How to do a smooth transition between tenants

[Scott Wang]

I have a single-family house and the current tenant is moving out April 30th.   I just found a new tenant to take it starting May 1st.

I've never gone straight from one tenant to the next in one day, and I've never selected a new tenant a month before the start date.  So my questions are:

 - Even though it's 1 month before the start date, should I still have the new tenant sign the full lease and all the paperwork, or just some type of letter of intent and deposit to hold the property?

- Should the new tenant pay the security deposit and May's rent right now or do you make May's rent due on May 1st and just take the security deposit up front?

- If the house needs a small amount of touch-up paint, or some extra cleaning, how do you normally squeeze that in between the last day of the old lease and the first day of the new lease?

I've had rentals for a few years now but my experience has been to buy a fixer-upper, renovate it, then rent it out.  This is my first time transitioning between two tenants.

Scott