To leave the house not entirely spotless?

[Amimissingsomethinghere]

On the day of completion how clean was the house / flat you moved into? Did the previous owners leave it in a clean state for you?
Seriously stressing about how to get everything done and moved and packed and cleaned.
I was going to hire some cleaners to clean for a bit to leave the property nice and clean but a friend said I don't need to?
I plan on deep cleaning and getting professional cleaners to clean the place we are moving into... so wouldn't really mind if it wasn't cleaned but what's protocol?

I'd have to clean the one I was leaving in case they came onto MN and bitched about how their new home had been left filthy!

We were intending to give our flat a good clean once it was completely empty but our removal company turned up very late (meant to arrive 8.30-9am, but didn't arrive until about 9.45am), so we were very pushed for time (to the extent the new owner arrived as we were putting the last few small bits and pieces in the car to get the key as they were the official owners by that point; we were meant to drop keys with the estate agent).

We did what we could, but felt a bit embarrassed about the dust which had accumulated behind the wardrobes/chest of drawers etc.

We've moved twice and left both places what we deemed to be very clean. We pulled out things like cooker, fridge, washing machine (which we were taking) and cleaned behind. Also, skirting boards behind furniture. That way once the removal men left the room, it was a quick hoover and dust (we cleaned bathroom/kitchen day before and it was quick wipe and bleach around them). Please do clean behind the cooker if you're taking it and any grease in cupboards, it hadn't been done in one property we moved into and we found years of dust and grease - luckily we were in store so had time to scrub (which DH admitted was disgusting and wouldn't let me do).

Most removal men are usually very efficient and most items are out of house by 11am. Our purchasers were on the doorstep at noon (although completion didn't take place until 12.30). We weren't quite ready at 12.30 and gave them the option of us giving the kitchen a quick wipe over or leaving - they chose the quick clean!

I've always made sure the house I leave is clean .... hoovered .. polished .. clean loos etc... last one I moved into was ok ... bathrooms lovely and clean, but a bit dusty etc... I always deep cleAn anywhere I move to .

When we last moved, I left our flat spotlessly clean, champagne in the fridge, a card, takeaway leaflets and the cushions that co-ordiated with the curtains.

The house we moved into was an utter disgrace, completely filthy - I'd have been embarrassed to have left a place in such a state.

We're moving again soon, and I will leave our house immaculate, but I will get cleaners in to the new house as soon as we have the keys.

@strawbmilk

I hoovered my way out of our last property only to move into the filthiest house. Luckily the hoover was the last thing packed so first unpacked.

The home owner went to work that day and she left her removals team to it. The main bedroom alone filled the hoover with dust and dirt. There was the remains of a roast chicken dinner in the plug hole. The list goes on.

But even if the house was immaculate you still would want to give it the once over so you know it's clean.

Hope your move goes smoothly

Same here on our move last month. I deep cleaned the house we were leaving - was spotless.

The house we moved into looked like it hadn't been cleaned for weeks - toilets probably longer.

Prepare yourself to move into a filthy house, with no lightbulb, full unwanted rubbish, something leaking, in short a nightmare.

It means you will be prepared for anything, and any decency from the seller will be a huge bonus.

Expecting anything less is a recipe for disaster.

We moved recently and I spent hours scrubbing the house room at a time so that on moving day all I had to do was wipe the surfaces and Hoover, bleach the sinks and loo’s. The kids were under strict instructions not to touch the glass doors etc.

The house we moved to was absolutely immaculate. I have no idea how much time it must have taken them, I am taking about no dust in the radiators, the extractor fans were spotless, not a mark on any glass.

It was amazing to walk in and it be so clean. I literally unpacked and didn’t have to do anything.

I think if you cant do it all yourself then getting cleaners in for a couple of hours would make for such a lovely feeling for the new residents, I’d go for it.

Mine was lovely and clean when I bought my first place. The rental I left I cleaned and mopped and left spotless the landlady was a really good landlady and she deserved no less.

We're tenants moving this weekend to a house we're buying. An end of tenancy clean is part of the contract here so that's fine but I'm expecting to spend an afternoon cleaning the house we're moving into. To be honest in these covidy times it seems like a sensible to thing to do anyway.
I will never forget the time we moved into an unclean house and DH dropped a contact in the bathroom. Picking through somebody else's sticky dustbunnies and pubes to find his contact lens...

Ours was spotless and they'd left us a bottle of wine and artwork of the local area. I think they've spoilt us for future moves to be honest! But like a PP I'll definitely pay it forward if/when we move. Moving is stressful enough without arriving to a dump. That said, generally clean rather than professionally clean is certainly ok.

Ours was disgusting. An empty seventies vicarage. Green mouldy stuff was growing out of the kitchen cupboards and they were meant to undertake a clean up. But they said they only had cold water and did a cursory wipe round. All the light bulbs were taken but the vicar kindly left me his manky socks.

When we bought a house from a colleague who was moving away, the bathroom had an overwhelming stench of pee. My dad said I was being a fusspot - until he smelt it. Oh the days of carpets in bathrooms. Lovely.

Our house was absolutely filthy when we got the keys. Think years of toothpaste down the side of the sink filthy 🤢

I'll be leaving it move-inable when we eventually sell. After getting everything in I spent a day just getting the top layer of grime off.

When we bought our house the previous owners left it absolutely sparkling and left us a present. It’s always stayed with me how lovely it was.

On moving out of our flat into our new home, we left everything immaculately clean and tidy. The estate agent, who happened to be my mum, popped round on leaving day so saw how it had been left. The new tenants rang her, trying to get money off the rental claiming it had been left in a filthy state!

It needs to be everyday clean and hygienic, in my opinion. So, hoovered, but I wouldn't fuss about a bit of dust on picture rails and skirting boards. Clean kitchen sink, surfaces and cleanish oven (although not sparkling). I wouldn't wipe tops of cupboards or even inside unless there is all sorts of bits. I certainly wouldn't be cleaning windows or bothering about the odd cobweb.

I would not leave anything in the garage or loft, it's a proper pain in tht he fuckign ARSE to get rid of someone else's old pain pots & broken electrical appliances.

The reason I'd only leave it every day clean is because there is no way I'd move into a house and not clean everywhere myself first as I go along. eg I wouldn't unpack kitchen stuff and put it in cupboards without cleaning the cupboards first. Doesn't matter if they looked clean, I'd still do it. So the previous owner would have wasted their time.

A rental is different. I'd leave that much cleaner in case i didn't get my deposit back.

At least hoover, empty the bins and leave nothing in the fridge, surely?

The house I left was immaculate.
The house I moved into was a disgusting pigsty that took me and a cleaning company a month to clean.

Left mine spotless, didn’t much care what the old owners of my new place did, just good manners really.

I also wouldn't automatically think too badly of someone who had left their house with a bit of dust or bit of a dirty sink. Sometimes life throws you a curve ball - someone puts their back out and packing ttakes much longer, removal truck arrives late leaving you not much time to clean underneat boxes. Or the hoover packs up in the middle of it all.

When I bought my first house it looked clean at first - until I realised the grey walls in the kitchen were actually white and just covered with cobwebs! Oh and a couple of days later I discovered all the carpets were infested with fleas.

When relatives moved house once, not only was the place they moved into not particularly clean, the previous owner had removed every single lightbulb.

Sorry meant to add that some general dirt and dust I wouldn't mind. Fleas or other animal infestation, or loads of rubbish to dispose of (someone else I know ended up with an entire garage full of 'stuff' in their new property) isn't acceptable, but I'd expect to have to clean anywhere I moved to, even a new build.

We moved into our new place in the middle of lockdown, start of April and the house was a shit hole. It took me two days of scrubbing to get the kitchen into a state where I could unpack boxes. In addition to which they'd left the dishwasher (we had our own), the cupboard under the stairs was full and the garden was full of old slabs and crap.

Covid meant the tips were all closed so we couldn't get rid of anything and had to pay for a skip. I could have cried.

Don't do that!

It’s funny isn’t it that everyone says they left the house they were moving out of spotless, but where they were moving to was filthy!!

It is common courtesy to do a decent clean....that doesn’t equate to 10 hours of a cleaning company doing a deep clean with 3 members of staff, but wiping out kitchen cupboards, removing all your possessions, doing a quick wipe of areas left exposed after you move furniture (ie where wardrobes have stood for years and now the skirting boards are filthy) and a hoover and floor mop.

It is stressful on moving day and people often under estimate how long it will take to get things out, especially when they don’t use a removal company and rely on a too_small van that requires multiple trips. It’s the cleaning that gets squeezed out.

So basically allow enough time and be prepared to pay for removals if you need to, which most people who aren’t first time buyers need to. Ensure any children are out of the way and if possible enlist an extra adult or 2 to help - friend or parent? If 1 or 2 adults supervise the moving of stuff out, another 1 or 2 literally follow them round as rooms empty to clean.

You just have to be a bit organised to manage the cleaning too.... but it really is the decent thing to do. People who move in may well clean all the cupboards again and some people will have very high standards and never be pleased, but if you’ve taken the time to remove grime where a washing machine was and to wipe out cupboards that have had all the pans removed and ensured the bath and toilet are clean and the surfaces wiped, people will be grateful and you will have a clear conscience.

Hopefully you're not buying from a Hincher, you'll be overcome by Zoflora and need a mask to breathe once the hun has finished. Have you seen their stash?