Quick answer
To turn over a vacant NYC retail space, walk it with the departing tenant or broker, clarify what the lease requires the tenant to remove, clear debris and left-behind items, clean the sales floor, back of house, restrooms, storefront glass, entry, and gates, patch fixture and signage holes, repaint where needed, handle basic repairs, note lighting issues for a licensed electrician, and photograph the space for the listing. Build-outs and permitted work are separate.
On this page
This checklist is general information for NYC landlords, not legal advice. What a departing tenant must remove or restore depends on the lease; confirm obligations with your attorney or managing agent.
A storefront that sits dirty with old signage holes and taped-over glass is harder to lease. Preparing a retail or small commercial space between tenants is usually less about construction and more about getting it clean, neutral, and presentable so a prospective tenant can picture their own business there.
This checklist covers the turnover work between one tenant leaving and the next leasing campaign. Use the Print button to take it on your walkthrough.
Walkthrough with the departing tenant or broker
What must the departing tenant remove?
That depends on the lease, and it is a lease and legal question rather than a turnover question. Review the lease terms with your attorney or managing agent before deciding what stays, what the tenant removes, and what you handle yourself.
Commercial leases vary widely on fixtures, signage, and restoration. Settle this before turnover work starts, because removing something the tenant was supposed to take, or leaving something you could have required them to remove, affects both cost and schedule. This checklist does not cover those obligations.
Debris and left-behind items
Cleaning
Sales floor
Back of house
Restrooms
Storefront, entry, and gates
Walls and paint
Basic repairs
Lighting
Photos for the listing and broker
Showing readiness
What Empire Turnover does not do
Commercial turnover is preparation, not construction. Empire Turnover does not perform build-outs, permitted construction, demolition, or mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) work. Those belong with licensed contractors and, where required, permits. If you know the next tenant will do a build-out, it may make sense to limit turnover to cleaning and debris removal and skip painting.
Where Empire Turnover fits
Empire Turnover is a New York City property turnover company that helps landlords and property managers prepare apartments and commercial spaces between tenants. For retail landlords in Manhattan and Brooklyn, that means debris removal, cleaning of the sales floor, back rooms, restrooms, storefront glass and entry, wall painting and touch-ups, and basic repairs in the approved scope. See our commercial turnover services and the retail space preparation details on our services page.
Many of the same principles apply to residential units. Our apartment turnover checklist for NYC landlords and guide on reducing apartment turnover time cover them in more detail.
Related Empire Turnover services
Written by Empire Turnover
Empire Turnover is a New York City property turnover company that helps landlords and property managers prepare apartments and commercial spaces between tenants. We serve Manhattan and Brooklyn. How we write and update these guides