Residential Commercial Cleaning for Landlords & Letting Agents in Bristol

For communal areas, the specification should cover entrances, corridors, stairs, lifts, bin stores and any shared kitchens or laundry rooms, with a frequency for each. Seasonal tasks, such as clearing leaves from entrances, can be added when needed. Internal glass, light fittings, skirting and handrails need periodic attention alongside routine vacuuming and mopping. Where the cost is recovered through a service charge, leaseholders are entitled to ask what they are paying for, so a clear schedule and records of visits make it easier to show the charge is reasonable. Longer-term agreements can also trigger formal consultation with leaseholders, so check before signing.

Communal cleaners are often the first to notice problems. Ask them to report damaged or wedged-open fire doors, items stored in escape routes, broken lights, pest activity, damp and fly-tipping around the bins. Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 the responsible person for a block's common parts must keep escape routes clear, and cleaners' reports can form part of the evidence that routes are checked. Agree how reports are sent, with photographs where possible, and who acts on them.

Between lets, the clean should return the property to the condition recorded in the check-in inventory, allowing for fair wear and tear. That usually means the kitchen including the oven and extractor, bathrooms with limescale removed, the insides of cupboards, internal windows, skirting boards, and carpets vacuumed or cleaned. A superficial clean leaves the next renter unhappy from the first day, while a clean that goes beyond the original condition cannot fairly be charged to the outgoing renter.

If cleaning costs are to be deducted from a protected deposit, evidence matters. The check-out report should record the condition with dated photographs set against the check-in inventory, and the invoice should describe the work done. Since the 2019 ban on most letting fees in England, a tenancy agreement cannot require a renter to pay for a professional clean, although reasonable deductions can still be made where a property is left dirtier than it was at the start.

Access and keys need a simple process. Agents often fit cleans between the check-out and the next check-in, which leaves little time, so confirm availability for the day after a renter leaves and how keys will be collected and returned. Leave utilities connected so cleaners have hot water and lighting. In houses in multiple occupation, shared kitchens and bathrooms may need more frequent cleaning than a self-contained flat, and the HMO manager has a legal duty to maintain the shared areas and keep them reasonably clean.

Quotes for landlords from the cleaning companies you are introduced to should make clear what a void clean covers, whether oven and carpet cleaning are priced separately, how long the clean is expected to take for the size of property, how communal visits are recorded, and whether a report with photographs is provided for each visit, which makes resident queries easier to settle.