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I am curious... per my lease agreement, when we move out of our apt, we will need to have our carpets professionally cleaned as well as our blinds (not sure why blinds need professionally cleaned when I can do just as good as a job, but anyway...)
Curious, can anyone tell me what it usually costs to have blinds cleaned? I have never had to have them professionally cleaned before. I am thinking that we will probably pay about 100-150 for the carpet to be cleaned.
Also, how long after fulfilling the requests of the apt manager to have things done and showing receipt, do they have to return deposit? We were hoping to get the deposit to use for a house or another apt we want to rent that is about 30mins away and closer to my DH's work
I'm not sure about cleaning the blinds, but the amount of time they have to return your deposit varies by state. It's typically 30 days though, so I wouldn't count on having that money available any time soon.
Your landlord cannot require you to clean anything, and can only withhold your security deposit for verifiable damages needing repaired. Check this site for laws. Ohio Security Deposits . As usual, this is my opinion. When money's involved, the space between friends and business widens. Landlord/Tenant is strictly business and must be done legally.
Your LL can require to have your rental place cleaned and being in a similar condition as it was when you moved in, minus normal wear and tear.
If you have signed and that way agreed to that you are obligated to do so.
I don't think the LL would mind if you clean it your self, as long as it is cleaned like in a professional way.
I bought a short sale last year and the realtor (husband of the owner) emailed me several times that his wife would clean the house before closing. We never had asked to do so, but when we had the final walk through I asked the realtor about the cleaning since no vacuum cleaner was used, the dust was unbelievable and the bath tubs were clearly showing no cleaning was done...his answer; "this is what i call cleaning, you should see the way my rentals are after people move out and having them cleaned"....
Wow, so I guess there are different standards for different people on what they call cleaning and "professional cleaning" IMO is just what every normal person would understand like cleaning, just to avoid these dirty people like the realtor I quoted...is the reason the wording has to be clear!
Also, how long after fulfilling the requests of the apt manager to have things done and showing receipt, do they have to return deposit? We were hoping to get the deposit to use for a house or another apt we want to rent that is about 30mins away and closer to my DH's work
Thanks for any advice.
Each state has its own laws on deposit return. Most are 30 days, but California for example allows the landlord 14 days.
We write into our leases that the carpets will be cleaned at tenant's expense upon move-out, but we don't let the tenant do it, we schedule the work so we can control the quality. We justify this because we have the carpets cleaned immediately prior to the move-in, so we simply want it back as it was given, and when we use to let tenants do the work, the quality was poor as many would simply rent a machine at the grocery store and do a lousy job.
My advice would be to either hire a maid service to clean up after you move out and make sure they note clearly on the invoice that the areas cleaned included "all blinds". Then present copies of the cleaning work along with your keys when you turn in your forwarding address and surrender possession of the property.
Cleaning properly is actually very hard work and having walked through move-outs for almost 20 years, I can tell you that the vast majority of do-it-yourself" cleans don't past muster and we have to send a cleaning service in after the tenant anyway and charge it to the deposit.
My walk-through is simple. I enter the home, walk straight to the kitchen, open the fridge and look inside, open the oven and look inside, run my hand across the top shelves in the pantry and cabinets (and then shake the dust and crumbs off), then take out me cell phone and call my make-ready crew and say "I've got another on for you".
Very few homes survive the first 30 seconds in the kitchen. Of those that do, 90% flunk by the time I've gone through the bathrooms and checked all the window sills.
It's better for you to just hire a cleaning service, and better yet to call and ask the landlord who they recommend. That way, if the cleaning isn't up to par, you have the fact that the landlord recommended the company and should be able to simply send them back.
Each state has its own laws on deposit return. Most are 30 days, but California for example allows the landlord 14 days.
We write into our leases that the carpets will be cleaned at tenant's expense upon move-out, but we don't let the tenant do it, we schedule the work so we can control the quality. We justify this because we have the carpets cleaned immediately prior to the move-in, so we simply want it back as it was given, and when we use to let tenants do the work, the quality was poor as many would simply rent a machine at the grocery store and do a lousy job.
My advice would be to either hire a maid service to clean up after you move out and make sure they note clearly on the invoice that the areas cleaned included "all blinds". Then present copies of the cleaning work along with your keys when you turn in your forwarding address and surrender possession of the property.
Cleaning properly is actually very hard work and having walked through move-outs for almost 20 years, I can tell you that the vast majority of do-it-yourself" cleans don't past muster and we have to send a cleaning service in after the tenant anyway and charge it to the deposit.
My walk-through is simple. I enter the home, walk straight to the kitchen, open the fridge and look inside, open the oven and look inside, run my hand across the top shelves in the pantry and cabinets (and then shake the dust and crumbs off), then take out me cell phone and call my make-ready crew and say "I've got another on for you".
Very few homes survive the first 30 seconds in the kitchen. Of those that do, 90% flunk by the time I've gone through the bathrooms and checked all the window sills.
It's better for you to just hire a cleaning service, and better yet to call and ask the landlord who they recommend. That way, if the cleaning isn't up to par, you have the fact that the landlord recommended the company and should be able to simply send them back.
Good luck,
Steve
I agree with you about checking the kitchen first....open the oven and you can see what they have been eating the previous year. etc.... so true!
In the 8 years I've done rental management, about 60 different properties, we've had exactly 2 times that we didn't have to send the cleaning crew in. We've had a dozen or so times that we were comfortable enough with the carpet cleaning the vacating tenant had done to not have them professionally cleaned.
If your carpets are not stained and you've vacuumed regularly, and if you have no pets, and if you know how to use the shampooer properly and get the shampoo and then the water back out of the carpet, you can probably get away with shampooing them yourself, otherwise, hire a company.
Most of the time, a tenant's definition of "clean" does not jive with a landlord's definition. On that note, though, we had one tenant, who upon returning keys, told us his wife was a professional house cleaner, and the place was absolutely spotless. Upon arriving, it was disgustingly dirty. Cleaning people were in for most of a day to get it to our standards.
Usually the people who proclaim the loudest about the condition being bad when they move in, or being good when they move out, are the ones who leave it in the worst condition.
To the OP:
Specifying that the blinds need to be professionally cleaned is just weird in my opinion. I'd specify that the whole house needs it, or just the carpets, or nothing, but to call out the blinds makes no sense to me. We've never had anyone hired specifically for that, so no idea what it would cost. Try calling Merry Maids or someone, they should be able to give you a quote.
Some laws regarding the return of deposit money are vague or flexible. Idaho law says 21 days unless your lease specifies otherwise, up to a maximum of 30 days.
My suggestion would be to follow exactly what your lease says...clean the place really well, be upfront and honest about any damage you caused when you lived there, return the keys if you are supposed to do so, schedule a walkthrough if your lease calls for it, and ask the landlord if it would be possible to expedite the refund of your deposit. If you've been a good tenant, paid rent on time, and generally not made their job difficult, they will probably cut your check sooner rather than later.
My lease (and a previous one) also required that the carpets and blinds be professionally cleaned. Just the fabric blinds...not the plastic ones. The cleaning company had one lump price for all of it since they often do the apartments in my complex...came to around $150 total for 1,100 square feet. Costs will vary widely by area. And yes, a LL can require that it be professionally cleaned but it must be in the lease. In my case I am only allowed to use certain companies and must provide a receipt/proof that it's been done. Yes, it can be a pain but I signed the lease knowing this and therefore have no room to complain about it :-)
As a renter, I feel better knowing that things have been professionally cleaned...especially the carpets. I can't tell you the number of times that I've moved into a place and spent hours cleaning because you just don't know how well it's been done. With a professional company, you can at least have a reasonable expectation that it was done to specific standards.
Return of your security deposit is really kind of a moot point. I'm assuming you'd need to have the cleaning done prior to your move-out date so therefore the return would be subject to whatever the law is in your state. When you turn in your receipt really has no bearing. Like Lacerta said, do what you need to do, do it on time and you should get the deposit returned within the specified time.
I live in an apartment building for senior retirees (not a nursing home) The landlord has started putting some new lamanent flooring in the unrented apartments and the tenants that want this flooring could pay for it to be installed. I was told by some of the people here that when I move the cost of the flooring will be deducted from my security deposit. Is this legal??????
Last edited by Alice Czaja; 03-19-2012 at 07:12 AM..
Reason: spelling
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