The move-out cleaning checklist for Calgary renters
Cleaning guide
The move-out cleaning checklist for Calgary renters
Room by room, what a proper move-out clean covers, so cleaning is not a reason to hold your deposit.
In Alberta, a landlord can hold back part of your security deposit for cleaning if you leave the place in worse shape than reasonable wear and tear. The unit does not have to be spotless, but it does have to be genuinely clean. This checklist is what a proper move-out clean covers, room by room, so you get your deposit back rather than an itemised deduction. If you would rather hand the whole thing off, that is what our move-out service is for, and the link is at the end.
Before you start
Clean an empty home, not a full one. Move-out cleaning goes faster and comes out better once the furniture and boxes are gone, because you can reach the floors, corners, and inside the closets. Do your final clean after the movers leave, not around them.
Work top to bottom in each room. Dust and wipe high surfaces first, floors last, so anything that falls lands on a surface you have not cleaned yet.
Kitchen
The kitchen is where most deposits are won or lost. It takes the longest and gets inspected the hardest.
- Inside and outside of the oven, including the racks and the glass door
- Inside the fridge and freezer, then pull it out and clean behind and underneath
- Inside the microwave, top and bottom
- Cabinet fronts, handles, and inside every drawer and cupboard
- Countertops, backsplash, and the sink and taps
- Range hood and filter, plus the wall behind the stove
Bathrooms
- Toilet, inside and out, including the base and behind it
- Shower and tub, including grout, glass, and the showerhead
- Sink, taps, vanity, and mirror
- Inside drawers and the medicine cabinet
- Exhaust fan cover and any built-up dust
Bedrooms and living areas
- Inside closets, shelves, and along the closet rails
- Window sills, tracks, and the inside of the glass
- Baseboards, door frames, and light switches
- Light fixtures and ceiling fan blades
- Marks and scuffs wiped off the walls where they lift cleanly
Floors and the whole unit
- Vacuum all carpets, including the closets and the edges
- Mop every hard floor after vacuuming
- Wipe down any in-suite laundry, inside and out
- Clear cobwebs from ceiling corners
- A final walk-through with fresh eyes, looking for what you missed
What landlords notice that tenants forget
The deductions usually come from the same short list: inside the oven, behind the fridge, the bathroom exhaust fan, window tracks, and the inside of closets. These are the spots a quick clean skips and an inspection finds. If you are short on time, spend it here.
Book your final clean a day or two before your possession date, not the morning of. Keys and timing on a move are rarely as tidy as the calendar suggests, and a small buffer keeps the clean from being rushed.
Doing it yourself, or handing it over
A full move-out clean of an average two-bedroom takes one person most of a day, longer if the place has been lived in hard. If your days before the move are already full, a move-out clean is one of the easier things to hand off. Our move-out service starts at $329 and resets the home empty and ready for handover, the kind of clean a property manager signs off on without a second visit.
It is one of our most-booked services in the rental-heavy parts of the city, especially the Beltline and Mission, where units change hands often and possession dates are tight.
This is general guidance, not legal advice. Your lease and the condition report you signed at move-in are the real reference for what your landlord can and cannot deduct.
Common questions
How clean does a rental need to be when I move out?
Reasonably clean, not showroom perfect. Alberta allows deductions for cleaning beyond normal wear and tear, so the goal is a unit that needs no extra work before the next tenant. Your move-in condition report is the benchmark.
How far ahead should I book a move-out clean?
A few days before your possession date. Book the clean for after the movers are out, with a small buffer in case the move runs late. We can advise timing when you book.
Do you guarantee I get my deposit back?
No honest cleaner can promise that, because the deposit depends on your landlord and the condition you started in, not only the clean. What we do is reset the home to the standard a landlord expects, which removes cleaning as a reason to hold money back.
How much does move-out cleaning cost?
Our move-out clean starts at $329, with the final price set by the size of the home. GST is included and confirmed before the visit.
Hand off the move-out clean.
We reset the home empty and ready for handover, from $329. Book a few days before your possession date.
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