To not do a deep clean when moving house?

[MarianneVos]

Moving house tomorrow and packers are here now. Trying to clean when things are cleared and will also have tonight, but a really proper clean is taking longer than I thought as I'm having to do it around a newborn and will have to sort out older DCs when they come back from nursery.

I'm hoovering everywhere, wiping doors and skirting, and inside kitchen cupboards, and doing bathroom. There's still going to be a few marks here and there if anything is stubborn, and I'm not going to have time to properly clean behind the toilet and sink etc. Visually it will look ok but it won't be perfect.

Is it ok to leave it like this? What kind of standard do other people clean to when moving?

I've only moved into places that have been left filthy so don't want to do that but not sure what level of clean is reasonable?

It doesn't make any difference anyroad. Whoever moves in will still call you a scruffy bugger.

I usually give the kitchen, bathroom a clean and then hoover and mop once the removal van is all packed up.

It is a rental or bought?
if it’s a rental you risk losing some deposit.
if it’s bought the new owners will probably do a deep clean before they move in. As long as it’s visually clean you’ll be ok

Having moved a few times I’ve decided to not bother cleaning much before I move next time! I’ve always left my houses spotless and have moved into dirt, so it seems not to be the done thing to think about the next person and I give up!

So I would absolutely not feel guilty and as a minimum would just leave the sinks and loos tidy.

If you do nothing else, please clean the bathroom thoroughly.
Why should someone else clean up after you.

Honestly, in the time you wrote this thread you could have cleaned behind the toilet

Gross

From the title I was thinking ‘of course you deep clean’ but voted YANBU because it sounds like you are tbh.

And I agree with pp that they will say it’s filthy anyway. When I last moved I cleaned every single surface, and repainted most of the rooms but heard from my neighbour that ‘we didn’t look after the house very well’ so don’t worry about it too much!

Nowt like assuming is there 🙄

You didn’t actually read it did you?

It's bought.

I can't clean while I'm writing this thread as I'm feeding my baby!

I did descale the shower head for them yesterday but there's really only so much I can do in the time.

You should have deep cleaned the bathroom and kitchen a week ago, then just a surface wipe today. Bedrooms and living rooms just need to be hoovered /mopped and dusted which is quicker to do once empty. It's grim moving into a dirty house and amazing when it's clean.

Sounds like you're doing a good job of cleaning. Just do what you're able to. You can guarantee that the new occupants will want to clean it anyway, regardless of how well it looks.

What sort of accommodation are you in? Owned/private rented/HA?

Do you have the funds to pay a company to do an end of tenancy clean? That's what we did last time. We were moving from a private tenancy. It cost me about £100.

I do feel your pain though. Prior to that we moved when DS2 was a year old. Still BFing and a bit poorly that week. I cleaned the house top to bottom single-handedly before handing the keys back only for the estate agents to claim it wasn't good enough (it was spotless). I was absolutely exhausted and broken and I swore never again, hence why we paid when we moved again (that EA tried the same thing too).

Ain't that the truth!

OP make sure there's nothing actually dirty and run the vacuum round if you have time.

It's a house I own.

I would have paid someone but no one would do a deep clean around the packers and they're packing today and we need to be out tomorrow. I tried to get someone to do the kitchen and bathroom this week but couldn't find anyone.

We're buying at the moment and I wouldn't expect you to a deep clean. The first thing I have always done when move in is clean so I'd do it any way. Leave a bottle of Prosecco instead.

That's a good point Calypso, I guess I'm not expecting my sellers to do a deep clean either as I'm going to get someone in when we've moved.

prioritise the bathroom rather than skirting boads and paintwork. I would much rahter those were clean.

Honestly - clean the kitchen and bathroom, and hoover once the packers are out as it's quicker to do when everything is clear. Done. Congrats on your newborn and your new home!

I would leave with no visible dirt, but not any more than that.

i would also leave a roll of toilet paper in each loo, some soap and kitchen towel in the kitchen and a bottle of Prosecco with a welcome to your new home note (and a couple of notes on how to operate anything tricky like the heating controls, any manuals and spare keys)

the process of moving into a house usually gets all the floors filthy anyway

Buying and selling houses is different to renting. You don’t need to leave your sold house in end-of-tenancy condition

I would also assume that most people will want to give it a deep clean when they move in, so I’m not spending time or money on that!

OP you are doing brilliantly already.

Moving home with a newborn and toddler is a huge huge feat

Dont stress. It sounds pretty clean and either

1. New buyer will come prepared with deep cleaning materials (I always do even if spotless) its like ‘marking my territory) 😁
2. New buyer doesn’t care

Life is too short to worry about dust behind the toilet. I deepcleaned to an inch of my life when I moved last (no young kids in tow) and it still looked as if it needed more but realised because it was bare of furnishings the only things you notice are the scuffed walls/woodwork

New buyers will have a removal van full of stuff and will be so busy unpacking and moving furniture

congratulations on your new home too

Last time we moved we just vacuumed around. No-one complained. But if it's a rental there may be an obligation to clean more thoroughly.

I've never done a deep clean when moving house. I've made sure it is hoovered and the toilets/kitchen fairly clean. All the houses I have moved to have been the same.

OP You have a tiny baby who is your priority. Don't worry about doing a deep clean. Only only on MN do people have such high expectations.

We are about to put our house on the market and I’ve started deep cleaning already!

I haven’t moved for ages, so I’m probably in for a nasty surprise when I get to the new house from these comments.

But I’m retired and will have the time. I just don’t think I could leave this house in a mess for someone else.

my husband used to be in the military and when you moved you had an official ‘March out’ where the house was inspected. If it wasn’t scrupulously clean they charged you.

@MarianneVos

That seems to have come around quickly!!

I wouldn't worry about marks etc. I'd prioritise behind the sink & toilet over doors & skirting boards.

lraving light bulbs & toilet roll are more appreciated than dust free doors!

hope it all goes well!