End of Tenancy Cleaning
Every room, every appliance, one written checklist
This is the clean that gets looked at. At check-out, the agent or the inventory clerk walks the property with the check-in report in hand and writes down the difference. That comparison is the standard we clean to.
Agnes has been cleaning since 2001, and end of tenancy work is the part of it she knows best. Our cleaners follow the same written checklist on every property, whether it is a studio in HA9 or a four-bed house, so there is one clear scope to point at if a question comes up later. The oven, the hob, the extractor and the appliances are all on that list as standard. They do not get re-priced once we are through the door.
Estate agents and landlords book us again, and Agnes can supply references if you want them. We clean for tenants directly too. Tell us your check-out date and the postcode and we will work back from it.
Who it's for
- Tenants with a check-out date and a deposit to settle
- Landlords turning a property round between tenancies
- Letting and managing agents booking cleans across a portfolio
What the check-out standard actually measures
Deposit decisions come down to a comparison. The adjudicator reads the inventory and the photographs from check-in, looks at the condition the property was left in at check-out, and asks whether the difference is fair wear and tear. A hallway carpet flattened by two years of walking on it is wear. Dirt is not. A greasy oven, limescale on a shower screen, dust along the skirtings: none of that gets written off by time.
It also works the other way round. Under the tenant fees rules in England, a tenancy cannot make a professional clean a condition of renting. What you have to do is return the property as clean as you received it. If it was cleaned professionally before you moved in, that is the level you are being measured against, and reaching it yourself after a week of packing is harder than most people expect.
We work to the same written checklist on every job and you get a copy of it. One clear scope is worth more in a disagreement than an assurance that the place was done properly, because a scope can be read line by line. On completion we leave a receipt, and if you ask us to, we photograph every room with the date on the file before we lock up. If the clean is queried three weeks later, that paperwork is what shows how the property was handed back.
The oven is on the checklist, not on a second invoice
Ask three cleaning companies to quote an end of tenancy clean and the numbers can be a long way apart. Often the cheapest one has quietly left the oven out. The cleaner turns up, looks at it, and the quote changes on the doorstep on the morning you are trying to hand the keys back.
Ours includes it: oven, hob, extractor and filter, fridge, freezer, washing machine and dishwasher, down to the seals, filters and door glass. Appliances are the first thing a check-out inspection opens, so selling them separately has never made much sense to us.
Carpets are vacuumed throughout as standard. Professional carpet cleaning is a different job with machines and drying time, so it sits alongside as an add-on, as do upholstery and mattress cleaning. If your check-in report describes the carpets as professionally cleaned, or the agent has already mentioned a stain, say so when you ask for a quote and it goes in from the start rather than appearing later.
If something gets missed, we come back
Nobody cleans a whole property without ever missing something. If the landlord or letting agent reports a cleaning issue within 72 hours of us finishing, we return and re-clean the items on that list free of charge. Two conditions go with it: the property has to still be unoccupied, and no works can have been carried out since we left. Once furniture is going in or a decorator has been through, there is no way to tell our work from what has happened since.
So do not sit on the check-out report for two weeks. Send it over inside those 72 hours, while the property is still empty and nothing has been done to it, and we will book the visit. It is the same cleaners coming back, and it is usually a short one.
Room by room
Kitchen
- Oven cleaned inside and out, including racks, trays, grill and door glass
- Hob, extractor hood and filter degreased
- Fridge and freezer cleaned inside and out, seals wiped, defrosted if needed
- Washing machine and dishwasher cleaned, including drawers, seals and filters
- Microwave, kettle and toaster cleaned where they stay with the property
- Cupboards and drawers wiped through, fronts and handles cleaned
- Worktops, splashbacks and tiles cleaned, grout scrubbed
- Sink, taps and plughole descaled
- Floor washed, including under and behind appliances that can be moved safely
Bathrooms and en-suites
- Bath, basin, shower tray and WC cleaned and sanitised
- Limescale removed from taps, shower heads, screens and tiles
- Grout and sealant scrubbed, mould treated where it will lift
- Mirrors, glass and chrome cleaned and dried off
- Extractor fan cover cleaned
- Cabinets and shelving emptied and wiped through
- Towel rails, radiators and pipework wiped
- Floor washed, edges and behind the WC included
Bedrooms
- Wardrobes, drawers and fitted storage cleaned inside and out
- Shelves, sills, radiators and curtain rails wiped
- Carpets vacuumed, including edges and under beds that can be moved
- Mirrors and internal glass cleaned
- Doors, frames, switches and sockets wiped
- Hard floors washed
- Mattress cleaning available as an add-on
Living areas and hallways
- Carpets vacuumed throughout, hard floors washed
- Stairs vacuumed, spindles and edges included
- Skirtings, architraves and picture rails wiped
- Internal windows, sills and frames cleaned
- Radiators, vents and extractor covers cleaned
- Doors, handles, switches and sockets wiped
- Cobwebs cleared, ceiling corners and light fittings cleaned
- Marks taken off paintwork where the surface allows
- Upholstery cleaning available as an add-on
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to pay for a professional end of tenancy clean?
No. A landlord or agent cannot make a professional clean a condition of your tenancy, and you are entitled to clean the property yourself. What you do have to do is return it as clean as it was when you moved in. People book us because that is a long day's work with kit most homes do not have, and because a dated receipt from a cleaning company is easier to produce later than your own word that you spent the weekend on it.
Will the clean decide what happens to my deposit?
No, and no cleaning company can honestly say otherwise. Your deposit is settled between you and your landlord, or by the scheme's adjudicator if it goes that far, and cleaning is only one of the things they look at. What we can do is clean to a written checklist, leave you a receipt, and photograph the rooms with the date on them. That is the sort of evidence that carries weight if the condition of the property is ever argued over.
Is the oven included or is it charged separately?
Included. Oven, hob, extractor and filter, fridge, freezer, washing machine, dishwasher and microwave, doors, drawers, seals and glass. Nothing on the checklist gets added to the quote on the day.
Do you clean the carpets as part of it?
Every carpet is vacuumed as standard, edges included. Professional carpet cleaning with a machine is a separate add-on, quoted with the rest of the job, and the same goes for upholstery and mattresses. Mention the carpets when you book, especially if the agent already has.
Does the property need to be empty?
Clear of your belongings, yes. We clean what we can reach, and a wardrobe with clothes still in it cannot be cleaned inside. Leave the electricity and water on, and the hot water if you can manage it. If beds and sofas stay with the property because it is a furnished let, that is no problem. We work around them.
How much notice do you need, and can you clean on my check-out day?
A few days is usually enough and we can often do better than that. Check-out day itself works, though the day before is safer. You are not standing in an empty flat waiting for us, and the property is clean well before the inspection rather than in the hour you are handing the keys over. Send us the check-out date and the postcode and we will tell you what we can fit in.