Areas To Look Out For During Your Move Out Cleaning
People come and go from one place to another, and there are a lot of reasons behind it. Typically, you relocate to another city or suburb because you got a better job or business opportunity in that place
In this read, we are going to share with you a comprehensive guide for the critical areas that need serious cleaning before you finally move out of your house, apartment, or condo. Continue reading to find out more.
Ceilings and Crown Moldings
Technically, there are different strategies we can take in starting to clean your apartment or house, yet starting with the upper areas is the common option. With this, those specks of dust that aren’t sucked by the vacuum will drop to your floors for easier vacuuming.
Windows and Blinds
Our house cleaning personnel only uses green window glass cleaners for removing those dust, soil, and grease sticking on windows and frames. To avoid any scratches on your glass window panes, we only use soft microfiber (lint-free) in wiping off debris and dirt.
Furniture and Upholstery
Our highly trained and experienced staff knows the essential cleaning protocols for the sensitive fabrics of your upholstery and wooden or leather furniture. Our standard steps for sanitizing and disinfecting your furniture and upholsteries are the following:
Inspection
Preparing the area for cleaning
Vacuuming
Pre-treatment or spotting of stains
Soil extraction
Final spotting
Drying
Final assessment
The Ultimate Move-Out Cleaning Checklist
No matter if you’re relocating to a new apartment or buying a new house, moving can be pretty stressful. When you have a lot on your mind—packing up, picking renters insurance plans, changing your mailing address—cleaning the place you’re moving out of can quickly fall down to the bottom of your to-do list. While hiring a cleaning service can help you check off this task, handling it yourself will save you some money and lets you tackle the cleaning on your own schedule.
Renter’s Guide to Move-Out Cleaning
If you’re a renter, cleaning before you move out is important in order to get your security deposit back and to avoid a cleaning fee from your landlord or the building’s management company. Before you start scrubbing, confirm what the expectations are. Sometimes management will provide their own cleaning list for you, and some leases will even state upfront what the costs will be if the place isn’t properly cleaned before you move out. Below are the move-out cleaning basics you should be sure to cover.
Cleaning Tips
Clean from top to bottom. Just like we recommend for your regular cleaning routine, dust surfaces high up in the room, like ceiling fans or shelves, before cleaning lower surfaces, like floors. This way, you won’t accidentally waft dust onto just-cleaned areas.
Work in stages. Depending upon how large the space is, cleaning all at once may be overwhelming. Break it up into chunks of time, starting with the areas you’ll use the least between now and move-out day, such as a guest bedroom.
Allot time for last-minute cleaning. Even if you clean in advance of move-out day, there are some things you’ll have to clean right before you leave, like the bathroom. Remember that once the furniture is moved out, you’ll likely have to sweep up the dust bunnies that are uncovered.
Move-Out Cleaning Checklist
Dust the ceiling fans
Remove any nails or screws from the walls
If you used hardware to hang up artwork or shelves, now’s the time to remove them and fill the holes with putty.
Clean the windows and wipe window ledges
Wash the doors
Wipe them down with a damp microfiber cloth
Sweep and vacuum, then mop the floors
Dust any vents or exhaust fans
Dust blinds or window treatments (if you’re leaving them)
In the Kitchen
Empty out and clean the refrigerator
Have a cooler ready for any food you want to transport to your new place.
Clean the oven and stovetop
Time to scrub all of the grease splatters off of your stovetop.
Refresh the dishwasher.
Scrub and disinfect the sink (and the garbage disposal, if you have one!)
Wipe down and disinfect the countertops
Clear out the cabinets
Move Out Guide
In an effort to help make your move out process go smoothly and to maximize your deposit return, please follow the guidelines enclosed. Deposit returns will be sent within 30 days of your lease expiration. If you do not provide a forwarding address when you return your keys, your deposit will be sent to the last known address.
When you assumed occupancy of your current residence, you found it in a clean and ready to move in condition, unless otherwise stated on your Move-In Inspection report. Due to the very short time period between your move-out date and the new resident’s move-in date, it is imperative that your residence be left in a very clean, move-in ready condition. Any damages needing repair or routine maintenance should be reported prior to vacating the residence.
KEYS:
All apartment keys must be returned
If keys are not returned on time, you will be charged for having the locks replaced.
Tenants not moved out by lease end date will be charged $200.00 a day.
Roommates: Please designate one contact person to return keys and complete the forwarding address form indicating the address where you would like the deposit mailed.
The deposit will be mailed to ONE PERSON ONLY and it will be this person’s responsibility to distribute the refund to the other parties.
Deposits are NOT allowed to be used as a rental payment!
UTILITIES:
All utilities MUST be left on until the day of lease termination date in order to inspect your unit. If they are turned off within that time, the reconnection charge will be billed to your deposit.
ABANDONED PROPERTY:
Any valuable abandoned property – value determined by Lessor – left in a residence after keys have been turned into the office will be stored for 60 days. To recover items, you must pay $50.00/day storage fees plus our cost of packing and storing and any and all outstanding charges on your account. After 30 days, all items will be disposed of and the storage fee will be deducted from the security deposit.
Move out cleaning
Before moving out you must clean the apartment properly. Please remember that when moving out from a shared apartment also the shared part of the apartment must be cleaned and all tenants living in the apartment are responsible for this. If the apartment is not properly cleaned, the cleaning costs will be deducted from the deposit or invoiced
Please clean the following:
vacuum/sweep and wipe all the floors, floor lists and thresholds with a detergent
walls
the radiators and the back of the radiators
doors and door frames
setting lists of the windows
sockets and light switches
cupboards and wardrobes (in-and outside)
drawers
the stove, the oven and the back of the stove (pull the stove out of its place)
the hood and the grease filter
fridge and if you are the last one to leave the apartment, defrost the freezer (to avoid the growth of mold in the fridge/freezer, make sure it is properly defrosted and dried and do not close the door after you have switched it off)
kitchen sink, tap and worktop
bathroom taps, floor, drain, walls, sink, cabinet and toilet seat
take all trash to the waste disposal point
HOUSE CLEANING GUIDE: TIPS TO TACKLING MOVE OUT DAY
Wait Until You’re Fully Moved Out to Start Your Clean
It’s critical when it comes to move-out cleaning that you wait until your pad is completely empty. Tackling your total clean will feel endlessly easier when you only need to make one final round. Many people make the mistake of starting too soon, ultimately tracking more dirt in and out making more work for yourself. Save the step and fight the urge until the very end.
Move From The Highest To The Lowest Points & Driest To Wettest
This cleaning tip might seem obvious, but how many times have you found yourself cleaning the counters after a full sweep, knocking more crumbs on the ground and cursing yourself? By starting with high dry cleanings like dusting the cobwebs and ceilings, you’ll push the debris onto the ground prepping for a final and full dry sweep and mop to top things off.
Be Sure To Keep Your Electric & Water On
In order to complete a total-clean, be sure to bear in mind that you’ll need an additional day after the furniture moves out for the cleaning necessities. Imagine going to plug in the vacuum or wet the mop only to realize that you’re sorry out of luck?
Commonly Missed Areas
It’s a seemingly standard procedure to be charged by your residential property management for a stained spot or dirt smear at least once in your life. Let’s change that protocol. Oftentimes people forget to clean out the inside of their cabinets and drawers, leaving dirt scum or cookie crumbs. These insignificant details tend to be more significant to property management than you might hope. Air vents also tend to gather a ton of dust over the course of a lease and need attention before move out. Take a duster to those babies and you’ll be in the clear.