When I moved out of my condo near downtown Toronto last month, I figured handing back a "pretty clean" unit would be enough. It wasn't. The property manager showed up with a checklist I'd never seen, and a couple of things I'd skipped almost cost me part of my deposit.
If you're moving out of a condo in the city, it's the edges and the appliances that get scrutinized — not the middle of the floor:
- Inside the oven and the range hood filter
- Inside and behind the fridge
- Bathroom grout, the exhaust fan cover, under the sink
- Baseboards, window tracks, and the balcony door track
- Closet shelves and the inside of every cabinet
- Scuffs on the walls
I tried to knock it out myself over a weekend and learned two things fast: it takes way longer than you expect, and you need the right products for grout and baked-on oven grease. In the end I booked a flat-rate move-out cleaning crew in Toronto because I'd rather pay a fixed price than lose a chunk of my deposit over a range hood filter.
A few things I'd pass on to anyone in the same spot:
- Book it for after the movers are out, not before — otherwise you just re-dirty everything.
- An empty unit cleans faster and cheaper, so aim for the gap between move-out and handover.
- If the place hasn't had a proper clean in over a year, ask for a deep clean in Toronto instead of a standard one — the kitchen and bathroom buildup needs it.
The math made it a no-brainer. A couple hundred dollars for a clean that passes inspection beats arguing with a property manager about what "broom clean" means. It's the edges, not the floors.
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