Home Cleaning Checklist Before Moving Into a New Flat

The best time to clean a flat properly is before you move in. Once furniture, boxes and appliances arrive, the corners, cupboards and floors you most want to clean become the hardest to reach. An empty flat can be cleaned from top to bottom in a fraction of the time, and you start life in your new home knowing that every surface is genuinely clean.

This checklist works room by room through a typical Dhaka flat, with extra attention to the kitchen, bathrooms, pests and the water tank — the areas that previous occupants and builders most often leave behind.

Before you start: timing and access

• Clean before moving day. Ideally, clean one or two days before the furniture arrives, leaving time for floors to dry and for any pest treatment to settle.
• Check the utilities. Make sure the water and electricity are on; cleaning without running water is slow and ineffective.
• Talk to building management. Ask about permitted working hours, whether the lift must be booked for moving, parking for vehicles, and whether the guard needs the names of cleaners or movers in advance.
• Record the condition. If you are renting, take dated photos of stains, damage and marks before cleaning, so there is no dispute about them later.

Work from top to bottom, dry to wet

In every room, start high and finish low: ceiling fans, light fittings and cornices first, then walls, windows and doors, then fittings, and floors last. Dust and vacuum before any wet cleaning, so you are not turning dust into mud. Leave the floor nearest the entrance until the very end.

Room-by-room checklist

Entrance, living and dining areas

• Dust ceiling fans, light fittings and curtain rails.
• Wipe marks off the walls, especially around switches and at hand height.
• Clean doors, door frames, handles and the area around the main door lock.
• Clean the inside of windows, and the window grills, tracks and sills.
• Wipe switches and socket plates with a dry or barely damp cloth only.
• Vacuum and mop the floors, including under built-in fixtures.

Bedrooms

• Clean inside built-in wardrobes and cupboards, including shelves, rails and drawers.
• Check the backs and corners of wardrobes for mould or damp.
• Dust fans, lights and air-conditioner grilles.
• Clean windows, grills and balcony doors.
• Vacuum and mop the floors, paying attention to corners and skirting boards.

Kitchen: degreasing comes first

The kitchen usually needs the most work, because grease from previous cooking coats surfaces you cannot always see.

• Degrease the wall tiles behind and beside the stove.
• Clean the cooker hood inside and out, including the filters.
• Clean the exhaust fan blades and frame.
• Clean inside every cabinet and drawer, including hinges and shelf edges.
• Clean cabinet doors and handles, which often carry a sticky film.
• Scrub the sink, taps and drain, and run hot water through the drain.
• Clean the worktop and the joint where it meets the wall.
• Clean inside any appliances left in the flat, such as a fridge, and leave the door open to air.
• Look inside cabinets and under the sink for cockroach droppings or egg cases.

Bathrooms

• Descale taps, shower heads and tiles.
• Scrub and disinfect the toilet, including under the rim and around the base.
• Scrub the grout and check the silicone sealant for mould.
• Clean the basin, mirror and any cabinets.
• Clear and clean the floor drains.
• Wipe the outside of the water heater and its pipes.
• Clean the exhaust fan so it actually moves air.

Balconies and utility areas

• Sweep and wash the balcony floor and clear its drain.
• Clean grills and railings, and remove bird droppings and nesting material.
• Remove anything that holds standing water, such as old pots, trays or containers.
• Clean the utility or washing area, including its drain.

Check for pests before you unpack

An empty flat is the easiest place to spot and treat pests. Look for:

• cockroach droppings, egg cases or shed skins in kitchen cabinets, under sinks and around drains;
• rodent droppings or gnaw marks in storerooms and behind appliances;
• signs of termites, such as mud tubes on walls or hollow-sounding wooden frames;
• bedbugs in any furniture or mattresses left by previous occupants;
• standing water on balconies and roofs where mosquitoes can breed.

Treating an empty home is usually more thorough and less disruptive than treating one full of furniture and food. Pest control before you move in lets the treatment reach every corner. Ask the technician how it should fit around your cleaning, as some treatments should not be wiped away for a while.

Do not forget the water tank

You rarely know when the tank was last cleaned. In an apartment building, ask the building management or committee when the underground reservoir and overhead tank were last cleaned; in an independent house, the tanks are your responsibility. If nobody knows, it is sensible to have them cleaned before you rely on the water. Water tank cleaning removes the sediment and growth that stored water sits in, so your new home starts with cleaner taps, showers and filters.

Newly built flats need extra work

In fast-growing residential areas such as Bashundhara and Uttara, many families move into flats soon after construction finishes. New flats bring their own cleaning problems: fine cement dust inside cupboards and on every ledge, paint splashes on floors and switches, a haze of grout on new tiles, and sticker residue on windows and fittings. This work takes more time and different techniques than an ordinary clean, so mention it when you ask for a quote.

A simple plan for the days before moving in

1. A few days before: inspect the flat, photograph its condition and arrange access with building management.
2. Book pest control and water tank cleaning if they are needed.
3. One or two days before: complete the full move-in clean, room by room.
4. The day before: air the flat, check that the floors are dry and that the kitchen and bathrooms are ready to use.
5. Moving day: protect the clean floors near the door, and wipe furniture as it comes in, since it will have gathered dust in transit.

When to call a professional

Doing it yourself is realistic for a small flat in good condition. Professional help is worth it when the flat is large, when the kitchen is heavily greased, when builders have left cement and paint behind, when you are short of time before moving day, or when you want pest control and tank cleaning organised alongside the clean.

Our move-in cleaning service follows a checklist like the one above. For a rough idea of cost, try the price estimator, then request a quote with the size of the flat and a few photos.