What is included in a move-out cleaning?

A move-out clean covers everything a recurring visit does, plus the areas hidden during normal living: inside cabinets and drawers, the oven, inside the refrigerator if empty, baseboards, blinds, window sills, light fixtures, door frames, light switches, closet shelves and built-ins. Because the home is empty, the team can clean every surface from floor to ceiling without working around furniture.

How much does a move-out cleaning cost?

It's an extra added to the regular price for your home, by bedrooms: $150 for 1 to 2 bedrooms, $200 for 3, $250 for 4, $300 for 5 and $350 for 6. For example, a 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom home under 1,500 sq ft is $185 plus $150, or $335 before 7% sales tax. The booking form shows your exact price.

When should I schedule my move-out cleaning?

After everything is out of the home but before you hand over the keys or close. For renters, that's usually the day after the movers come or the morning of the final walk-through. For sellers, it's typically after you've fully moved out and a day or two before closing. Make sure water, hot water and electricity will still be on.

Will a move-out cleaning help me get my security deposit back?

It can help. The things landlords tend to check closely, like the oven, baseboards, blinds and inside the refrigerator, are exactly what a move-out clean addresses. Whether you get your full deposit back depends on your lease and your landlord.

How is a move-out cleaning different from a regular cleaning?

A regular cleaning maintains a lived-in home, working around furniture and focusing on surfaces and floors. A move-out cleaning is done in an empty home and reaches every surface that was hidden behind furniture, inside cabinets and along the edges of rooms. It's closer to a deep clean than a recurring visit.

How far in advance should I book a move-out cleaning?

As early as you can, especially in late spring and summer when a lot of people move. One to two weeks ahead is ideal. Last-minute requests can sometimes be fitted in, but it's much harder to get the exact timing you want close to your closing or walk-through date.

Move-Out Cleaning in Pittsburgh

The boxes are packed. The truck is booked. You’ve spent weeks coordinating movers, change-of-address forms and one too many trips to the hardware store for packing tape. The last thing you have time for is scrubbing baseboards in a house you no longer live in.

That’s exactly what a move-out cleaning is for. Whether you’re a seller closing on a sale, a renter hoping to get a deposit back, or a homeowner who just wants to leave the place properly clean for the next family, a professional move-out clean takes the heaviest job off your list in the busiest week.

Here’s what’s involved and how to plan for it.

What move-out cleaning covers

A move-out cleaning is more thorough than a recurring visit. The home is empty, so everything that was hidden behind furniture, inside cabinets and along the edges of rooms is finally visible. A standard cleaning skips most of that. A move-out cleaning addresses all of it.

Without furniture, beds or boxes in the way, we can clean every surface from floor to ceiling. A typical move-out cleaning includes:

Kitchen: inside and outside of cabinets and drawers, oven interior, stovetop, microwave inside and out, refrigerator if empty, countertops, sink and floor.
Bathrooms: toilet, tub, shower, tile and grout, vanity, mirror, inside medicine cabinets and floor.
Bedrooms and living areas: baseboards, ceiling fans, light fixtures, window sills, blinds, doors, door frames, light switches, outlets and floors.
Throughout: closet shelves and rods, built-in shelving, entry areas, hallways and any spots that have been hiding behind furniture for years.

The goal is simple. When we’re done, the home looks the way you’d want it to look if you were the next person walking through the door. A move-out clean typically takes 3 to 6 hours.

What it costs

A move-out or move-in clean is an extra added to the regular price for your home (set by bedrooms, bathrooms and square footage), priced by bedrooms:

Bedrooms	Move-in/out extra
1 to 2 bedrooms	$150
3 bedrooms	$200
4 bedrooms	$250
5 bedrooms	$300
6 bedrooms	$350

For example, a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home under 1,500 sq ft is $240 plus $200, so $440. Prices are before 7% sales tax, and the booking form shows your exact price. Full details are on our move-in and move-out cleaning page and in our pricing guide.

Why sellers and renters both benefit

The reasons people book move-out cleanings vary, but the outcomes line up.

If you’re selling a home, leaving it professionally cleaned makes a difference at the final walk-through. Buyers notice. Realtors notice. A clean home reduces the chance of last-minute complaints, and a spotless empty home reads as a home that was cared for.

If you’re leaving a rental, the case is more direct. Even renters who clean carefully often miss the things landlords tend to inspect: oven interiors, baseboards, blinds, inside the refrigerator. A professional move-out clean covers exactly those, and removes the guesswork.

If you’re a homeowner moving on, there’s satisfaction in leaving the place truly clean for the next family. It’s not required. It just feels right.

When to schedule it

Timing is the part most people get wrong. The cleaning needs to happen after everything is out of the home but before you hand over the keys or close.

For renters, that usually means the day after the movers come or the morning of your final walk-through. For sellers, it’s typically after you’ve fully moved out and a day or two before closing. Build the cleaning into your moving timeline the same way you’d build in time for the movers. Don’t leave it for the last few hours of the day, because that’s when something always runs late.

A few practical tips:

Confirm the home will be empty when we arrive. Even a few stray boxes change what’s possible.
Make sure utilities are still on. Water, hot water and electricity all matter for a deep clean.
If you’ve already left town, leave clear instructions for access, including codes, gate info or where to leave the keys.

We bring all the supplies and equipment. The team handles the rest.

Who you’re trusting with an empty home

You’re trusting a cleaning company to do their best work in a home you’re leaving behind, often when you’re not there to check. That’s a different kind of trust than a recurring visit.

Every cleaner we send is background-checked and interviewed in person. Our cleaners are independent contractors who each carry their own insurance, and Wexford Cleaning carries its own insurance as well. We work to a checklist designed for empty homes, not a recurring-visit list with a few extras tacked on.

If something isn’t right, tell us within 24 hours and we’ll come back to fix it at no charge. That’s the same promise we make to every client, whether it’s a weekly visit or a one-time clean before closing.

Ready to book?

Late spring and summer are busy moving months, so the earlier you book, the easier it is to get the timing that works for your move.

You can book a move-out cleaning online in about a minute, or call 412-981-1122 (Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm, Saturday 9am to 3pm) if you’d rather talk through the timing first. We serve Wexford, Pittsburgh and 45 more communities across Allegheny, Butler and Beaver counties.