1. Declutter

The first thing you need to do before any end of tenancy cleaning is to declutter. Sort through all of the items that you own, deciding which things you will be taking to your new property, and which ones will be thrown out.

This means that neither any professional cleaners nor yourself will end up deep cleaning things that are only going to be thrown out, wasting precious and valuable time. It can also help you to reduce your moving costs, as you will only need to move the items that you know you are going to keep.

2. Move any pets out of the way

It is not very helpful to have a pet around for even our experienced cleaners! Whether you hire a professional cleaning service or not, make sure you move your pets out of the way for a while so that you can undertake a thorough house clean.

Pets can also be a source of dirt and fluff, which is not beneficial when you are trying to get a sparkling clean property. When your rental deposit is at stake, consider taking your cat to a friend’s, relative’s, or a boarding kennel or cattery until you pass the inspection of your landlord.

3. Do an inspection of the property

Do a thorough inspection of your rental property, making a note of any areas that need extra TLC and any damage. This will allow you to target the problem areas, or direct the professional cleaners to the areas that need more attention.

4. Review your rental agreement and inventory

Once you have done an inspection, compare your notes to your rental agreement and inventory that you were provided when you moved in. This will allow you to see where you might lose money in a deposit dispute and so where to focus your time. It can also indicate whether you need to request additional cleaning services.

Extra services that we often undertake during the end of tenancy cleaning includes oven cleaning, carpet cleaning, removal of dried food deposits, and window cleaning. We can polish glass surfaces, metal surfaces, and smooth surfaces to improve the look of scuffs, and we can also clean your fridge and freezer provided you defrost your freezer in advance.

5. Create a checklist

From your tenancy agreement and inventory, create a checklist. Put yourself in the shoes of your landlord and go around the house trying to find places that must be cleaned by professional end of tenancy cleaning services.

6. Call in Kiwi Movers!

And finally, call in the friendly team here at Kiwi Movers. Get an online quote fast by filling out our online form, or get in touch with our dedicated customer service team for a detailed quote personalised to your specific requirements.

As our previous customers can tell you, the end of tenancy cleaning cost is totally worth it, as it can help you get your security deposit back from the Deposit Protection Scheme and avoid any additional charge from your landlord.

How long does an end of tenancy clean take

How long an end of tenancy clean will take can depend on a number of different factors, including:

• Degree of pollution - The dirtier the rental property, the longer it will take to clean it. 
• Total area of the room - Students in university accommodation might only have a small room, which can be cleaned quickly, whereas commercial and office cleaning can take longer.
• Presence of stains on the carpet - When carpets are stained, you will have to do deep carpet cleaning treatments, which can add a couple of hours to your cleaning time. 
• If there is serious dirt on furniture - Similarly, dirty furniture can lead to extra time and extra elbow grease needed to do a rental clean. 
• When appliances, bathrooms, windows, etc., were last cleaned - If you clean your room, fixtures and appliances frequently, then an end of tenancy clean will be quicker and easier. 
• Whether your stuff has already been moved out - Maneuvering around boxes of luggage and possessions can be more time consuming than you think.
• Whether you are doing it yourself - Cleaning the property yourself is guaranteed to be more time consuming, especially as you will need to factor in time to buy all the products that you need. 

Whereas self-cleaning can be more time consuming, hiring professional end of tenancy cleaning services can ensure that the cleaning is completed quickly and efficiently. But, as the time it will take to clean the property will often dictate the tenancy cleaning cost, we know how important it is to be transparent about how long our end of tenancy cleaning services can take.

We will be able to guarantee a certain deadline for performing our services, even in the case of an emergency. Therefore, here are the factors that determine how long a professional end of tenancy clean from Kiwi Movers will take:

• Condition - Similarly to if you were cleaning the rental property yourself, the time it takes for a professional service to clean depends on the condition of the property. 
• Size of property - As a rule of thumb, houses are roughly 10% more time consuming than flats, even if their overall size is the same. For the average one-bedroom apartment, an end of tenancy clean can take around 4 hours, whereas an average three-bedroom house can take around 7 hours. 
• Number of employees - Typically, the more employees that are allocated to the job, the quicker the job will get done. For example, we aim to send at least two professional cleaners to clean a standard apartment and anything up to 5 people for larger houses. However, if you have a tight deadline, such as hiring us only one day in advance, we can adjust our number of employees accordingly to meet your requirements and ensure customer satisfaction. 
• Availability of additional features and requirements - Opting for additional extras on top of a standard end of tenancy clean can mean that the job takes longer to complete. This includes extra services such as window cleaning, oven cleaning, removal of food deposits from upholstery, and carpet cleaning.