At the end of a residential tenancy, how clean should the carpet be?

Moving in and out of a rental home involves many tasks. As a tenant, you need to pack, unpack, coordinate with landlords, and make sure everything is in order. Amidst the chaos, carpets' cleanliness is often neglected, leading to disputes between landlords and tenants who are leaving.

According to the Residential Tenancies Act 1986, tenants must ensure that when their tenancy concludes, they leave the property reasonably clean and tidy. Tenants are only required to leave the property in a condition that the average, reasonable person would define as clean and tidy, which may not equate to what a landlord considers to be an acceptable standard of cleanliness!

According to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS), over half of the disputes it considers involve cleaning. It’s worth spending time to thoroughly clean the property, including the carpets to:

Prevent disputes

Ensuring the property is as clean as when you moved in is important to get your deposit returned. The landlord or letting agent expects the property to be returned to the standard it was when you moved in. You can decide between hiring professional carpet cleaning services in Christchurch or doing it yourself. Nonetheless, ensuring the task is completed is crucial.

TIP: when you move into a rented property, take pictures of each room at the beginning of the tenancy to show the condition. For landlords, keep the receipt of the professional carpet cleaning company to demonstrate the carpets were professionally cleaned for the start of the tenancy.

Get a good reference from the landlord or letting agency

The rental market is highly competitive, which makes a reference from a previous landlord a valuable commodity! If you’ve left their property in an inadequate state, this information may be included in any reference. Leaving dirty carpets when your tenancy ends can damage your reputation and lead to deductions from your deposit.

How can you tell if a carpet is clean?

One of the biggest misconceptions about carpet cleanliness is that if it looks clean, it must be clean. However, the truth is that dirt often lurks deep within the carpet fibres, invisible to the naked eye. Clean carpet is soft to the touch, warm, and inviting.

Check for smells: A clean carpet should smell neutral or pleasant, with no lingering odours from cooking, pets, spilled food and drinks, or tobacco.

Look for stains: inspect the carpet for any visible stains or discolorations. Clean carpets should be free from noticeable marks.

Test the texture: run your hand across the carpet to feel for any residue or sticky patches. Carpets should never be crunchy underfoot.

Use a white cloth: lightly dampen a white cloth and blot a small area of the carpet. If the cloth picks up dirt or discoloration, the carpet is not clean.

So, what can you do to ensure that your carpets are truly clean and pass the landlord check? The answer lies in professional carpet cleaning. Opting for professional carpet cleaning goes beyond DIY methods or superficial cleaning. It involves a thorough removal of embedded dirt, stains, and allergens, effectively restoring carpets to their pristine condition.

If you are coming to the end of a tenancy and keen to hire an affordable carpet cleaning Christchurch company, book your carpet clean today on 021 638 637. Christchurch Carpet Cleaning provides carpet cleaning services for tenants and landlords in Christchurch and surrounding areas, including Rangiora, Kaiapoi, Rolleston, Lincoln, Oxford, and Ohoka.