Move out cleaning?s
 

When I moved into my apartment it was not squeaky clean. There were stains on the walls, floors, stuff like food in the heat vent screens, the stove hadn't been cleaned it what looked like ages. I am hoping to leave the place cleaner than it was when I got here.
I have heard from a few folks my apartments management company does not give back deposits and they are more of a cleaning fee. I.e. they just hand onto it and if the new renter requests painting or carpet shampooing they use my deposit to pay for it. I have gotten the impression it is very rare to get the deposit back from this company. They have three weeks after I move out to either keep or refund it. If they keep it is that an automatic bad reference? Or do some companies just keep deposits but give referrals if no money is owed?
Here are my main questions:
Would it be inappropriate to request a visit from one of the managers a few days before I move out? I would like to schedule it so I have a few days to clean or fix anything they notice out of place I may have over looked.
What are some things landlords would notice in it not think about? This is only my second rental!
Is painting and carpet steam cleaning normal between tenants? It did not appear it had been done before I moved in.
What is normal wear and tear? My son always peeks out the window when he first wakes up and says good morning to the sun. His window cover has a few broken pieces. Can I call maintence to replace it before I move out? Or do I have to buy one of my own?
I do not use my oven. I never got it clean enough to feel like it was not too gross to use. I use an induction cook top, crockpot etc instead. How clean do I have to get an appliance I never used because it was not clean I the first place?

Re: Move out cleaning?s
 

I think there is so much variance from landlord to landlord. It's fairly well regulated tho so if taking a look at the tenant/landlord laws in your state might give you some information. :yes

We are landlords and do always thoroughly clean, paint, and steam clean the carpet between tenants. Not sure what "standard is" tho.

In your case I'd definitely do a walk through with management to see what they may charge you for so that you have the opportunity to resolve those should you desire. :yes

Re: Move out cleaning?s
 

In fture lso wold take move in photos. It is not lawful IMU for landlords to keep deposit money for things like carpet cleaning and repainting and regular wear and tear that landlords would do before the new tenant.Only for unusual damage.. What dos your contract say? So is your plan to clean carpets ahead of time.when you do that pre moving walk through I would remind him of the condition of certain things when you moved in. When setting up the appointment you might also remind him in the email.Anything like that is helpful if you have to go to small claims to get your deposit back

---------- Post added at 05:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:37 PM ----------

Yes and get it all documented.Like ask for a walk through assessment on paper and anything they would deduct from your deposit for so that you can clean or fix it ahead of time. Dont let them list things like repainiting the apartment.if they start in with that nonsense or wanting to deduct reasonable wear and tear tell them you are going to contact the local housing authority