We do a lot of move-out cleans, and we've watched a lot of final inspections. The landlord or the property manager walks in with a checklist and a phone camera, and they look at the same things in the same order every time. If you're doing the clean yourself, here's what's on that list.
Kitchen first, because that's where deposits go to die. Inside the oven — racks out, door glass, the drawer underneath. Inside the fridge and freezer, shelves and drawers out and washed, and the fridge left on unless you're told otherwise. Inside the microwave and the dishwasher, including the filter. Inside every cabinet and drawer, and the fronts and handles. The range hood and the filter. The sink and the faucet, descaled if the water's hard — and in most of the Wichita area it is. Then the floor, last.
Bathrooms second. The shower or tub scrubbed down to the grout, the glass or curtain rail, the drain. The toilet inside and out, including the base and behind it. The sink, the faucet, the mirror, the light fixture. Inside the vanity and the medicine cabinet. The exhaust fan cover. Then the floor, including behind the door.
Every other room: closets and shelves wiped out, blinds dusted, window sills and tracks cleaned, light fixtures and ceiling fans done, switch plates and door handles wiped, baseboards and door frames wiped, walls spot-cleaned where there are scuffs and marks — and nail holes filled if the lease says so. Then vacuum and mop, and vacuum the closet floors too. Don't forget the laundry room, the garage floor, the entryway and the patio.
What they actually deduct for, in our experience: the inside of the oven, the inside of the fridge, the bathroom grout, and carpet that hasn't been vacuumed properly. Those four account for most of the cleaning deductions we hear about. If you're short on time, do those first.
What's worth paying someone else to do: all of it, honestly, if you're moving the same day. A move-out clean is a full day's work for a crew in an average house, and it's a job that has to be done last — after the furniture is out and the boxes are gone — which is exactly when you have no time and no energy left. We time the clean to the day the keys change hands, work from the landlord's own checklist if there is one, and landlords and agents are welcome to walk the house with us when we're done.
Moving out somewhere in the Wichita area? Call Super clean & bright LLC at (316) 550-3939 with the date and we'll get it on the schedule. If you're moving in, the same clean on the other end means unpacking into a house that's actually clean, not just empty.