Cleaning After Moving Out

[Anonymous]

We've sold our house and are moving out. I'd like to have the house cleaned, but I'm not sure where to turn for someone who will clean the empty house.

If you've done this, who did you hire? And approximately what was the cost?

Our old house is small - only 1800 square feet - so no idea what's a reasonable cost?

Any help? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

I had Maid Brigade in Alexandria (but they have tons of locations around NoVA) do an empty-house cleaning after we had packed our stuff into our moving truck. Our house was 900 sq ft and it cost $205.

[Anonymous]

Why do you need to do this? Is it in your contract? Our house just had to be "broom clean" or something to that effect, which I took to mean surfaces wiped (not scrubbed, bleached or otherwise), floors swept or vacuumed, and no trash or stuff left behind. That hardly seems worth $200+ since it's very easy to sweep/vaccuum a house with nothing in it. I would consider that for a house I'm moving into, though!

Understand being tight on time, though, and wanting someone else to finish it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why do you need to do this? Is it in your contract? Our house just had to be "broom clean" or something to that effect, which I took to mean surfaces wiped (not scrubbed, bleached or otherwise), floors swept or vacuumed, and no trash or stuff left behind. That hardly seems worth $200+ since it's very easy to sweep/vaccuum a house with nothing in it. I would consider that for a house I'm moving into, though!

Understand being tight on time, though, and wanting someone else to finish it.

"Broom clean" is the standard. Don't do more than that.

[Anonymous]

I personally have always had a cleaning service come in and clean the house for my buyers (I've sold 3 houses in the last 12 years). Of the three houses I purchased, two of my sellers had the house professionally cleaned and I really appreciated. The one who didn't left the house a complete disaster and I had to scramble to find a service to come on a Saturday before the moving trucks arrived on Monday. We were new to the area and I had been living in temporary housing and hardly knew anyone. Don't do that to your buyers. Either clean it well yourself or hire someone.

[Anonymous]

All of the big maid services will have a standard move-in/move-out cleaning package for a reasonable price. Personally, I think the cleaning is kind of superficial, so I prefer to hire a local cleaning woman to do in-depth cleaning to my specifications. Yes, the house only has to be 'broom clean', but I think it creates good karma to properly ready the house for the next owner. And (sadly) cleaning services are dirt cheap compared to male dominated trades.

[Anonymous]

Broom clean, yuk.

I applaud you OP: leave your house nice for the new owners. Sign of respect of your past in the house. $250, Maid Brigade is good.

[Anonymous]

broom clean you don't want to pay twice for moving out and in

[Anonymous]

Extra Clean - used on both the sold house and new house and was a great deep clean.