How would you leave the house?

[dozyjosie44]

I'm moving next week and I'm heavily pregnant. Also doing work on our new house which is taking up a lot of time.

I will of course thoroughly clean my current property before I leave even if it means getting help in. But all of the little jobs that I wanted to do to freshen the place up such as touching up paint work in the house and tidying up all of the borders in the garden are fast seeming impossible.

What's the absolute minimum you would do before handing over the keys? I had grand ideas of leaving the house perfect and even leaving a little welcome gift for the new owner but time is running out and I think it's now a case of prioritising.

I’d get a cleaner in to blitz in a day! Well worth the money. And a bunch of supermarket flowers and a bottle of Prosecco. That’s it. Don’t tire yourself !

I got my cleaning lady to clean as we emptied the rooms. It was really vacuuming the insides of cupboards and wiping skirting boards that had been hidden behind furniture etc, which anyone can do but it was a big house moving some distance and I don't have a partner but do have kids and pets!
I do leave a gift - bottle of wine and/or flowers plus a list of local people (cleaner, plumber, window cleaner and so on ) and when the bins go out etc.
I've moved in to some disgusting places so wouldn't want any buyer of my home to think the same thoughts as I did about those sellers!

Leave it as you would like to find it.

@AnotherSillawithanS

Leave it as you would like to find it.

Well for me that would be with an indoor swimming pool and an orchard outside, so maybe not quite that far.

@Sharrowgirl

It’s needs to be empty and cleaned to an everyday standard. That’s it.

This.

Anything else is completely unnecessary.

When I last moved I cleaned the bathrooms and kitchen, wiped round, hoovered. I moved into a house in the same state. Rug Doctor - fuck that.

@needyousomuch

A gift ??! Is this an American thing ?

I've bought three houses and sold two all in England. Each time I have left a note and a gift and I have found the same left for me. I usually do wine or flowers but I've had two cookbooks, a deliveroo voucher and chocolates left for me. Some people just enjoy doing nice things for others.

A gift is not " an American thing"! it's just a kind gesture.
I left a bottle of nice wine for the people who bought our house, and a folder with takeaway menus, and cards/details from local businesses we knew and liked ( florist, green grocer, dry cleaner, bakery etc) because they didn't know the area.

Clean and empty is what I would expect.

We always clean the house thoroughly. Then the last job we do, in the final hour before we leave the house, is rip out our expensive and very long ethernet cable, which slightly damages the paint work in EVERY room! So it never looks as nice as I hope for the next person.

On our last two moves I spent so much time and energy leaving the house we were leaving clean that I didn't have the time and energy to clean my new house, as the sellers had different ideas!

Leave it clean including the oven, if needed the grass should be mown but unlikely so early in March

I would just expect a clean house. DDs was filthy, but the woman selling was so lovely, chose DD as her preferred buyer and she has a lot of offers, and was a very busy matron at the same hospital DD worked at. She also left fizz and brought flowers a few weeks later when she was passing, so we forgave her.

It did take a full weekend to clean the house though.

Just clean.

I cleaned mine thoroughly but unlike OP, I had time to do that (and wasn't very pregnant). A basic clean is all that's necessary, and leaving the bins as empty as possible.

I also left the crib sheet about the bins and takeaways, but included info like the location of the drain-down valve for the central heating. The new owner immediately started on building work so that would have been needed asap, so I was glad I did as I don't think it was obvious. Naturally left a new loo roll in each loo and all light bulbs, it's shocking that people don't do that!

I also left her a bottle of fizz and a glass vase of flowers, as she'd been a great buyer which I really appreciated.

The question about leaving blinds if they don't fit in your new house: that should be discussed before exchange as it forms part of the contract, I'm surprised anyone starts wondering about fixtures and fittings on moving out time?!