When you are moving out from your rented property, you cannot just leave it in total mess. You will have paid a large security deposit which you will want to get back in full, but the landlord is entitled to make deductions if the property is not returned in the same condition as they found it. This nearly proves to be costly if you attempt it yourself.
The best way to ensure that you do not face this problem is to ensure a thorough clean of the property.
There are many reasons why cleaning the property matters a lot, besides getting back your much-needed security deposit:
- It shows your landlord that you took good care of the property for the time you were there.
- It ups your chances of leaving on good terms with your landlord, which is always the most preferable option.
- It shows you appreciate the property and that you are a well-mannered person, who can be fully trusted.
The End of Tenancy Cleaning Checklist
Here is a sample checklist we work in accordance with, for every room of the property. You can print it out if you want to use it.
Cleaning the kitchen
- Sanitise all kitchen worktops and near sink areas
- Clean inside all of cupboards, drawers, and buffets
- Scrub the sink, taps, and faucets
- Address limescale in the area
- Scrub and wipe off walls and worktop tiles
- Remove mould and spots from grout
- Clean the oven inside out
- Scrape the grime from hobs and extractors
- Remove the grease between the oven door and glass
- Clean the microwave interior and exterior
- Inspect the washing machine and wash soap drawers
- Scrub appliance interior, including pot and toaster
- Wipe all shelves, drawers, and cupboards
- Clean and arrange silverware, utensils and other dishes
- Wipe the dust from the light switches, sockets, and plugs
- Hoover and mop the floors
Cleaning the bathroom
- Remove cobwebs from the ceiling
- Wash shower doors and screens
- Scrub and sanitise the toilet bowl
- Clean and polish all fittings
- Clean the bathtub of limescale, soap scum and hard water deposits
- Wash and polish the bathroom mirror
- Clean and mop the floor
Cleaning the living room
- Clean top areas of furniture, shelves, wall-units, and others
- Inspect the walls and corners for cobwebs, skid marks, and spots
- Dust/scrub the doors, door frames and handles
- Wipe pictures, frames, paintings and other art on the walls
- Clean lampshades and light fittings
- Clean the sockets, light switches, and plugs
- Vacuum the upholstery on furniture
- Clean under and around furniture items
- Hoover the carpet and area rugs
Cleaning the entryway, hallways, and stairs
- Remove shoe marks from the floor
- Mop the hallways and stairs
- Wipe the dust from skirting boards
- Clean pictures, wall-mounts, and light fixtures
- Remove cobwebs from the corners, ceilings, and walls
- Hoover the carpet and area rugs
- Wipe all dust and marks from handrails, treads, balustrades, and risers
Please check out the infographic we have put up together on the ultimate checklist to cleaning a property from top to bottom at the end of your tenancy:
FastKlean adheres to an even stricter checklist than the one you see here. While we understand there may be people willing to take on the process all alone, we believe this is a big mistake. End of tenancy cleaning requires professionals on the case, since that is the only way to ensure the highest standard.
Doing the cleaning yourself holds many risks and drawbacks
- There is a lot of work to do – obviously, there is a lot of work to do. From cleaning the kitchen and the bathroom, to addressing some hidden areas under the furniture, you will probab;y find the task to be a little overwhelming. If you are doing this on your own, you can bet that it will leave you exhausted.
- It takes a lot of time – cleaning is never a straightforward process. There are plenty of small tasks that you will need to deal with and the time they all take quickly adds up. At some point you may find that it has been hours since you started and you are not even halfway to completing the cleaning project.
- You need to do it properly – end of tenancy cleaning is not just some routine job you can do without investing much thought. It requires precision and maintaining a certain high standard of cleaning, which simply may not be what you are normally used to. Bear in mind that if you don’t clean well, you will ultimately fail to get the required result, which may render all your efforts useless.
- You need plenty of cleaning materials – if you don’t like shopping around for cleaning materials, this is bad news for you. End of tenancy cleaning requires certain solutions and tools. If you lack them, you cannot hope to clean to the high standard that you normally have to, so there is also this consideration to make.
Your best solution is to engage a professional cleaning company fully experienced in end of tenancy cleaning, like us.
Working with FastKlean provides plenty of benefits:
- You will leave on good terms with the landlord – since getting your security deposit back in full largely depends on your landlord, you want to ensure that they see a nicely refreshed place that will welcome new tenants, not one that prevents them from letting the property.
- You will not need to spend your valuable time and effort cleaning – end of tenancy cleaning can be tough to handle, especially when you are no expert. It involves multiple energy-sapping tasks, all of which you can leave to skilled operatives.
- You actually save money – when you hire experts to deal with this job, you essentially guarantee yourself the full return of your security deposit. Try it yourself and you may miss areas, or not attend to areas properly, which you will be penalised for by your landlord deducting a large sum from your deposit. So it might seem expensive initially, but it can end up saving money and lots of stress, which is always nice.
- You get the job done quickly – it is amazing to see how quickly professionals can address all end of tenancy cleaning tasks. It may take you several days to achieve what one team can do in a few hours, safe in the knowledge that this will be done to the highest standard without compromise.
Our company FastKlean adheres to an even stricter checklist than the one you see here. We are very thorough in our work and go through the cleaning process with utmost diligence and care. We are well aware that in end of tenancy it is the small details that make the biggest difference.
We have made it super easy to book our end of tenancy cleaning service. We know it is important to find a cleaning company fast, so we have implemented a simple process. Just give us a call on 020 8884 9149 and we will quickly process your query. You can also book our services online and get the best cleaners on your side.
