Are you leaving your rented space and moving to a new home? If so, your landlord or property manager expects you to do a thorough cleaning of the entire place before they release your bond. Whether it’s an apartment, condominium, or single-attached house rental, it’s essential to preserve the aesthetics and optimum functional areas of rooms and common amenities.
This article serves as your essential guide to end-of-lease cleaning to ensure you leave the rental property clean and orderly.
Schedule Cleaning Early
End-of-lease cleaning seems deceptively easy, but it’s a major chore requiring several hours of your time. Once you’ve decided to move out of your rented space, start planning how you can leave the area as clean as when you first moved in.
At least a month before you move, you can start packing and cleaning your condo unit or apartment. This minimum timeframe depends on the bulk of things you need to pack and unwanted items to give away or throw out.
If you’re too busy with work and moving arrangements, you can hire an end-of-lease or bond cleaning specialist with a bond-back guarantee. Professional cleaners ensure your rented property is clean to help you get your bond back. They ensure all corners, nooks, and spaces are free of dust, dirt, and stains.
Create And Follow Your Checklist
Creating and following a checklist is non-negotiable. If you want to get your lease bond back and leave a good impression on your landlord for future tenant validation, ensure you execute this step excellently.
A custom cleaning checklist can help in task and time management. Include a timetable for each cleaning task entry, such as how many hours you can dedicate to cleaning the living room, bathroom, and bedroom. Moreover, you have to ensure that all rooms are clean and disinfected.
Don’t forget to include the cleaning supplies and tools you need in your checklist. You’ll need some rags, sponges, paper towels, a pair of rubber gloves, baking soda, and other cleaning and sanitizing agents.
Plan A Cleaning Workflow
Planning a cleaning workflow can help you prioritize which areas of your rented place need a thorough cleaning. Scrubbing the floor and tiles and deep cleaning can take hours or days. However, if you’re in the habit of cleaning the bedroom and bathroom regularly, there will be fewer areas that need special attention.
If you want a good cleaning workflow, you can follow these tips:
- Clean The Rooms From Top To Bottom
Start cleaning from the top of the rooms. Remove cobwebs from the ceilings and walls. Wipe down dust from cabinets, lighting fixtures, fans, window blinds and sills, and other surfaces using a microfiber cloth.
- Patch Up The Walls
After you remove all marks and scuffs from the walls using a damp magic eraser, patch up unsightly walls. Patch up all holes in the walls to make the room look new again.
Using a putty knife, fill the holes on the walls with a spackle or wall joint compound. Let the area dry completely before sanding it lightly. You can also use quick dry fillers for cracks and tiny holes.
- Wash The Windows
Clean the windows with soapy water to remove dirt, dust, and water spots. Afterward, spray a solution of white vinegar and water, then wipe it down with clean paper towels.
- Vacuum The Carpet
It’s essential to vacuum the carpet and other upholstered furniture to get rid of dust, soil, and other dirt. If you have pets, you may need professional steam cleaning of your carpet and furniture.
To remove stains on the carpet, you may use carpet stain removal products. Alternatively, you may spray the stained area with a solution of white vinegar, dish soap, and water. After a few minutes, blot with a dry cloth.
Pay Special Attention To The Kitchen And Bathroom
The kitchen and bathroom are the most challenging rooms to clean in any home. Here’s how you must clean these areas:
- Kitchen Cleaning
Scrub off the stovetop and kitchen countertops to remove grease, food splatters, and stubborn stains. Baking soda and white vinegar can help eliminate water marks and stains in the kitchen sink. Ensure you clean the cupboards and pantry shelves inside and out.
Clean all kitchen appliances, especially if they’re part of the lease. Remove all food inside the refrigerator and defrost it. Subsequently, use hot water, white vinegar, and bleach to wipe down the inner surfaces and walls of the fridge.
- Bathroom Cleaning
You’re lucky if the bathroom design and fixtures are easy to clean. But regardless of the bathroom design, this room must be cleaned and disinfected.
Bathroom cleaning is a tedious task. You need to remove loose dirt, dust, hair, and debris using a vacuum cleaner. Scrub the floor, tiles, glass doors, and other surfaces thoroughly to remove soap scum, grime, and dirt buildup.
Conclusion
Take this essential guide to end-of-lease cleaning as a valuable reference so you can vacate the rented space confidently. Remember that a clean rental space will leave a good impression on the landlord, who will be happy to give you back your bond. Hiring a cleaning professional is advisable if you can’t handle the cleaning workload and want to focus on your new home.