Rental Turnover Checklist: What to Fix Between Tenants (Twin Cities)

Every vacant day costs you. On a $1,800/month Twin Cities rental that is $60 a day, which means a turnover that drags three extra weeks costs $1,260 in lost rent — usually more than the repairs themselves.

The goal of a turnover is not to make the unit perfect. It is to make it rentable at the right price, fast, with materials that survive the next tenant.

The economics first

Turnover level	Typical cost	Days vacant	Rent impact
Clean and touch-up	$400 – $1,200	3 – 7	Baseline
Standard refresh	$2,000 – $5,000	7 – 14	+$50 – $125/mo
Full turn (paint, floors, fixtures)	$6,000 – $14,000	14 – 30	+$150 – $350/mo
Kitchen/bath update included	$15,000 – $35,000	30 – 60	+$250 – $600/mo

A $4,000 refresh that adds $100/month pays back in 40 months and typically also reduces vacancy and attracts better applicants. That second effect is usually worth more than the rent bump.

Room by room

Whole unit

• Paint — the single highest-return item. One neutral color everywhere (a warm white or greige) in eggshell on walls, semi-gloss on trim. One color across the whole portfolio makes every future touch-up trivial. $2.50 – $5.00 per sq ft of floor area.
• Flooring — mid-grade LVP (20 mil wear layer) everywhere except bedrooms. Waterproof, survives tenants, and damaged planks swap individually instead of re-flooring a room. $5.50 – $9.00 per sq ft installed.
• Outlets and switches — replace all with new white devices and plates. $4 – $10 each, and it reads as "renovated."
• Blinds — cordless faux wood, same product everywhere. $25 – $60 per window.
• Smoke and CO detectors — required. Ten-year sealed battery units end the mid-lease battery calls. $25 – $45 each.
• Door hardware — rekey or replace. Always rekey. $15 – $30 per lock.

Kitchen

• Cabinet paint or reface instead of replace — $1,500 – $4,000 vs $8,000+
• New hardware on every door and drawer — $150 – $400
• Faucet — $150 – $400
• Appliances — match finishes; a mismatched appliance set reads cheap in photos
• Countertop: laminate is fine in a modest unit; butcher block or entry-level quartz moves a mid-market unit meaningfully

Bathroom

• Re-caulk everything — the cheapest thing that makes a bathroom read as clean
• New toilet seat, always
• Vanity and mirror if dated — $400 – $1,200
• Exhaust fan that actually works and vents outside — prevents the mold complaint later
• Reglaze a stained tub rather than replace — $400 – $700 vs $3,000+

Exterior and Minnesota-specific

• Gutters cleaned and downspouts extended 6 feet — prevents the wet-basement call
• Snow removal plan documented in the lease; Minneapolis and St. Paul both fine property owners for uncleared sidewalks
• Furnace serviced and filter replaced before heating season
• Water heater age checked — replacing at 12 years on your schedule beats an emergency at 10 PM on a holiday
• Weatherstripping and door sweeps — cheap, and it cuts the winter utility complaints
• Frost-free hose bibs shut off and drained

Rental licensing

Minneapolis, St. Paul, and most metro cities require a rental license with periodic inspections. Common failure items are worth pre-checking every turnover:

• Working smoke and CO detectors in required locations
• Egress window in every bedroom (5.7 sq ft opening, 24" height, 20" width, sill under 44")
• GFCI protection in kitchens, baths, and unfinished basements
• Handrails on stairs with four or more risers
• No peeling paint in pre-1978 units (lead-safe rules)
• Working heat capable of 68°F

Failing an inspection means a re-inspection fee and more vacant days. Walking the list yourself takes an hour.

What to skip

• High-end finishes — they do not raise rent proportionally and they get destroyed
• Carpet in living areas — it will need replacing every turnover
• Trendy colors — you will repaint sooner
• Cheap laminate flooring — the core swells at the first spill
• Builder-grade white appliances in a market that expects stainless — false economy
• Landscaping beyond tidy — tenants rarely maintain it

The fastest turnover sequence

1. Walk the unit with the outgoing tenant, document everything with photos
2. Order materials the same day (paint, flooring, fixtures)
3. Trades in this order: repairs → paint → flooring → fixtures → clean
4. Photograph and list before the work is finished, using photos from the last comparable turn
5. Show while the final cleaning is happening

Sequencing well is what turns a 30-day turn into a 12-day turn, and that is worth more than any single repair on this list.