Leaving your old place behind? Then it’s highly recommended that you prepare a move out cleaning checklist to fully get your deposit money back. Depending on the landlord’s requirements, some things from that list may be mandatory.
Listing the tasks and discussing them with him is strongly recommended to keep things clear, remember they can legally take the cleaning cost out of the security deposit.
So to save you from a stress headache and to guarantee the complete refund of your deposit, here are listed some chores to do before returning your old house to its original owner.
The most important chores in a move out cleaning checklist
Where do we begin? It doesn’t matter if the place you are moving from is big or small, the first question when cleaning is what to clean first.
You can do this cleaning yourself, but it’s always easier to hire a professional cleaning company.
The move out cleaning cost is not even half of what you will get back from your deposit, also, hiring a cleaning company allows you to focus on packing and everything else a moving involves.
Just make sure you notify the landlord you are leaving the property at least 30 days before moving out, that way they have enough time to find a new tenant and the maintenance staff has plenty of time to do the cleaning.
You don’t have to take all your belongings out of the house to do the cleaning; companies usually offer a basic cleaning pack that includes vacuuming the floor, dust every surface and wiping the windows.
Since the place will be thoroughly inspected just before your leaving, this last cleanse must involve more laborious chores like replacing old light bulbs, walls cleaning and even removing fingerprints around doorknobs.
The basics are the common area, kitchen, bathrooms and outdoor cleaning. To get all the points on the house’s final inspection you must take care of these chores:
Move out cleaning checklist: Common area
- Stairs and floors need to be vacuumed and moped
- Carpets must be completely cleaned (steam vacuuming is regularly used for this)
- Walls and baseboards must be wiped down
- Remove all the nails and screws that weren’t there when you moved and repair any tiny holes left behind
- Dust the ceiling fans
- You will definitely want to get rid of those cobwebs in the corner
- Move the washing machine and the dryer to clean underneath and behind them
- Dust intake vents and air return vents
- Clean or replace cracked TV wall plates
- Wipe exterior portions of furnace and water heater without dismantling any parts
Move out cleaning checklist: Kitchen and Living room
- Cabinets and drawers must be cleaned inside and out
- Household appliances like microwaves and refrigerators must be moved to vacuum behind them as well
- Wipe down the counter-tops and scrub the sink and faucet, sometimes disinfecting them will be required
- Clean under elements
- You will be required to defrost and clean the inside of the freezer
- Scrub all ridges, rims and underside of hood to make sure there are no grease splatters
- Clean all blinds and window coverings
Move out cleaning checklist: Bathroom and Outdoor
- Scrub the shower and bleach the grout
- Some people request mirror polishing but wiping it down is just fine
Clean the inside and out of the drawers and vanity
- Wash the floor and remove the dirt along the tub and toilets (including the inside of the toilet tank)
- Clean or remove the shower curtain
- Yes, medicine cabinets also must be cleaned and emptied
- Get the grass mowed
- Remove weeds
- Pressure wash the concrete or pavers
- Remove all items in the garage and shed
- Replace dead bulbs
- Get rid of any oil stains
- Make sure you are not leaving any animal droppings behind
- Sweep carport, storage areas, and walkways
As you see, accomplishing each one of the steps on a move out cleaning checklist is not easy work, we are not going to lie.
Some chores may be more important than others, that’s why is recommended to previously talk to your landlord to know specifically what he wants to be cleaned and what’s not that important.
Why do you need a professional move out cleaning service?
Tenants usually don’t pay that much attention to the importance of the cleaning process because they believe the move out cleaning cost is too high or because they think the owner can take care of this chore.
Of course, landlords can clean their own property, but remember they are renting it to make a profit and cleaning the place you just left or paying for the repairs is not profitable at all; that’s why they expect to get the space back as they first presented it to you: untarnished.
Numbering the advantages of hiring a professional move out cleaning service:
- You have a lot to think already; moving involves time, money and attention, so leaving the cleaning tasks to professionals frees you from this concern
- With professionals in charge, you increase your chances of getting 100% of your deposit’s money back
- You assure the move out cleaning checklist is fully marked
- Is faster having a team to clean up than just doing it yourself
Basically, you gain time, money and a neat old place.
What about the move in cleaning?
After reading our move out cleaning checklist, you probably think that when you arrive at your new place, everything will be super clean, but the truth is you will probably arrive at an apartment that has been empty for a while and it will be full of dust.
Usually, a move in cleaning is faster than a move out cleaning, because the place has been washed previously and the vacuuming and wiping won’t be as deep as the first one.
Moving to a place that has been unoccupied for months means floors, desks and ceiling fans will be dusty, windows will be sticky and the first neighbors to welcome you will be spiders.
To fix this issue really fast before the moving day, people usually hire a move in cleaning service.
Many wonder if the move out cleaning cost is more expensive than the move in cleaning, the truth is both depend on how many parts of the house need to be cleaned and how deep they have to go.
To summarize, you need to create a move out cleaning checklist with your landlord; you can get some ideas from the one we just wrote down for you. Discussing this list with him gives you details on what his cleaning expectations are.
It’s true, sometimes landlords will make it hard for you to get that deposit back, but if you put your trust into a move out cleaning company, your chances of getting that deposit back grow exponentially.
A new place means a new life, so why not welcome both properly? If you are moving into a new place that may need a little cleaning after been empty for some time, consider hiring a move in cleaning company.
Whether you just need your windows washed out or the floor vacuumed and mopped, or a deeper cleaning to reach the hardest spots of the house, cleaning companies are happy to provide you with exact service you are looking for.
City Wide Jani are a commercial cleaning company based in Chicago. We have over time proven ourselves to be the most efficient and most professional operation in the city. We are licensed, bonded and insured, as well as being accredited by the City of Chicago as a (MBE) Minority Business Enterprise and (WBE) Women Business Enterprise. City Wide also has a consistently maintained A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau of Illinois. City Wide is an owner-operated business that emphasizes that highest levels of quality control. Our senior management take an active role in the day to day operations of the company, including site visits to crews and are always available to clients.
We manage a diverse range of facilities across the city and take immense pride in maintaining them to the highest standards. As a company and a service, we always exceed our customer’s expectations and our business has been built on our reputation for unbeatable customer satisfaction. Our combined decades of experience, in both management and in our outstanding cleaning crews, means we can provide the perfect, cost effective solution for your business.
City Wide Jani Inc. are a commercial cleaning company based in Chicago. We have over time proven ourselves to be the most efficient and most professional operation in the city. We are licensed, bonded and insured, as well as being accredited by the City of Chicago as a (MBE) Minority Business Enterprise and (WBE) Women Business Enterprise. City Wide also has a consistently maintained A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau of Illinois. City Wide is an owner-operated business that emphasizes that highest levels of quality control. Our senior management take an active role in the day to day operations of the company, including site visits to crews and are always available to clients.
We manage a diverse range of facilities across the city and take immense pride in maintaining them to the highest standards. As a company and a service, we always exceed our customer’s expectations and our business has been built on our reputation for unbeatable customer satisfaction. Our combined decades of experience, in both management and in our outstanding cleaning crews, means we can provide the perfect, cost effective solution for your business.
Rhianna Hawk
August 17, 2018 at 10:13 am
I will be moving out of my college apartment soon, and I had a massive security deposit that I really want back (I’m in college; money is life) and I was hoping I’d get away with doing some basic cleaning myself. Unfortunately, I definitely can’t take on a massive list like this on my own, particularly the yard work you mentioned (it’s a rented apartment in a house, so it has a yard.) I’ll have to talk to my roommates to see if they’ll be willing to pitch in some funds and we’ll look at getting a professional cleaner; it’ll definitely be cheaper than paying for decent grout remover for our ancient standing shower.