Before you leave our residential community, there are some steps you need to take to close out your room assignment. Those living in apartments will use the express checkout process, which allows residents to complete a pre-inspection before finals week, and then deposit their room key(s) by the check-out deadline at their Area Office.
INSPECTIONS vs. CHECK-OUT (YOU HAVE BOTH):
Residents will have a pre-inspection appointment, when you and your roommates will meet with your RA to do a preliminary review of your apartment’s condition. These will take place in early April, and you sign up with your RA.
Residents also have a check-out deadline. This is the latest possible time you can turn in your room key(s) without being charged a late check-out fee. All of your belongings must be out of your assignment at the time you return your key(s).
CHECK-OUT DEADLINES
- All non-graduating residents are expected to move-out 24 hours after their last final and be fully moved out of their spring residential assignment by Friday of finals week.
- All graduating residents are expected to be fully moved out of their spring residential assignment by Sunday of commencement.
- Those transitioning to summer housing assignments transition the week following commencement and should look out for more specific details by email.
- If you need to move out later than the deadline, please fill out the extension request form in the check-out deadline portion of the My Housing portal. Please note that, if approved, you will be assessed a $50/night fee for each additional night beyond your deadline.
If you plan to check-out earlier, you can change your check-out time in the My Housing portal. This will help our hard-working custodial teams to prepare for summer.
PRE-INSPECTIONS:
You should start by connecting with your RA to set up an inspection appointment in early April and prepare by submitting work orders for any lingering repair needs so that maintenance repairs can happen before your inspection.
During your scheduled inspection, all roommates should be present. Your RA will assess the general condition of your room and approve you for express check-out if it looks like cleaning has been kept up and broken items have been reported.
If your room is in good condition, your RA will approve you for express check-out, and give you the express checkout key envelope you’ll need later. You and your roommate(s) will complete the Cleaning Agreement form and you will waive the right to appeal charges for any damage incurred after the inspection.
If your room is not found in good condition, you will not be approved for express check-out. In that case, your RA may come back to reassess after you complete some cleaning. If you are still not approved at that point, you will need to complete a traditional, in-person check-out inspection during finals week.
PREPARING YOUR ROOM FOR CHECK-OUT:
In the time between your pre-inspection appointment and your check-out time, there are several ways you can prepare your room. We strongly encourage you to plan ahead for your deadline and begin packing and cleaning tasks now. Please review the cleaning checklist found here that provides details on your cleaning responsibilities prior to turning in your key. All roommates are expected to coordinate the cleaning of shared, common spaces through their suite or apartment through the submission of the Cleaning Agreement form. This form must be emailed or turned in to your Resident Assistant by the Tuesday before finals week.
Before you turn in your key(s), you must remove all personal belongings from your bedroom and all apartment common spaces, as well as the hall’s common areas like bike and laundry rooms.
BINS
Bins will be available to residents to check out from either their Area Office during their operating hours (below) or from one of the locations listed on the move-out website. Residents should return their bin to the same location as quickly as possible to allow others to use it – we cannot guarantee bins will be available if they are not returned promptly.
TRASH
As part of proper check-out, all trash must be removed from your room and apartment. There will be additional roll-off dumpsters are available all over campus. Please check with your RA for exact locations. Any items that remain in your room after you check-out will be considered abandoned.
DONATION - LANDFILL DIVERSION
Did you know you can save many items from the dumpsters, and give them a better purpose while you move out? Our Green Goodbyes program, a partnership with RA Eco-Reps and the Office of Campus Sustainability, gives you better options for disposing of items that serve the Georgia Tech community instead of adding to the landfill. Find more information in the coming weeks on the Hall Sustainability page.
BIKES
Any bikes left in residence hall bike rooms & racks will be deemed abandoned after Sunday of commencement. When you leave for summer, we strongly encourage you to take your bike with you if possible. If you need long-term bike storage, the Dalney & Tech Square bike rooms offer spaces. Any bikes stored there must be registered with GTPD so that we can verify that a bike should not be considered abandoned. You can also donate your bike through Green Goodbyes.
MAIL FORWARDING
You should collect any mail you may have at the Post Office in the John Lewis Student Center before you leave for summer. Additionally, you should forward your mail to your summer/future address.
SUMMER STORAGE
Looking to store your items for summer? There are several companies that will provide boxes or storage pods for students to fill with their belongings and then store with the company over the summer. Then in fall, they’ll deliver those items to your new address. You can find a list of these companies that we gathered for you as a courtesy on the move-out website (note that Georgia Tech does not hold contracts with these services).
We will work with those companies as needed for pick-up and delivery, but if you decide to rent a storage pod, we ask that you submit a ticket to the Housing Help Desk with your information and the storage company name so we can coordinate with them.
TURNING IN YOUR KEY(S):
Once all your belongings have been removed from your apartment, you will turn in your key to the team at the Area Office during their operating hours. In rare cases, residents can drop your key outside of these hours - you should check in with your RA about your needs now if you have those concerns.
At the Area Office, you’ll turn in your express check-out envelopes for your key(s). Complete the outside of the envelope before including your key(s), and hand it directly to the Area Office staff. To be considered properly checked-out, you should not turn in your key until all of your personal belongings have been removed and your cleaning checklist is complete.
If you forget to turn in your key, visit this page for instructions on mailing it back so that you aren’t charged a fee.
PLAN AHEAD TO AVOID FEES:
When residents fail to prepare their room or check out properly and on-time, it causes more work for our custodial, maintenance, and administrative teams that can impact the experience for the next resident in your room. Residents should be aware of the fees that can be incurred so they can avoid them:
- Failure to check-out by the indicated deadline will result in a $100.00 minimum late checkout fee with an additional $50.00 per hour not to exceed $250.00.
- Failure to properly check-out will result in a fee of $150.00.
- Following your check-out, your room will be inspected for cleanliness and any damages by a Housing & Residence Life staff member. Additional cleaning or damage fees may also be assessed if your room requires significant attention from our teams.
- If you are granted an extension to your move-out deadline, there will be a $50/night fee assessed for each night beyond your original deadline.