Move-out cleaning for CU Boulder students
Leaving an off-campus rental on the Hill or anywhere in Boulder? Your landlord may expect a certain level of cleaning before you leave, and your security deposit is on the line if there's a dispute about it. Here's what to check, what a clean tends to cost, and how to send the job to local cleaning businesses.
Sweepstead is an independent service. We're not affiliated with or endorsed by the University of Colorado Boulder.
Start with what your landlord expects
CU Boulder's Off-Campus Housing office says to ask your landlord what cleaning they expect: "some landlords may want a deep cleaning before you move out and some may only require you to sweep the floors" (CU Off-Campus Housing, move-in/move-out). If your lease or your property manager has a move-out checklist, that list is the one that counts.
Deposit checklist
- Find your move-in condition sheet and photos. CU's office recommends them as proof that you didn't cause damage.
- Ask your landlord or property manager for their move-out cleaning list, in writing if you can.
- Agree with your roommates who does what, and whether you're splitting the cost of a cleaning business.
- Book the clean for after everyone's things are out.
- Take dated photos and video of every room after the clean, before you hand back the keys.
- Give your landlord a forwarding address for the deposit.
What a move-out clean usually covers
- Kitchen: inside the fridge and oven, inside cabinets and drawers, counters, sink, stovetop
- Bathrooms: toilet, tub or shower, sink, mirror, inside the vanity, floor
- Every room: floors, baseboards, inside closets, window sills, light switches and door handles
- Often extra: walls, blinds, inside windows, carpet shampooing. Ask whether these are included.
Typical prices
- Move-in or move-out deep clean, US: about $220–400; western US region about $220–380 (Housecall Pro, page updated October 23, 2026). We couldn't find a published Boulder-only figure.
- Hourly housekeeping in Boulder: an average of $23.88 to $31.00 an hour, as reported by providers listed on Care.com (as of October 2026).
These are reference ranges, not quotes. A shared house costs more than a studio, but split between roommates it can cost each person much less. You choose the offer. Offers well below these ranges may not get taken.
Your deposit and Colorado law
A summary by the Colorado legislature's Office of Legislative Legal Services says a landlord must return the full deposit within one month after the lease ends or the keys are handed back, whichever is later, unless the lease sets a longer period of no more than 60 days. A landlord can't keep any of it for normal wear and tear, and must send a written statement of the exact reasons for anything kept (OLLS law summary, last reviewed 2018). Colorado has changed some tenant laws since then, so check the current statute (C.R.S. 38-12-103) or ask a tenant-law resource before relying on the details. This is general information, not legal advice. CU's Off-Campus Housing office lists legal help for student tenants.
How Sweepstead works
Sweepstead is new. We're starting in Boulder now and still signing up our first cleaning businesses, so we can't promise that a business will take every job.
- Email the job, your move-out date and what you'd like to pay. One email for the whole house is fine.
- We send it to independent local cleaning businesses. Before a business gets any jobs from us, we ask for its current certificate of liability insurance.
- The first business to say yes contacts you. You agree the price and details with the business, and you pay the cleaning business directly.
Send your zip code, not your street address. We pass your address only to the business that takes your job, and only after you say OK. Not a student? See move-out cleaning in Boulder.