why do some sellers not clean the house after they have moved the furnishings out ? (landlords, deposit)
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It is usual and customary for sellers to clean up before handing over the keys.
It is probable that a realtor would remind their sellers of thier duty as part and parcel of the selling package.
Several realtors have recited the words: "Broom swept means cleaned in a professional manner...you don't have to hire professionals, just clean up so it looks like you did".
We bought a house where the sellers left things in some cabinets. We didn't really mind. They were those higher cabinets in the kitchen mostly. We discovered the things when we also got to those cabinets after a while. But the sellers' response was anger. Maybe we didn't find the items sooner. But the cabinets were last thoughts for them, why not for us. We said we didn't mind tossing the things, donating them or holding them for as long as needed, or even mailing them. They were still mad. They eventually arranged to return and pick them up.
I wouldn't care if a house has been professionally cleaned. I don't care if it looks spotless. I'm going to spend several hours cleaning it myself anyway. I'm just very particular about the level of cleanliness.
I've mostly only dealt with rentals. I used to kill myself deep cleaning only to be charged by management for extra cleaning costs. Now I don't care. I'm already a clean person so most things are pretty clean anyway. I simply do a quick wipe down and vacuum/sweep a few minutes before turning in keys.
I've helped a lot of people move when they bought new houses. The hardest part is that there just isn't enough time. You can't have utilities in your name in two different places so you have to move on the exact day rather than allowing a day or two of cushion to give enough time to do things like extra cleaning. Most people are left in tears because rushing around to sign the papers, get the keys, loading and unloading is just too stressful to deal with in a single day.
I've never heard of this, and know plenty of people who have multiple properties with utilities in their name - vacation homes, rental properties, etc.
But in any case, I can't imagine expecting a home to be professionally cleaned. As the buyer, I consider that my responsibility to do, not the sellers. An exception was for new construction, where the builder agrees to provide professional cleaning and carpet cleaning prior to move in. My builder actually ended up having my house cleaned twice because they were the ones who felt the first job wasn't satisfactory.
As a seller, I had my house cleaned regularly by a housecleaner, but I did not have her come back one more time after I had moved out all my stuff. I swept up all the dust bunnies that had been hiding under the furniture that was now moved, and I did a quick clorox wipe down, but I consider that I held up my end of the contract to deliver a broom clean property and my buyer, who did a walk through the morning of closing, had no issues.
The house I just bought was not left in a clean state. But the thing is it was probably clean to the sellers. I think you just get used to things over time. I however noticed every smudge where their hands had been opening and closing cabinets for years, every cobweb in every corner, etc. But what really got me were the neat little throw rugs left behind. come to find out they were hiding some hideous stains. One thing really did disgust me though. The white press board under the cabinets on each side of the stove was just plastered with years of food splatter. I almost puked cleaning that up. To think that they were preparing their food with that crap hanging right there!
Several realtors have recited the words: "Broom swept means cleaned in a professional manner...you don't have to hire professionals, just clean up so it looks like you did".
It's interesting how different realtors have different impressions of this. Our realtor's advice was broom swept meant exactly that. We vaccumed, swept and called it a day.
Location: Sodo Sopa at The Villas above Kenny' s House.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cully
We bought a house where the sellers left things in some cabinets. We didn't really mind. They were those higher cabinets in the kitchen mostly. We discovered the things when we also got to those cabinets after a while. But the sellers' response was anger. Maybe we didn't find the items sooner. But the cabinets were last thoughts for them, why not for us. We said we didn't mind tossing the things, donating them or holding them for as long as needed, or even mailing them. They were still mad. They eventually arranged to return and pick them up.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cargoman
The house I just bought was not left in a clean state. But the thing is it was probably clean to the sellers. I think you just get used to things over time. I however noticed every smudge where their hands had been opening and closing cabinets for years, every cobweb in every corner, etc. But what really got me were the neat little throw rugs left behind. come to find out they were hiding some hideous stains. One thing really did disgust me though. The white press board under the cabinets on each side of the stove was just plastered with years of food splatter. I almost puked cleaning that up. To think that they were preparing their food with that crap hanging right there!
The properties I clean that have not been recently repainted take the longest because of the smudges and hand prints. When you start detailing the walls, those things can take forever. It's not uncommon for a small bedroom to take am hour, removing those alone. Then if you add cheap paint and old tape etc.. it becomes even longer and more tedious.
We're about to close on a new house. At the inspection I mentioned to our realtor that the homeowner had better clean the oven. Our realtor said that they're only required to leave the house in "broom swept" condition. I asked what that meant and she said there really is no definition. The online consensus seems to be "Surfaces will be delivered free of noticeable debris and not unreasonably dirty."
So my plan before we move in is to have the house bug bombed to ensure that it's bug-free, followed by a professional cleaning from top to bottom, and then have the carpets shampooed. And then it'll be in the move-in condition that I want.
Ask the homeowner if they have a current pest control service -- depending on where you live in the country, many homeowners have regular pest control service. Down here in Georgia, many people have one monthly or quarterly to keep the roaches and fleas at bay (especially if you have pets). If they have one, you probably won't have to bomb.
Cyn7cyn. I guess you take the brunt of homeowners lack of upkeep.
Before we put our house on the market we freshly scrubbed to show our home at its best, and avoids all the work you are describing. You're right, it can take an excessive amount of time to clean walls, and its exhausting, but bear in mind there are many different interpretations of the concept of "clean", that's why it would be good for the contract to spell it out to the seller.
We bought a home, and got to do a walk through the day before. They left a huge rusty non-working deep freezer in the basement and threw stuff in the woods they wanted to discard. We told the realtor we would wait until the freezer was removed and stuff thrown in woods was removed before taking ownership. Well, of course they summoned up the energy to finish it right.
There's just common decency to clean a house for your new buyer, really, c'mon people, get you Mr. Clean white pads out. Any seller ought to have this sense, but some people just have no training.
I wouldn't leave a filthy oven.. shame on the realtor that would let it slide.
Even if it wasn't going to get done by the seller, the realtor could have at least empathized, and agreed in your favor as a show of support. If its common knowledge to clean the refrigerator why should the stove be exempt?
I wouldn't leave a filthy oven.. shame on the realtor that would let it slide.
Even if it wasn't going to get done by the seller, the realtor could have at least empithied, and agreed in your favor as a show of support.
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