End of tenancy cleaning that gets the deposit back

What's included

Everything on a standard inventory checkout: oven, hob, extractor and grill degreased; inside and outside of every cupboard; fridge, freezer and washing machine interiors; limescale off screens, taps and tiles; interior windows, sills and frames; skirting, doors, handles and switches; carpets vacuumed and hard floors mopped; bins cleaned; cobwebs and high-level dust removed.

Carpet steam cleaning and oven deep-cleaning are the two items agents most often insist on. Both can be added — carpets from £30 a room, oven from £45.

The paperwork that actually settles disputes

A receipt from a cleaner is worth very little on its own. What works is a dated invoice on company letterhead, naming the property, listing the rooms cleaned, from a registered company an agent can look up. Ours says Allite Enterprises Ltd, company no. 08424485.

Alongside it you get a photo of every room taken at the point we finished. That combination has settled every dispute our customers have brought back to us.

Timing it right

Book the clean for the day before checkout, not the day of. If the agent flags something we then have time to return, and we'll re-clean anything raised within 72 hours at no charge.

The property should be empty, or as close to empty as you can manage. We can work around a few boxes, but we can't clean inside a wardrobe that's still full.

Prices

One-bed flat from £120. Two-bed from £150. Three-bed house from £190. Four-bed and above quoted on the property. Add carpets from £30 a room and oven deep-clean from £45. Landlords and agents with multiple properties get a standing rate — ask.