Move-In and Move-Out Cleaning Quotes: Room-by-Room Pricing

In an illustrative turnover job, the manager requests a “normal empty-unit clean.” At arrival, the refrigerator contains food, cabinet interiors are greasy, and a bedroom remains locked. The quoted room count is correct; the condition and access assumptions are not.

A move-in or move-out quote should describe surfaces, tasks, soil condition, selected extras, and the handoff. “Deep clean” is too broad to tell a crew what was bought. Use the standard-versus-deep-cleaning scope checklist to identify which routine and detail tasks this turnover includes.

Inspect the tasks that change the price

Use a site assessment or a structured photo request. Record vacancy, water, power, lighting, parking, keys, completion time, surface materials, retained belongings, and known hazards.

Then define the room-level work:

Write “wipe reachable baseboard faces” if that is what you priced. Scraping paint, removing adhesive, and restoring a damaged coating are different tasks. Do not move connected appliances or discard belongings based on appearance alone.

The cleaning quote can summarize the selected work; attach the detailed scope. The five-line quote guide shows how a short approval page can still point to the controlling detail.

Estimate labor-hours and appointment time separately

Count tasks and use your own measured production history. Square footage can help with floors; it does not measure the work inside an oven or a bank of cabinets.

For a synthetic example, six labor-hours at an assumed selling rate of $50 per labor-hour gives $300 of labor. Add only costs not already recovered in that rate, and address applicable tax separately. Those figures illustrate arithmetic, not market pricing.

Two cleaners might share six labor-hours across roughly three elapsed hours, but access, drying, equipment tasks, and inspection do not always divide evenly. Check the sequence before promising a departure time.

Price uncertain extras by a defined unit, allowance, or hourly method with an approval limit. State what happens when that limit is reached.

Give the crew a change rule

The cleaning work order should match the accepted scope and identify the contact authorized to approve changes. If photographs understated the grease or contents remain, document the difference before doing added chargeable work.

Use a change order or the agreed written approval process to confirm revised tasks, price, and time. The work-order photo guide helps connect before, exception, and completion images without capturing unrelated private material.

Stop affected work for sharps, blood, sewage, unknown chemicals, unsafe access, or another condition outside the crew's assessed scope. Notify the supervisor and authorized site contact from a safe location. A larger “deep clean” fee does not supply the training, controls, or disposal arrangements needed for specialist work.

Define the chemical service accurately

CDC home guidance distinguishes ordinary cleaning from sanitizing and disinfecting. Do not advertise a routine turnover wipe-down as a germ-free result.

When disinfection is included, identify the surfaces, product, label-supported use, and service record. EPA guidance explains use-site and contact-time requirements; follow the actual label, including preparation and keeping the surface wet for the required time.

The OSHA/NIOSH cleaning-chemical guide addresses chemical hazards and safe work practices. Covered employers must also satisfy applicable hazard communication duties. Where occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials is reasonably anticipated, 1910.1030 adds specific duties. Customer consent does not waive these obligations.

Inspect the same list you priced

Use the cleaning inspection report to mark completed, corrected, inaccessible, excluded, or unresolved tasks. Record re-entry by repair trades, remaining stains or damage, key return, lockup, and the inspection time.

The cleaner's invoice establishes the billed service. The landlord separately determines any lawful tenant charge under the lease and applicable law; a cleaning invoice alone does not establish entitlement to a security-deposit deduction.