Moving day is fast approaching and ensuring your landlord has no reason to hold on to your deposit is uppermost in your mind. However, the prospect of getting everything spick and span is filling you with dread. What to do?
Well, as with most things in life, having a system helps...and our end of tenancy checklist is just the ticket for the task at hand! You could, of course, hire a professional cleaning firm to do the job for you, but with this schedule at your disposal you should find things much easier to manage yourself.
So, grab your cleaning supplies and let’s get started!
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Bedroom(s)
All cleaning jobs should be taken care of from top to bottom, so we’re going to start with the rooms upstairs. Naturally, if your tenancy is for a flat, the top-to-bottom approach won’t matter...and you can also enjoy a secret fist pump, knowing you have less to clean!
Bedrooms are usually fairly straightforward, so they’re a nice place to start. Most will have just a few pieces of large furniture, which means a lot less moving stuff around. Bonus!
Here’s what you need to tackle:
- Get rid of all cobwebs
- Wipe down doors, including the tops
- Clean skirting boards and remove dust from any other woodwork
- Clean cupboards and wardrobes inside and out. Wipe down tops
- Wipe down cornices, curtain rails, coving, picture rails etc.
- Clean and polish mirrors
- Remove dust from picture frames
- Clean and polish internal windows. Wipe down sills and ledges
- Clean plugs, sockets and light switches and fittings
- Dust lamp shades
- Clean behind and under furniture
- Wipe down radiators
- Vacuum and clean any upholstery
- Vacuum carpets / vacuum and mop hard floors
Bathroom and Toilet
From one of the easiest rooms to one of the most difficult. The bathroom and toilet are up there with the rooms we dislike cleaning most of all, but that certainly doesn’t mean you can skip the job! Grab your rubber gloves on and get busy.
- Clean and polish internal windows. Wipe down sills and ledges
- Clean skirting boards and remove dust from any other woodwork
- Remove dust from extractor fan and wipe down
- Clean all plugs and light switches
- Remove any mould from tiles, then wash down thoroughly
- Remove limescale from bath and clean
- Remove limescale from shower and clean glass
- Clean and disinfect toilet, both inside and out
- Remove limescale from sink and clean
- Polish taps
- Polish any other stainless steel fixtures and fittings
- Clean and polish towel rail
- Clean and polish mirrors
- Wipe down shelving and surfaces
- Clean cupboards, inside and out
- Vacuum floor, then mop and disinfect
Hallway and Stairs
The hallway and stairs return us to relatively straightforward dusting and vacuuming. While stairs can be awkward, the cleaning process itself is easy enough...
- Get rid of all cobwebs
- Wipe down banister, stairway, and railings
- Clean and polish internal windows. Wipe down sills and ledges
- Vacuum all upholstery, ensuring cushions are lifted and cleaned below
- Clean all cupboards and furnishings, including insides, tops, underneath and behind
- Wipe down cornices, curtain rails, coving, picture rails etc.
- Dust and polish flat surfaces
- Wipe down doors, including the tops
- Clean skirting boards and remove dust from any other woodwork
- Clean lights switches and fittings, including plugs, lamp shades, and sockets
- Clean and polish mirrors
- Remove dust from picture frames
- Wipe down radiators
- Vacuum carpets / vacuum and mop hard floors
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Reception Room(s)
Reception rooms are generally some of the biggest areas you’ll have to deal with, but they should be easy enough to get clean. Again, dusting, vacuuming, and polishing will be the main tasks to tackle here.
- Get rid of all cobwebs
- Clean and polish mirrors
- Remove dust from picture frames
- Clean and polish internal windows. Wipe down sills and ledges
- Wipe down doors, including the tops
- Clean skirting boards and remove dust from any other woodwork
- Clean light switches and fittings, lamp shades, plugs, sockets,
- Clean all cupboards and furnishings, including insides, tops, underneath and behind
- Wipe down radiators
- Clean behind and under furniture
- Dust and polish all surfaces
- Vacuum all upholstery, ensuring cushions are lifted and cleaned below
- Vacuum carpets / vacuum and mop hard floors
Kitchen
Our final room is the kitchen...not exactly saving the best till last, but hey-ho. Kitchens can be the toughest to get back their original gleaming glory, but a bit of elbow grease will see you right.
Here’s your kitchen cleaning checklist:
- Clean skirting boards and remove dust from any other woodwork
- Get rid of mould and grease from wall tiles, wash down and polish
- Clean plugs and light switches
- Clean and polish internal windows. Wipe down sills and ledges
- Wipe down radiators
- Remove limescale from sink, polish and shine taps
- Clean all kitchen cupboards and wipe their tops (if accessible)
- Clean kitchen drawers both inside and out
- Clean refrigerator inside and out
- Clean freezer (internally as well, if defrosted)
- Clean microwave inside and out
- Clean washing machine, including detergent drawer and filters
- Clean dishwasher and remove limescale
- Degrease, wipe down and polish extractor fan and filters
- Clean and polish hob
- Degrease and clean oven
- Wipe and wash down countertops
- Clean small kitchen appliances such as kettle, toaster, etc.
- Vacuum floor, then mop and disinfect
That’s it, you’re done! Time to tell your landlord you’re ready for their end of tenancy property inventory.
If you’d like this checklist in a PDF format complete with checkboxes so you can tick things off as you go, please click the button below to download your very own copy. Don’t forget to check out all of our current rentals, too, if you’re still looking for your next home.
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We’re also available to offer any other advice you may need regarding property related problems. We’ve been operating locally for well over 100 years, so feel free to reach out if you need any guidance about the housing market in and around Wanstead.
