Tenants have highly variable attitudes to rental properties, and it’s always advisable to give a newly vacated property a deep clean
At some stage in our lives, most people rent a property. There are numerous reasons for renting, from first-year students and newly cohabiting couples to short-term contract workers and people bridging the gap between selling an old house and buying a new one. Consequently, there are numerous types of tenant – the conscientious, the clumsy and the careless. As a landlord, you can never be quite sure which type is about to hand back their keys.
Stepping into a newly vacated rental property can be a depressing experience. Some wear and tear is inevitable, such as indentations on carpets where furniture once stood and a degree of grime in the oven. Bad tenants can leave a property in a truly shocking state even after a few months of occupancy – covered in cobwebs and grime, with stained appliances and grubby worksurfaces. It’s a scenario we’ve encountered many times at Queen of Gleam, and it’s why our end-of-tenancy deep cleaning services in Cumbria are so highly sought-after.
To furnish or not to furnish?
One of the first decisions a landlord has to make is whether to rent a property furnished or unfurnished. Some owners seek a third way in terms of part-furnishing, merely installing a few essentials like sofas and beds. Perhaps surprisingly, this choice makes little difference to the end-of-tenancy deep clean we conduct. If we’re dusting a sideboard, we’re not vacuuming the floor where it stands; kitchen sinks aren’t made any cleaner or dirtier by the presence of a kettle and toaster beside them.
Whether or not you choose to furnish a property, a deep clean is essential for revealing the true condition it’s been left in. Superficial dust and dirt might be an unwelcome sight, but we know how to bring tired surfaces back to life and rejuvenate older fabrics. Once we’ve worked our magic, you can visit the property and compare its condition to before the tenancy started. We always recommend photographing a room from different angles before a new tenant moves in; these date-stamped images can be invaluable in proving excess wear or damage occurred during the tenancy. Armed with visual evidence, you’ll have a far stronger case for withholding deposit funds as compensation.
What does a deep clean entail?
To some extent, this is negotiable. We can tailor our end-of-tenancy deep clean quotes around specific items you might want us to address, but our highly trained staff possess a natural instinct for what each room needs. Our Cumbria deep clean services normally extend to windows and sills, cupboards and worktops, door handles and light switches. Our staff work methodically through one room at a time, banishing any grime or debris before emptying bins and mopping freshly vacuumed non-carpeted floors. We can’t restore a property to as-new condition, but we can restore it to the best condition its age and furnishings will permit.
Because deep cleans take time, we always request as much notice as possible. If you’re looking to schedule an end-of-tenancy deep clean in Cumbria, you’ll probably already know the date the tenants are due to hand back their keys. We accept bookings months in advance, using an electronic diary system to automatically notify our staff of upcoming appointments. That way, we can arrive at the property as soon as you wish after the tenants have vacated. This minimises void periods before new occupants move in, and enables you to conduct your deposit inspection almost immediately.
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