Roommate move-out checklist: settle bills and the deposit

Four weeks before move-out

• Confirm the move-out date in writing with everyone in the flat and, if needed, the landlord.
• Check the lease: is the leaving roommate on it, is there a notice period, and does someone need to take over their share of rent?
• Agree who will cover the leaving roommate's rent if no replacement is found in time.
• List every shared account: electricity, gas, water, internet, streaming, cleaning, shared groceries.

Two weeks before

• Decide whose name each utility and internet account stays in, and book any transfer with the provider.
• Settle any open shares that are already known, so the last week only has the final bills.
• Agree how shared items (furniture, kitchen stuff, a router) are kept, sold, or bought out.

On move-out day

• Take meter readings for electricity, gas and water, and photograph them with the date visible.
• Photograph the leaving roommate's room and shared spaces for the deposit.
• Hand back keys, fobs and parking passes, and note who has them now.
• Update the delivery address and remove the leaving roommate from shared payment methods.

After the final bills arrive

• Prorate each bill by days: divide the bill by the days in the billing period, and charge the leaving roommate only for the days they lived there.
• Use the meter photos if a provider bills to a date after the move-out.
• Settle every open share in one final payment and send a short written summary.
• When the landlord returns the deposit, split it by what each person paid in, minus any damage that one person caused.

Copy-ready settle-up message

Hi all, final numbers for [name]'s move-out on [date]. Electricity: [amount] for [x] of [y] days. Internet: [amount]. Other open shares: [list]. Total [name] owes: [total] (or: the flat owes [name] [total]). Deposit: we'll split it [rule] when the landlord returns it. Can we settle by [day]? Thanks for being a great roommate!

Need the numbers? Use the utility split calculator for the final bills and the rent split calculator when the new roommate moves in. If someone is slow to pay, these pay-me-back messages help.

Questions