenant's name, not yours.

Thank you! I'm sure I'll have a thousand more questions soon!