Unit Turns for 250+ Unit Communities in Dallas and Houston: How the Program Runs

Short answer: on a community of 250 units or more, unit turns work best as a standing program rather than a series of separate jobs. The pieces are a written standard scope for each turn level, a vacancy forecast shared with the contractor, a walk-and-price on the day the unit is vacated, trades sequenced in a fixed order, a quality check before the unit goes back to leasing, and one weekly report across every unit in progress. In Texas, each turn also has to meet the Property Code's rekeying and smoke alarm rules before the next resident moves in.

Why Size Changes the Approach

On a small property, a turn is an event: a resident moves out, the maintenance team or a vendor gets the unit ready, and it goes back on the market. On a large community, move-outs arrive every week and cluster around lease expirations, so turns overlap. The question stops being "can this unit be ready" and becomes "can the property absorb this month's move-outs without units sitting empty while they wait for a trade." That is a scheduling problem, and it is why large communities benefit from treating turns as a pipeline with a single owner.

1. Write the Standard Scope First

Most large-community programs define turn levels in writing before the first unit. A common pattern is three levels: a standard make-ready (clean, paint touch-up or full paint, minor repairs, carpet clean or replace), a heavier turn for units with damage or long tenancies, and a renovation turn where the unit receives the property's value-add package as it turns. For each level the scope document lists the finishes, the products and colors, and what counts as repair versus replacement.

The point is consistency. When the scope is written down, a unit turned this month and one turned next spring look the same, and the price for each level is known in advance rather than negotiated unit by unit. In UTS BuildPros planning ranges for Texas and Oklahoma in 2026, a standard make-ready turn runs about $1,500–$4,000 per unit; renovation turns are priced from the property's own package. Our budget guide covers the bands.

2. Share the Vacancy Forecast

The single most useful thing a property team can give a turn contractor is the notice-to-vacate list and the lease expiration schedule. With it, the contractor can line up trades and materials for the weeks when move-outs cluster instead of reacting after keys come back. A rolling 30- to 60-day look-ahead, updated weekly, is enough to plan labor and order long-lead items such as appliances and countertops.

3. Walk and Price on Move-Out Day

Each vacated unit is walked as soon as it is released, ideally by the property's maintenance lead and the contractor's project manager together. The walk assigns the unit to a turn level, records damage beyond normal wear with photos, and flags anything that needs a licensed trade, such as a leak, an electrical problem or an HVAC failure. The output is a priced work order the property approves before work starts, so the scope is agreed rather than discovered.

4. Sequence the Trades in a Fixed Order

Turns lose days when trades arrive out of order and undo each other's work. A dependable sequence is: trash-out and demolition, repairs to drywall, plumbing, electrical and HVAC, then paint, then cabinets, counters and fixtures, then flooring, then appliances, then final clean. Flooring near the end protects it from the trades before it. Licensed plumbing, electrical and HVAC work is done by licensed contractors under their own licenses and permits where required; UTS BuildPros schedules prequalified licensed subcontractors and does not self-perform trades. Our sequencing guide explains the logic in more detail.

5. Meet the Texas Move-In Requirements

A unit is not ready until it meets the rules that apply at the start of a new tenancy. In Texas, three come up on every turn:

Rekeying. Texas Property Code §92.156 requires the landlord to rekey keyed, card or combination security devices no later than the seventh day after each tenant turnover date, which the Code defines as the day a new tenant moves in after all previous occupants have moved out. Interior and closet door locks are excluded. Build it into the turn checklist so it is never left for the leasing office to chase.

Smoke alarms. Under Texas Property Code §92.258, the landlord must determine that each smoke alarm is in good working order at the beginning of a tenant's possession, by testing it. A turn crew that replaces ceilings, paints or changes light fixtures should confirm the alarms are reinstalled and working, and the property should record the test.

Lead-safe work in older buildings. If the community was built before 1978, EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule requires work that disturbs painted surfaces beyond the minor repair limits (6 square feet per room inside, 20 square feet outside) to be done by a certified firm using lead-safe practices. UTS BuildPros is an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Firm.

6. Inspect Before the Unit Goes Back to Leasing

Each finished unit gets a punch walk against the scope document before it is released: every item on the work order complete, appliances and fixtures working, smoke alarms tested, keys changed, and the unit clean enough to show. Units that fail go back on the list with named items, not a general note. Photos of the finished unit go into the same record as the move-out photos.

7. Report Across the Whole Pipeline

A large community needs one view of every unit: vacated and waiting, in progress, in punch, and ready. A weekly report against the vacancy forecast shows whether the program is keeping up and where it is not. It also gives the asset manager the record of turn costs by level that a budget or a renovation decision needs.

What to Ask a Turn Contractor

Who is the single point of contact? One project manager for the property, not a different person per trade.

How do they scale for heavy months? Ask how they add capacity when move-outs cluster, and how they plan for it.

Which trades are licensed, and whose license is it? Plumbing, electrical and HVAC work in Texas is licensed by the state. Ask for the license numbers of the contractors who will do it.

What do they need from you? A good contractor will ask for the vacancy forecast, unit access rules and the approval process for work orders up front.

How We Run Turn Programs

UTS BuildPros runs unit turn programs for apartment communities across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, including Dallas and Houston, with a dedicated project manager, a written scope for each turn level and a weekly report. Where units are occupied during a broader program, see our occupied renovations page. Call (940) 231-2640 or send us your property details and we will walk the community and set up the scope.

Sources

Texas Property Code §92.156 (rekeying after each tenant turnover) and §92.151 (definition of tenant turnover date).

Texas Property Code §92.258 (smoke alarm testing at the beginning of possession).

U.S. EPA, Renovation, Repair and Painting Program: Contractors; 40 CFR Part 745, Subpart E (§745.83 minor repair and maintenance thresholds).

UTS BuildPros 2026 per-unit planning ranges, from our apartment renovation budget guide.