To Clean Or Not To Clean?

claz

before we left our flat which was rented we clean from top to bottom to make sure we got our deposit back, we clearly stated to the landlord that if there was a problem that they could call us and we would sort it out

it took 2 whole days to clean the flat properly myself (partner couldn't help as he was working away) as i am disabled but i still managed to get every nook and cranny

however, the house we moved into had been empty for 2 years, in the end to see the funny side of things we started a game of the top 10 minging things we found, here's a few to make you laugh -

walls so dirty in kichen and bathroom we could write in them (there are photo's to prove this)
loo seat disintergrating when being replace and oh panicing because he thought the whole loo had dropped to bits
shower head so full of limescale that only a trickle of water came out (new shower head from local diy store purchased)
on inspection of the loft we found, a tinsel xmas ree, oil filled radiator, film player with reels of film (still to watch), scarves still in boxes, bin bag full of used tights and another full of hats (future mother in law has a wierd phobia of hats so this produced a few laughs
BUT at number one was when we emptied the cupboards in the kitchen and found 2 walking sticks (already got my own thanks!), a nice shopping trolley - BUT wait for it a jar of Glaicer cherrys from 1981 - i kid you not along with a bottle of wiskey date unkown as label that worn out

anyway it took us 2 weeks! to clear things up properly so we could start to unpack

if i were you OP i would clean unless you have now pride and don't give a damm then fair engough but as the saying goes what goes around comes around

haveitall

OMG - I had no idea how strongly people felt about this topic!

This is the first time I've ever sold a house. The majority of houses I have moved into (rented and this current one) have been utterly filthy and I have spent many (un)happy hours cleanning up before I could unpack. Doesn't sound like anyone who has posted on this thread was the previous tenant or owner of any of those houses.

When I moved into this house, the previous owner (who had refurbished the property for sale) had plumbed in the washing machine incorrectly and there were poisonous fumes coming back up the drainage pipes. They'd changed the electricity meter without notifying the electricity provider so we received final demands for estimated bills for a phantom meter, for well over a year. Let me be clear - that is not the kind of behaviour I would ever engage in.

Some of the posts in this thread make me sound like the devil incarnate :eek:

My house is generally clean - as clean as I can manage when my OH and I work all the hours god sends. I was planning to give the place the once-over (wipe and vacuum basically), but if my buyer is anything like me, they will clean before unpacking as well! Some of the posts suggest I have no pride in my house or myself, not true.

I will be leaving the pots of paint in which the rooms and outdoor paintwork is decorated, all manuals and instructions, the yellow pages, a local paper and other useful bits and bobs. I won't be leaving any rubbish or any unfinished works or anything dangerous. :A

I almost wish it was a condition of the sale/purchase that every house should be cleaned to a certain standard then we would all know where we stand.

Thanks all! :hello:

Tassotti

I cahrge £9.75 an hour to clean a rental property

SamMoffatt28

The last time I move house, I spent 3 days cleaning the house top to bottom. I cleaned all of the little kiddie handprints off all the doors and doorframes, cleaned the windows, the floors, vaccumed the carpets - I even cleaned the cellar!! The place was gleaming when we left it!
Imagine my horror when we moved into the new house to discover it was filthy and I mean really filthy! The cooker they had left needed 5 cans of oven cleaner before I could use it ( we left ours at the old house since this one was included in the sale). The kitchen floor was filthy, sticky and complete with stale cat pee. The 'grey' carpet in the lounge turned out to be cream after I took my dyson to it. I dont think anything in the house could have been cleaned or dusted for years, it was GROSS!
I was going to get a professional team in to clean the place and then send the previous owners the bill as it stated in the contract that the place was to be left clean and tidy with no rubbish - but I couldnt stand to be in there for 5 minutes let alone wait for a cleaner to come out so I did it myself.

Beanie1973

When we moved 2 years ago I cleaned the house from top to bottom, only to move into a house that was absolutely filthy it was so bad that if I ever move again I will get the solicitor to put a clause into the contracts that the house should be cleaned prior to us moving in.

Our house was soo bad that they had put cat litter down the toilet and blocked the toilet, the second bedroom was so full of cat hair that it filled my dyson 3 times I am sure you get the impression.

slane

We paid £60 for a cleaning company to clean our 4 bed house from top to bottom on the day we moved out, after the removals had been. We wouldn't have had time to do it properly ourselves, and anyway cleaning is subjective - one person's 'spotless' is another's 'needed a good clean'. I think it's well worth getting the job done properly.. it's a small world, you're bound to bump into your buyers again, eg visiting old neighbours, and like an earlier post said you often need them to do something for you at some point, like keep some mail for you. If you can't be bothered or don't have time, get a price to get someone in, it might be a lot cheaper than you'd think. And make sure it's a condition of sale/rent that your next house is clean.

clairehi

slane wrote:

Wone person's 'spotless' is another's 'needed a good clean'.

that is so true. and more speciafically, a man's "spotless" is a woman's "needed a good clean!"

Tassotti

1) If you have been renting, then make sure place is spotless

2) If you are buying a new place, who gives a f.....

(apart from your landlord)

MissG_2

I would have to clean as i wouldn't like people to think i was dirty when in fact i am not. when we moved in to this house it was so dirty you wouldn't believe it. When people come around to our home like friends or family i always go mad on cleaning as i get paranoid as i think they will think i am dirty. I just hope nobody is about to come around as it's a bit of a mess :embarasse

Jays

haveitall wrote:

OMG - I had no idea how strongly people felt about this topic!

This is the first time I've ever sold a house. The majority of houses I have moved into (rented and this current one) have been utterly filthy and I have spent many (un)happy hours cleanning up before I could unpack. Doesn't sound like anyone who has posted on this thread was the previous tenant or owner of any of those houses.

When I moved into this house, the previous owner (who had refurbished the property for sale) had plumbed in the washing machine incorrectly and there were poisonous fumes coming back up the drainage pipes. They'd changed the electricity meter without notifying the electricity provider so we received final demands for estimated bills for a phantom meter, for well over a year. Let me be clear - that is not the kind of behaviour I would ever engage in.

Some of the posts in this thread make me sound like the devil incarnate :eek:

My house is generally clean - as clean as I can manage when my OH and I work all the hours god sends. I was planning to give the place the once-over (wipe and vacuum basically), but if my buyer is anything like me, they will clean before unpacking as well! Some of the posts suggest I have no pride in my house or myself, not true.

I will be leaving the pots of paint in which the rooms and outdoor paintwork is decorated, all manuals and instructions, the yellow pages, a local paper and other useful bits and bobs. I won't be leaving any rubbish or any unfinished works or anything dangerous. :A

I almost wish it was a condition of the sale/purchase that every house should be cleaned to a certain standard then we would all know where we stand.

Thanks all! :hello:

I'm really glad you've decided to clean your old property before you move. I found it really theraputic when we left our old house to leave it spotless, we started at the top of the three stories, worked our way down and out; it felt like we really had moved 'everything'. We also took our lead from others in this area to repaint the hall walls that took the most damage from our young sons, we used to same colour and it only took 3/4 hour and looked great. When we took things down from the walls etc, we filled and touched up too. We also left a file explaining how everything worked and the old perculiarity of the house. And a 'welcome to your new house' card, a bottle of fizzy wine and some disposable cups.

It really paid off when the new occupants directed mail on to us, and when a old neighbour we didn't really get on with talked about us, at least the new people could see we were really the nice guys! We still exchange Xmas Cards, and their daughters have even baby sat for us on occasions.

But when we got to our new house, it was a different story....
(at least I had a 'clean' conscious!!).