Yukon Move-Out Inspection and Abandoned Property Rules

The Inspection Is Not Optional

Under the Residential Tenancies Act 2025, a move-out inspection is a required step in the tenancy-ending process, not a formality. You must offer the tenant at least two good-faith opportunities to participate in the inspection. Unless the tenant has abandoned the unit, your right to claim against the deposit for damage is extinguished if you fail to offer those opportunities, conduct the inspection, or complete the report and provide the tenant with a copy.

How to Do It

Schedule the inspection for as close to the move-out date as practical. Walk through the unit with the tenant and note the condition of every room, fixture, and appliance on the Condition Inspection Report. Compare it against the move-in condition report completed at the start of the tenancy.

Photograph or video everything — walls, floors, appliances, windows, plumbing fixtures, exterior areas. Date-stamp the images. This is your evidence if a deposit claim goes to the RTO.

Damage beyond normal wear and tear is claimable. A scuff on a wall from furniture is wear and tear. A hole punched through drywall is damage. The Adjudicator decides disputed cases based on the documentation you provide, and the comparison between move-in and move-out reports is the foundation.

When the Tenant Does Not Attend

If the tenant does not show up for either of the two opportunities you offered, conduct the inspection yourself, complete the report without the tenant, and give the tenant a copy within seven days. Note that the tenant was offered and declined both opportunities. The inspection still needs to happen — it just proceeds without the tenant's participation.

Abandoned Property

If a tenant vacates or is evicted and leaves personal belongings behind, you cannot simply throw them away or keep them. The RTA 2025 has specific rules under Division 3 (Abandoned Property):

1. Document the items. If you apply for an order, list the goods and their estimated values. If you store them while waiting for an order, keep a written inventory and exercise reasonable care; photographs are recommended.
2. Apply to the Director of the RTO for an order authorizing removal, sale, or other disposal. The Director may make the order if you have made reasonable efforts to locate the tenant and cannot find them, or the tenant has not made reasonable arrangements to remove the property.
3. Store the items safely while the application is processed. You may deduct removal, sale, or disposal costs from proceeds and may seek compensation from the tenant for storage costs.

Destroying or personally keeping the tenant's belongings without statutory authorization is illegal and exposes you to compensation orders at the RTO.

The Connection to Deposits

The inspection and the deposit return timeline overlap. You have 15 days from the later of the tenancy end date and receipt of the tenant's forwarding address in writing to return the deposit, agree on deductions, or file at the RTO. The inspection evidence is what supports any deduction you want to claim. If you miss the 15-day window, the deduction claim is gone regardless of what the inspection found.

Get the inspection done promptly, finalize the documentation, and make your deposit decision within the deadline.

Our Ending a Tenancy in Yukon guide includes both the deposit tracker and an evidence checklist for the move-out inspection process.

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