I would start with cleaning the carpets and painting. See where you stand after that

Ah, that is a good suggestion. Probably should clean ducts anyway since I'm sure they didn't do anything like that on their own.

Fortunately no curtains, only the plastic mini blinds.

Rape the house with Kilz..

Take them down and wash them in the shower as well. Dust holds smoke smell.

I think everyone has covered it all.

1. Repaint everything

2. Clean ducts and change air filter

3. Throw out any furniture they left

4. Clean blinds and windows.

It should smell pretty "new" after the paint

Smoke a few bowls. Different, but better, smell.

If the mini blinds are really bad you might want to check and see what it would cost to just replace them before you waste your time trying to clean them. You should be able to find most standard sizes for around $5-7 each.

having tenants can really suck. I had straight up hoarders like on the TV show. + they smoked inside too. I'm still working on this shit.

Section 8?

Wait until one leaves you with a bunch of bedbugs. That's when the real fun begins.

I take miniblinds down to the car wash and blast them with a hand held. Gets years of dirt off.

Bring an aids infested, midget wearing only a jock strap and a clear raincoat to hold the blinds for you.

Nope, they were good tenants for a long time. Just fell on hard times back in November and couldn't keep up with the rent. It was kind of a surprise actually.

I agree, they may even be broken now after being used for 3 yrs. They were remarkably cheap when I bought them so it's not a big deal to just replace them.

I remember that thread. That sucks to deal with. I've learned a valuable lesson this time though. I'm going to check more frequently next time and collect a lot more upfront money. I think people will take better care of a place if they've already given a large deposit.

Thanks for the advice everyone, it is much appreciated!