End of tenancy clean

[ScabbyTabby]

We are moving out due to the LL selling our house.

For context, we had been complaining of damp issues from a multitude of structural problems with the house, for over a year the LL was doing everything without actually doing anything to fix the problems, and when it finally came to starting the damp proofing and building work, she said she couldn't afford it and would sell the house.

There is deterioration from the effects of damp, on the walls and skirting boards. We have a toddler so any marks on the walls will be repainted and we will leave it as best we can - it was NOT clean when we moved in, I remember cleaning the toilet with a brush and huge chunks of limescale build up fell out from inside the ring of the toilet bowl!

The problem is my mum thinks we should pay to have professional cleaners do an end of tenancy clean. I personally don't think we owe the LL that much, and don't intend to leave it "dirty" either. She thinks we risk losing our deposit, but anything actually wrong with the house when we leave will be due to problems with the actual house? And does that even matter when she will be selling it?

Leave it in a simile state to how it was when you got there. No need for a professional cleaner. Give it a good clean yourselves but if it wasn’t spotless when you moved in, don’t worry over it being spotless when you move out.

What does your contract say?

It depends how much your deposit is, how much you want it back and whether you can afford an end of tenancy clean.

If you have a professional to do it, no one can argue that it’s not been done properly and withhold some or all of your deposit. Do you have photos of the condition when you moved in? If so, you can show the condition then and it should be at least that standard when you leave.

What does your contract say and are there checkin photos so you can show you are leaving it in a similar state?

Clean it yourself but take photos.

My son and friends left a rented house in a better state than when they moved in (eg. used condoms, sex toys and underwear under one bed) and the landlord still tried to charge them for cleaning it professionally. They got in touch with the cleaning companies and found that a couple were made up or they hadn't done any cleaning at the house.

The deposit was arounf 850£, we cant really afford to get it professionally cleaned as we are moving so close to Christmas amd the new house is costing over 1k in deposits (holding deposit and then general deposit) so we have already made cuts around Christmas spending to accommodate the move.

We will clean to the best of our ability before we move out, as we always have done when leaving a rental, I really hope they don't try to stick us out of our deposit, the condition of the house has been continually documented as I've sent pictures of where the damp has effected the house

Remember the landlord can't just keep the deposit the Scheme will decide what's fair.

Check your contract, as some state you have to have the place professionally cleaned before you move out. We did get cleaners in, but we could afford to take the hit financially and it really helped as we just didn’t have time to spend a whole weekend cleaning.

If it’s not in your contract, I would give it a really good clean and ensure you take photos of everything. Don’t forget anything - make a list of tasks room by room and systematically go through it. Remember things like fridge/freezer and ovens, those are always a pain and easy to leave out by mistake.

Did you take photos of the condition when you moved in?

To be honest I've just moved into a property that had apparently been professionally cleaned twice and I had to spend 7 hours cleaning the kitchen alone, 2 hours of that was cleaning the cooker hood to get rid of the smell of curry. Good cleaners are very hard to come by, I've always ended up deep cleaning myself on top of a so called professional clean. I always do my own cleaning when leaving a property and my previous LL was delighted with the state of the property as I left it spotless.

It’s a long time since I rented, but we just left it as we found it. Just a good household clean was fine and we got our deposit back no problems.

You need the move in inventory with pictures. This will prove if you have left it better or worse. Not all dirt is visible though but then the inventory clerk isn't going to go round with a fine tooth comb. I don't think it matters that it will be redecorated in the renovation as the new buyer will want to see it clean so they will charge for deductions so I would say clean as if you are leaving it as tou found it. This would be the state of the pictures int he check in inventory and the descriptions. They can't actually take deductions from you if its the same and if they do, you can fight it.

Do you have a photo inventory? Use that as a reference and take matched photos after you have cleaned.
If not, clean property thoroughly, including all nooks and crannies, tops of cupboards, window frames, behind doors, etc. Then do a video detailed tour showing your clean shiny (soon to be vacated) property. Make sure video is well lit and shows shininess. Keep this on file, video checkout inspection, then you have plenty of evidence to challenge deposit deductions through the deposit protection scheme ( heavily weighted to favour the tenant ).

I have never hired a professional cleaner on vacating a property and never had deposit held. Clean is clean. People seem to think professionals use some magical powers and cleaning products, they don’t. They do the exact same thing anyone can do themselves.

Thank you all! Looks like I'll save some money and not get the cleaners in, but will deffo check over the contract and take all the pictures when we've finished here.

Firstly check what you agreed to in your contract.
You should have had an inventory taken when you moved in which detailed the condition of the property and your deposit should be in a deposit scheme. I believe you are required to leave the property in a reasonable clean and tidy condition. If the landlord tries to make a deduction for professional cleaning and you haven’t agreed to that in your contract you can appeal to the deposit holders, they nearly always side with the tenant.

Clean it yourself, and if there's any arguments about the deposit, get the deposit holding company to sort it out. They usually sway towards the tenant.🙂

Do you have an inventory?

Forget the contract. No one can insist on a professional clean.

Is your deposit protected?

I would speak to the landlord to get an idea of their expectations- if I were the landlord and knew about damp issues I would tell you just to leave clean in general and not stress about the rest.

Quite frankly I think deep cleans should always be the responsibility and expense of the landlord as a cost of their business and there is expected wear and tear - eg after several years they should expect to have to spend on fresh costs of paint and wear to carpets etc

You should have date stamped pics from when you moved in so just leave it in same condition