Moving is stressful enough without wondering whether the cleaning will be good enough to get your damage deposit back, or whether your new place is actually clean before the boxes arrive. In Metro Vancouver's tight rental market, landlords and property managers often do a detailed walkthrough, so it pays to be thorough. Here's a practical, room-by-room checklist you can use whether you're moving out, moving in, or handling a rental turnover.
Why move cleaning is different from a regular clean
A weekly or biweekly clean keeps a lived-in home tidy. Move cleaning is closer to a deep clean: it targets areas that get skipped in everyday cleaning, like inside appliances, behind furniture, and window tracks, because a new tenant, buyer, or landlord will be looking at the whole space with fresh eyes. Empty rooms also make it much easier to reach corners, baseboards, and closets that furniture usually blocks.
The room-by-room checklist
Work through the unit systematically so nothing gets missed. This list covers what most landlords and move-in inspections look for.
- Kitchen: inside and outside of the fridge, oven, and microwave; range hood filter; cabinet interiors and exteriors; countertops and backsplash; sink and faucet; floor edges and behind the trash bin area
- Bathrooms: tub, shower walls and grout, toilet (including the base), mirror, mould around silicone seals, exhaust fan cover, and cabinet interiors
- Bedrooms and living areas: baseboards, light switches, door frames, closet shelves and rods, window sills and tracks, and any wall marks from furniture or nails
- Floors: vacuum carpets thoroughly (including edges), mop hard floors, and check for stains that need spot treatment
- Windows and doors: interior glass, screens, handles, and sliding door tracks, which collect a surprising amount of grit
- Extras: light fixtures, ceiling fans, vents, smoke detector covers, and the inside of any storage lockers or in-suite laundry closets
Tips for getting your damage deposit back
Most disputes come down to a handful of predictable spots: the oven, the fridge seals, bathroom grout, and carpet stains. Take dated photos before you leave, and compare them to the move-in condition report you signed if you have one. If the unit was professionally cleaned when you moved in, matching that standard on the way out gives you a stronger case if there's ever a disagreement about your deposit.
It's also worth doing a final walkthrough with fresh eyes, or asking a friend to check. It's easy to overlook things you've walked past every day for months, like a scuffed wall behind the couch or grime built up on a light switch.
Move-in cleaning: starting fresh in a new place
Even a unit that looks clean can carry dust, hair, and residue from the previous tenant. Before you unpack, it's worth wiping down cabinet interiors, cleaning the fridge and freezer, and giving bathrooms a full disinfect. This is also the easiest time to clean inside closets and drawers, since they'll be much harder to access once they're full.
When it makes sense to hire a professional move clean
Move cleaning takes real time, especially on top of packing, coordinating movers, and everything else on a moving day. Many people choose to hire it out for the move-out clean specifically, since a documented, professional-standard clean can support your deposit claim.
If you book with MaidEX, you can see an exact, itemised price in about 60 seconds online, no waiting around for a quote. You can choose a flat-rate package with the full price upfront, or book by the hour at $50/hour with a 3-hour minimum for smaller jobs like a studio or one-bedroom turnover. General house cleaning in BC is PST-exempt, so you only pay the 5% federal GST on top of the price you see.
MaidEX cleaners are trusted and insured, and if the team spots something during the clean, a leaky faucet or a broken cabinet hinge, they'll send a photo report straight to you or the landlord through our Spot Report feature. And if a friend is moving around the same time, our referral program gives you both 20% off, up to $50, when they book their first clean.
See your exact price in about 60 seconds.
Get my instant price