Should you clean a house before moving in?

Yes — always. Even a home that looks clean holds the previous owner's dust, allergens, pet dander, and bathroom and kitchen bacteria. Cleaning before you unpack is the only time the home is completely empty, which makes every surface reachable: inside cabinets, under appliance lines, closet shelving, and floors with zero furniture in the way.

What should be cleaned first when moving into a house?

Start with the kitchen (inside cabinets, refrigerator, and oven, since food goes there first), then bathrooms (full sanitizing), then bedrooms and closets before clothes are hung. Floors go last, room by room, working toward the exits. If the movers are coming in the afternoon, a morning professional clean fits perfectly.

How much does move-in cleaning cost in Maryland?

A professional move-in clean of an empty home in the DMV typically runs from about $230 for a small apartment to $540+ for a large 4-5 bedroom house, similar to move-out pricing. The exact price depends on size, number of bathrooms, and condition. You can get an exact flat quote in about 60 seconds from Capital Clean Care.

Is move-in cleaning different from a regular cleaning?

Yes. A move-in clean is a deep clean of an empty home: inside cabinets and appliances, baseboards, window tracks, and full disinfection — places a routine clean doesn't reach and that are only fully accessible before furniture arrives. A standard cleaning maintains a home you already live in.

Move-In Cleaning Checklist: What to Clean Before You Unpack

A move-in clean is the single best-timed cleaning you will ever book. For one short window the home is completely empty: no furniture blocking the baseboards, no dishes in the cabinets, no rugs over the floors. Whatever the previous owners left behind — cooking grease, bathroom bacteria, pet dander in the vents — is still there, and it is never easier to remove than right now, before your family's things touch it.

Here is the room-by-room checklist our crews use on move-in cleans across Maryland, DC, and Northern Virginia, in the order that makes moving day easiest.

Kitchen (do this first)

Inside all cabinets and drawers before anything goes in
Inside the refrigerator, oven, and dishwasher
Countertops, backsplash, and sink sanitized
Range hood and filter degreased
Floors scrubbed, including under appliances if accessible

Bathrooms

Toilet replaced-level sanitizing, inside and out
Tub, shower, and tile scrubbed and disinfected
Vanity, sink, and faucet descaled
Exhaust fan cover dusted
Fresh disinfection of every handle and switch

Bedrooms & closets

Closet shelves and rods wiped before hanging clothes
Baseboards, window sills, and tracks cleaned
Ceiling fans and light fixtures dusted
Floors vacuumed and mopped edge to edge

Whole home, before boxes arrive

All switches, handles, and doorknobs disinfected
Air vents and returns dusted or vacuumed
Windows cleaned inside
Walls spot-cleaned for scuffs from the previous owners

Capital Clean Care

Moving into a home in the DMV?

Book a professional move-in clean for the empty house and unpack into a genuinely clean home — eco-friendly products, background-checked crews, flat pricing.

Get My Move-In Quote (240) 704-2551

Kitchen counter spotless after a move-in cleaning

When to schedule it

The ideal slot is after you get the keys and before the moving truck arrives — usually the morning of move-in day or the day before. If you are also leaving a rental, pair it with a move-out clean of the old place to protect your deposit (here is what move-out cleaning costs in Maryland).

A professional move-in / move-out cleaning of an empty DMV home typically runs $230–$540+ depending on size — and it is the one clean you truly cannot redo later, because the furniture only arrives once.