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Original poster

End of tenancy cleaning issue

21 replies

TheLittleMe · 16/01/2013 16:48

We are moving house next weekend, and I have just had a call from my landlord. She has given me the name of a cleaning company and a quote of £200 for them to clean our 2 bed maisonette when we move. I was going to clean the flat myself to save money, but she turned her nose up at this and said it wouldn't be as clean as if a professional cleaning company did it. She also said that I would need to make sure that there was no mould staining on the wall in our bedroom (one of the reasons we are leaving is the Mold problem). I'm worried that if I clean it, she could still say it wasn't clean enough and demand a company do it at my expense. Can she do this? And what if the mould has stained the paint and I can't get it off?

OP posts:

Booyhoo · 16/01/2013 16:51

as far as i know she cant force you to use a professional cleaner to clean your own house whilst you are still a tenant. in your shoes i would clean it extremely well and take lots of photos. the mould issue. have you reported it to her when you first noticed it and what did she say?

noisytoys · 16/01/2013 16:54

That is ridiculous if she wants a £200 professional clean she can pay for one. As long as the house is in the same state as it was when you moved in she can't demand anything

Imnotaslimjim · 16/01/2013 16:56

I'm not sure on the law, but I'm almost certain she can't do that

As PP has said, take photos - get some of the mould NOW before you try and wash it off, so you can prove there is a reason for any stains

Take photos of when you've cleaned too, so you can prove that it was done

PickledInAPearTree · 16/01/2013 17:21

Mould is a tricky one. Is she trying to make out you caused it?

As for the cleaning company, taking the piss.

Clean thoroughly take photos. Take before & after of the mould.

If your deposit is with the protection people she will have her work cut out taking money from you it you leave it nice. Even the mould I'd say was along shot.

Original poster

TheLittleMe · 16/01/2013 17:29

Oh she knows all about the mould, I have photographic evidence from the week we moved in (no mould when we moved in, lots of mould a week later!) and emails I have sent to her showing her the pictures etc. She has already had half of the walls covered in a weird polystyrene layer and then painted over it as apparently this stops mould growing (doesn't stop it growing on the skirting boards, window frames and ceiling though!!!). I think definitely a good idea to take more pictures before I clean it, but I know for a fact some of it has stained as I clean it regularly and not all of it comes off. I just know she is going to walk in, say it hasn't been cleaned well enough (even though it is going to be spotless) and demand we have it 'professionally' done...

OP posts:

LIZS · 16/01/2013 17:31

Was it professionally cleaned before you moved in ?

PickledInAPearTree · 16/01/2013 17:35

Cheeky ain't she!

Is your deposit with TDS or similar?

Vakant · 16/01/2013 17:36

Check your contract. If it says the property was professionally cleaned prior to your tenancy, and a like for like clean is to be expected, then she can insist on a professional clean or take from your deposit for it. I had this with my last rental property, and I complained to the tenancy deposit scheme but they found in favour of the landlord because of the like for like clause in the contract.

Booyhoo · 16/01/2013 17:41

i know from experience that mould stains paint. my friend got this special paint that is supposed to stop mould coming through and even that didn't work. unless it's caused by poor ventilation then there is an underlying problem with the building that the LL is responsible for. (in friends' case it was damp coming from the outside of the house)

when i moved into this house i could clearly see where i was going to get mould as i could see the dark marks on the ceiling and wall where it had been cleaned and lo and behold i now have mould appearing in those exact spots.

PickledInAPearTree · 16/01/2013 17:42

Like for like though as long as its as clean as you found it?

LaCiccolina · 16/01/2013 17:44

Check ur contract. If a cleaning firm is required it will be on that. If it is, then if u didn't she could withhold part of deposit.

If it isn't, more fool her! U can clean. But she might get nasty in the deposit return...

expatinscotland · 16/01/2013 17:49

Bet it's her friend's company, too. Videotape the HELL out of the place before you leave.

PickledInAPearTree · 16/01/2013 17:50

How clean was it before you moved in op?

Booyhoo · 16/01/2013 17:54

if it does have to be professionally cleaned, get your own quotes from other companies and book it yourself. i would doubt the contract says you have to use the company she says if you are paying for it.

Original poster

TheLittleMe · 16/01/2013 18:00

Hmm it was very clean when we moved in, but could have been cleaned by the last tenants?! I think il check the contract and see what it says , then get quotes. I called another company earlier and they wanted £249 + VAT!!!!! Mental.

OP posts:

Ragwort · 16/01/2013 18:00

Some landlords can be really picky over thie - we rented (briefly) a couple of years ago for the first time in about 20 years - since student days actually ! When we moved in we were given a very cursory 'show round' by the inventory clerk, as all the furniture was arriving as well it was impossible to check every room in great detail - however when we moved out three inventory clerks arrived and spent five hours going through the house with a fine tooth comb looking for problems - we had only been there 8 months & I had cleaned all the carpets professionally; I was very shocked & angry, we are responsible home owners and had not caused any damage. They tried to keep back our deposit but caved in after I wrote a very stroppy letter.

I was probably a bit naive about the whole thing, but be warned. Now I am a Landlord myself but have vowed not to be like this !

FringeEvent · 16/01/2013 18:05

Do you rent through a letting agency? Is it possible for you to request/demand an accompanied check-out? (In addition to taking photo/video evidence of your own)

I'm not sure whether my tale is relevant, but I'll share anyway: I left a moved out of a rented property a few years ago (shortly before the tenancy deposit scheme was introduced), having spent a full two days cleaning like a lunatic, and the place was absolutely sparkling when I left, in a much better state than when I moved in.

When the deposit was returned, I'd been deducted £200 for "additional cleaning" which they sent me photocopies of the invoices for, but I know for a fact that not one job on their list was necessary (and I strongly suspect that they weren't even carried out, considering all the various cleaning companies involved were registered at the same address as the agent).

I had absolutely no way to prove the state of the flat at the time I'd left it - even if I'd had the foresight to take photos, it's unlikely they would have shown the flat as 'clean' as most of the fixtures were slightly old and worn, and all the extra cleaning they claimed to have done was minor stuff that you wouldn't even see in a photo.

Cosmosim · 16/01/2013 18:09

Read your contract. Most will specifically state whether professional clean (carpets too) is required. This is something you address at signing the contract not when moving out. Your contract should also have a paragraph about condensation. If there was no mould before you moved in, but has been since, then most likely cause is condensation (you don't have the windows open enough of the time, esp if you ever use radiators to dry things). So easiest is to ask her for paint number of existing paint, but a £2 sample pot, and touch up the mouldy areas for your check out inventory.

chewingguminmyhair · 16/01/2013 18:10

It says in my contract that I must pay for a professional clean. It probably says in yours.

ControlGeek · 16/01/2013 18:20

My landlady did this before I moved out of a very similar sounding home. It was in my contract, so I paid for a well established national chain to do it. Ended up ringing the franchise owner in tears the morning of the handover, as all they had done was a lick and a promise with an upright vac and duster, despite charging me the earth and specifying 'deep clean' on the quote. Apparently cleaning firms as standard don't do inside cupboards - including airing cupboards - nor ovens, windows, ceilings, or shampoo carpets.

We repainted to get around the mould problem. It didn't permanently solve it, but made the place look a million times better.

I ended up telling my landlady she should take the clause out of the next tenancy contract she makes, because she'd get a better standard of clean if she let people do it themselves.

happyMUM2015 · 15/04/2015 21:40

Definitely DO NOT USE the service of Pro End of Tenancy Cleaning, address: Office 10, Beverley Way, New Malden, Surrey KT3 4PH. Contact number:0208 942 2819 , 0790 700 4090

I moved to a new house in March and I used their deep clean end of tenancy service. The owner, Luqman, promised me that they had a team of professional cleaners to clean my house for 4 hours, and they would use top brand products etc.

However, on the service day, only two Bulgarian cleaners came, and obviously they were sub-contractor of the cleaning job. They were definitely unprofessional. They even used the same cloth to clean my doors after cleaning the toilet!!

I just held my temper when I saw them cleaned my house. I filed a complaint to Luqman, but he denied and said he had been partnered with those cleaners for a year and blamed me for not respecting them. Luqman did not even find out the fact before accusing his customer.

Please avoid this cleaning company.

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