Landlady claiming cleaning - tenancy a year over.

greensalad

I'm due to move out of my property soon and my landlady is kicking up a stink about professional cleans.

It's a bit of a confusing one, basically I've had two tenancies on the property. One with the LL's daughter, and one with a friend.

I originally moved into the property on a 3 month tenancy. After 3 months, the tenancy ended, the other tenant moved out and a new one moved in. We started a 1 year tenancy.

The 3 month tenancy was signed off, LL was happy with the cleaning and signed off the inventory and all. All good. My deposit wasn't returned but was moved into a new DPS "pot" plus a little more (rent went up) and started along with the brand new tenancy.

Now, I know the flat wasn't professionally cleaned, nor was the oven professionally cleaned before the start of my present tenancy. I know this, obviously, because *I* cleaned it! Because *I* was living there!

Now, we are due to end the tenancy and my LL is complaining that we need to have the flat professionally cleaned and the oven professionally cleaned at our expense because that was how the property was when *I* moved in. In her emails she keeps saying "It needs to be how it was when [greensalad] moved in. It was professionally cleaned when [greensalad] moved in."

This is really frustrating. For a start, we have cleaned the flat well, we are not stupid, we are not dirty, but we will not be paying for a full professional clean because the property *we* received was not like this. It was clean, yes, and we will be cleaning it to a good standard ourselves.

Can someone help me out and check that my legalities are correct? Can the LL claim that we need to return it to a state it was received 3 months before our tenancy? In my housemates eyes, she moved into a clean but not *professional* clean house. And I can totally understand why she doesn't want to pay.

couponqueen123

what dose your inventory/tennancy say , ?

is there a clause that say "must be pro cleaned at end of tennacy"

if so i think you have to do it , im not 100% but 99% sure that if yr tennancy/inventory say it was pro cleaned then you must do the same unless you can prove other wise

im no pro with advice but iv experienced this before and as there was no thing stating about it being pro cleaned it NEVER HAPPENED ~(I NEVER PAID IF IT DID

Reue

Im pretty sure your landlady cannot demand that anything is 'professionally' cleaned.. only that it is cleaned to a 'professional' standard if that was what it was when you first moved in.

If you can achieve this standard yourself, that is perfectly reasonable.

Ultimately though, it comes down to what the check-in inventory states about the condition of the property. If it doesnt mention a professional standard of cleanliness, your landlady can forget it

amy104

Alot of tenancy agreements have a clause stating carpets should be proffessionally cleaned but when I challenged this in our first rental becuase the inventory detailed that they were not done when we moved in I was advised I would not have to do so as it would be bettering the property.

You don't say whether the carpets were cleaned proffessionally before you moved in on the first tenancy but either way I would of throught its irrelevant as the new tenancy agreement would superseed it. Did you have an offical check out and new inventory done when the new tenancy was put in place?

greensalad

amy104 wrote: »

Alot of tenancy agreements have a clause stating carpets should be proffessionally cleaned but when I challenged this in our first rental becuase the inventory detailed that they were not done when we moved in I was advised I would not have to do so as it would be bettering the property.

You don't say whether the carpets were cleaned proffessionally before you moved in on the first tenancy but either way I would of throught its irrelevant as the new tenancy agreement would superseed it. Did you have an offical check out and new inventory done when the new tenancy was put in place?

We have no carpets! Or curtains. It's all wooden floors and blinds. It's all clean, it's going to be cleaned (mopped, dusted, skirtings wiped, it's not really dirty at all anyway).

There is nothing in the agreement saying we must get it professionally done, just that if it isn't clean we will be charged, which is fine, cos it WILL be done!

Yes we had an official checkout and inventory when I ended the 3 month and started the year-long but it just says "clean", nothing about the professional clean.

rpc

If the move-in inventory says "clean" then that is the condition that it must be returned to. Are there any photos or anything to expand upon "clean"?

You are correct that the state the house must be cleaned to is the start of this tenancy and not when you moved in.

Requiring a professional clean is usually unenforceable and an unfair term. If the only thing wrong with the property is that nobody was paid to clean it, the claim won't stand up. If there is work that needs doing, LL can reclaim the cost of someone being paid to do it.

DRP

greensalad wrote: »

We have no carpets! Or curtains. It's all wooden floors and blinds. It's all clean, it's going to be cleaned (mopped, dusted, skirtings wiped, it's not really dirty at all anyway).

There is nothing in the agreement saying we must get it professionally done, just that if it isn't clean we will be charged, which is fine, cos it WILL be done!

Yes we had an official checkout and inventory when I ended the 3 month and started the year-long but it just says "clean", nothing about the professional clean.

1) it says nothing about this in the contract so don't worry about it.

or

2) what is a professional cleaner ? get your mum to do it (or you even do it on her behalf as her 'employees') and to invoice you, thus proving it has been professionally cleaned.

starbarboy

Hi there

The LL cannot make you pay for professional cleaning of the property (whatever it says in any lease agreement) however Landlords and agents will often stipulate it has to be cleaned to a professional standard - although how you define this is open to interpretation.

If I were you I would clean the property and take pictures after - then you have got some evidence that you can take away with you should you have to dispute any refund of deposit after you have moved out.

Good luck and hope everything works out

Stephen