Winterizing the house upon moving out - Colorado Tenants

[Jasmin Wampler]

Hello. We moved out of the house we're renting yesterday, 2/22/2018. We live in Colorado so we're in the middle of winter right now. My question is, is it the tenants responsibility to winterize the house upon moving out? The lease agreement didn't really specifically mentioned anything about winterizing, but it did say that we are responsible of any repair/maintenance in the house at the time of renting it. I would also like to include that we signed up for 1 year lease agreement and it ended in October 2017, we stayed in the house until February but didn't signed a new contract so basically it was a month to month lease situation. I would appreciate information about this issue. Thank you in advance.

[Joe Splitrock]

@Jasmin Wampler I would ask your landlord if there is anything special you should do to winterize. Generally you are responsible for the home through the end of your lease. Say for example, you gave 30 day notice on January 31st. Then you are responsible for the home until February 28th, even though you already physically moved out. Usually after you pass over the keys, the landlord will take back ownership. Up until that time you should check on the property daily to make sure everything is ok.

Leave the temperature at a normal setting around 68 degrees. Do not turn it down to 50 or 60 degrees, because that can cause parts of the house to get even colder. You could have pipes in the wall that freeze, so avoid this by keeping it at room temperature.

Keep the fridge on. I have had tenants unplug the fridge and leave the doors shut, which basically causes the fridge to smell horrible as the moisture allows mold to grow.

I would turn off the water inside the property, but tell the landlord you are doing this. It is only a precaution in case there is a leak so the house doesn't flood.

Other than that, you may be responsible for snow removal or other typical lease items through the last day of the month. Usually you need to keep the utilities on and in your name through the last day of the month. Talk to your landlord about what is expected.