If you happen to be one of the people not lucky enough to live in your own property, you’re sure to be familiar with the old end of lease clean up. Attempting the move out clean on your own can be risky if not properly prepared. Many tenants lose a considerable amount of their security deposit due to lack of knowledge on what you need to pay attention to. That’s why we’ve put together this easy to follow end of tenancy cleaning guide to make sure you don’t miss any important details.
How to Make Sure You Are Properly Prepared?
Whether you’ll be taking on the end of tenancy clean yourself or hiring a move-out cleaning service, it’s important to know what needs to be done during an end of tenancy clean up. This way you can be sure that you or the cleaning agency have done the job properly, and eliminate any worry about retrieving your tenancy deposit in full.
The first thing you should do is to ask your landlord for their final inspection checklist as well as the move-in inventory. By doing so you can assure that you meet all the requirements and guarantee the return of your security deposit in full.
- It is vital that you replace broken things and repair any damage caused during the time of your lease.
- If you are taking on the clean up yourself it is important that you leave yourself enough time to allow for furniture to dry and get the tedious task done.
- You should also equip yourself with all the correct cleaning products beforehand to make sure you don’t damage furniture by using the wrong product.
- In case you are worried about how to clean certain furniture or flooring it is best to consult a professional to avoid damage.
What’s Better: Hiring Professionals or Doing the Move-Out Cleanup Yourself?
The choice of taking on the chore by yourself or hiring professional cleaners can sometimes be stressful. You may be worried about spending money by hiring them or losing a large amount of your tenancy deposit by doing the job inadequately. The way of approaching the decision would be to assess the job that needs to be done. Consider the number of rooms you need to clean, how much of a mess there is and decide whether or not your everyday activities would allow you to take the time needed to get on with the task.
If you think you might overwhelm yourself with the task it may be best to hire an end of tenancy cleaning service. In doing so you can free yourself up to get on with your other move-out activities and be sure that you don’t allow stress to get in the way of retrieving your tenancy deposit in full.
Quick End of Tenancy Cleaning Tricks
The end of tenancy clean can be a tedious and time-consuming job. Stubborn stains and bad smells sometimes are very hard to get rid of. So here are a few quick and easy cleaning tips to help you clean some tricky spots around the rental:
Mattress:
Unpleasant odours in your mattress that you just can’t seem to cover up? Strip off the bedding and give your mattress a good vacuum to get rid of the dust on top. Sprinkle a good amount of bicarbonate of soda all over the mattress. Leave it for about 30 minutes to absorb all the bad odour and bacteria. While waiting for the bicarbonate of soda to do its magic you could go and start another quick cleaning chore. Give it another once-over with the hoover. You could put a few drops of lavender oil on the mattress to give it a pleasant smell. (This trick can be used on carpets and other soft furniture as well!)
Tiles:
Limescale in the bathroom and kitchen? Use white vinegar to get rid of it. Pour white vinegar on the tap, shower head etc. and leave it on overnight. Give it a wipe down in the morning and leave the bathroom and kitchen sparkling! Stubborn dirt in between tiles? Mix a small amount of bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar. Use an old toothbrush to scrub in between the tiles.
Walls:
Greasy stains on the walls? Wet wipes are perfect for removing grubby handprints – and it doesn’t damage the paint! (This trick works on light switches, door frames, window frames and skirting boards too.)
Cleaning checklist
Don’t want to miss a spot? Here is a short end of lease cleanup checklist you can use to ensure you will meet your landlord’s requirements.
General cleaning:
- Dusting all surfaces
- Polishing mirrors, windows, and other glass surfaces
- Cleaning window frames, door frames, doors and skirting boards
- Cleaning lights, light shades, polishing light switches
- Wiping cobwebs and dust off all walls, ceilings
- Removing stains and mould from walls, ceilings, floors
- Mopping all hard flooring
- Machine washing all soft flooring (carpets)
- Dusting picture frames
- Polishing stair bannisters
- Radiators – washed down fronts and backs & fittings
- Curtains/blind – vacuumed or steam cleaned
Kitchen:
- Cleaning the cupboards – inside and out
- Thorough clean inside the fridge/freezer and outside, behind and underneath
- Dishwasher – inside, outside and filter
- Washing machine – inside and outside
- Tumble dryer – inside and outside, the filter
- Oven – degrease inside and outside
- Degrease the hobs
- Microwave- inside and outside
- Extractor – outside and filter
- Cleaning cupboards – inside and outside
- Wiping down the worktops
- Cleaning tiles
Bathroom:
- Shower – shower screen and shower head
- Disinfecting the toilet seat and toilet bowl
- Descaling the sink and taps
- Polishing the mirror
Bedroom:
- Wardrobes – inside and out
- Chest of drawers – inside and out
- Clean and deodorize mattress and pillows
- Clean out cupboards
Living room:
- Wipe down all surfaces
- Clean tables, chairs and dust shelves
- Vacuum and wipe furniture
NB: You should always check all locks work properly and replace any that don’t before the final inspection!
When doing an end of tenancy clean you should always make sure you use all cleaning agents correctly. Read the instructions to ensure you don’t damage or stain anything around your rental property. When you have completed your move-out clean, always have another look over the property in case you’ve missed anything. By carefully following our end of tenancy cleaning guide, you can be sure you get your tenancy deposit back in full.
