End of tenancy clean

Minerva_2

I was quoted £400 to clean a one bedroom flat!!! :eek:

Flat wasn't filthy, just need a scrub and brush up!

At that price I got out my "Marigolds" and knuckled down to doing it myself!

Minerva

beanieandme

Wickedkitten wrote:

I've never paid to have an end of tenancy clean. We moved out of our flat back in June after living in it for over 2 years and just cleaned it ourselves and got our full deposit back.

Same as us, moved out of a 1 bed flat, cleaned it ourselves. Cleaning it professionally would have cost nearly as much as the deposit.

lazy_girl

You can hire carpet cleaners from HSS or similar - it would be easy to have a go yourself and do it to the required standard.

tbh, £400 is a lot of money and i don't think it is reasonable that a landlord should expect you to pay that amount for cleaning. In fact, i wonder whether that would come under Unfair Terms. If he wants you to pay £400, he should be showing you quotes on headed paper.

BillSmith_2

I paid for a end of tenancy clean of my house to a company Clean n Gone. It took 4 people about 4 hours and cost £330 but they did a fantastic job. It was fully furnished and they did a steam cleaning in the bathroom and a carpet cleaning in two rooms for free. The most important i got my 1350 deposit back. If you are willing to get your deposit back it is a good idea to use a professionals to do the job for you.

samcat_2

liz545 wrote:

To be honest I'd be surprised if this was more than about 4 hours work total,

It depends how professional the inspector of the property will be.

Usually it is alot more than 4 hours work if doing it properly. It took 2 of us 2 days hard graft, non-stop deep cleaning to do a 3 bed house, garage, garden. with a tub of sugar soap. every cm had to be done.... coving cornices dado rails, all lighting. We got the full deposit back - less £50 for one bedroom that had a scribble on the wall. (we couldn't find paint to match!)

cheapskate101

I send advice as I'm a landlord and have also been a roving nerve-wracked tenant.

It does depend on what standards are required. Some landlords might expect a reasonably clean house - fridge, oven, hoovered carpets etc, while others want the slightest speck on the wall removed.

The agent might have a set of pictures that you can refer to, so it is worth asking so that you know where you stand in case of dispute. It is at this point you realise that you should have taken some when you moved in.

What you have to do is leave the property as you found it - so that the next tenant gets the same deal that you did.

The price: £400 does seem excessive, so probably there is an 'uplift' here... ie something for the agent, although with London prices you never know. Ring around to find out.

The cleaning companies seem to be staffed by non-English speaking cleaners and on one move they turned up at 9am and I had difficulty in repelling their invasion as they kept running back in while my back was turned. Eventually they saw sense stood in a mutinous throng on the pavement.

If you want to do it yourself - To minimise stress: Start weeks in advance and slowly get everything boxed up (ask the removal company for boxes, or, if you are doing the move yourself, haunt Tesco's etc)), leaving the bare essentials about three days before you move. You will also need bubble wrap - cheapest from DIY supermarkets, where you buy a huge roll, possibly near the lino section- and several rolls of big brown tape. You might cut the cost by buying direct from the removal company. It's surprising how helpful they can be if you show that you are trying to cut down their work. Newspapers for wrapping, when you run out of bubble wrap.

Label what room in which you want your box placed and its contents. Do it on the computer (Colour code room if possible) and stick it on the side AND top of the box. Put the boxes aside as you go - in unused rooms if possible. And no, no one can have their Teddy Bear back - even if they are 43.

Once you've boxed up it's easier to clean and it's easier for the removal persons, who always seem to come in a team of four - The Joker, the Morose one, the Strong-but-Silent and the Tidy one (yes I know you'll be paying an arm and a leg - but happy removal men, happier you) and a lot easier at the other end as you don't have to sit in a pile of mystifying boxes bleating piteously. So it's time well spent.

Eat out or takeaways for the three days you will spend cleaning and sorting out anything which you've forgotten before M-day.

Leave all hoovering until the removal men have got the stuff on the van - follow them room by room. They always leave mess, even the best of them, even if you are having the expensive full-pack - i.e.they are doing all the packing, which can be embarrasing as they insist on holding up all your old tea mugs and saying: 'Crack Madam' (It's not an invitation) to protect themselves.

If a steam clean is required book for at about noon on the day, as most rooms should be vacant by this time, if you use the box method. You may be able to negotiate with the agent on the steam cleaner to come in after you have gone by paying up-front for this single service.

Take date-recorded pictures of everything that you have done as a record, in case of disputes.

Hope this helps. If all else fails - pay the £400, on the grounds that you will have enough stress to cope with in the next six months and you will be broke anyway.

ormus

i grew up as a child of a raf father. we lived in many homes until i was 14.
every home had to be immaculate when handed over. with no damages!
wear and tear was allowed though.
the penalty was a fine amounting to the costs of the clean up.

my mother always cleaned the place herself upon moving. we never got fined.

its a pity the local councils housing depts dont have a similar strict policy for the chav tenants.

janey_uk

Another alternative is to buy a vax machine and clean carpets yourself. It might cost around £100, but next time you need to do it it's there. Also very handy for any spills during tenancy.