PCS season texts have a different energy: "We move out in two weeks — the sink's been slow for months, is that going to be a problem?" Honest answer: maybe, and two weeks is exactly the right time to deal with it instead of the night before the walk-through.
What actually gets flagged at move-out
Korean landlords and realtors doing a move-out inspection reliably notice three things: drains that run slow, bathroom smells, and any sign of leaking under sinks. Fair or not, a slow kitchen drain reads as "tenant poured grease for two years" — and the repair cost conversation happens with your deposit on the table.
The frustrating version is inheriting the problem: the line was half-clogged with the previous tenant's grease when you moved in, and now it is failing on your watch. Without documentation, "it was like that" is just a claim.
The documentation play
When we service a rental, you get before/after photos and, where it matters, camera footage with a plain-language note on the cause. Grease layers take years to build — footage showing old accumulation is strong evidence the problem predates you. That is the difference between a deposit dispute and a shrug.
Moving IN somewhere off-post? Same logic in reverse: a quick photo pass of drains and under-sink areas in week one creates your baseline. Thirty minutes now saves a very annoying argument in three years.
Timing it right
Book plumbing work at least a week before your inspection — not the day before. If clearing reveals something bigger (a failing line, a leak), you want time to sort out the landlord conversation while you are still in the country and not living out of suitcases.
Do this now
- Walk the house: run every drain, flush every toilet, sniff every bathroom
- Photograph anything questionable BEFORE anyone touches it
- Book fixes a week or more ahead of the walk-through
- Keep our photo documentation with your lease papers
Sounds like your house? Photos beat descriptions — send what you're seeing.