Moving out of a studio apartment in Dublin is stressful enough without the added worry of whether you’ll see your deposit again. In 2024, deposit retention was the second most common reason tenants filed disputes with Ireland’s Residential Tenancies Board — and in the vast majority of those cases, cleaning was cited as the landlord’s reason for withholding money.
The good news: it’s almost entirely preventable. This guide covers exactly what Dublin landlords and letting agents inspect at the end of a studio tenancy, what a professional clean actually addresses, what it costs, and how to make sure your deposit comes back to you in full.
Under the Residential Tenancies Acts, your landlord can only retain part or all of your deposit for specific, documented reasons — unpaid rent, outstanding utility bills, or damage and cleaning costs that go beyond normal wear and tear.
The critical phrase here is normal wear and tear. A landlord cannot deduct for minor scuffs on paintwork, carpet pile that has flattened naturally over time, or small marks that result from everyday living. But they can — and regularly do — deduct for a studio that has not been professionally cleaned to the standard it was in when you moved in.
Under Irish law, your deposit cannot exceed one month’s rent. If your landlord makes a deduction you believe is unjustified, you can raise a dispute through the RTB’s resolution service. In 2021, the RTB ruled in favour of tenants in 94% of deposit-related disputes — but you need clean documentation to support your case. |
The practical takeaway is straightforward: arrive at your move-out inspection with a property that is visibly clean and a receipt from a professional cleaning company, and you have significantly reduced your exposure to any deduction.
In Dublin’s rental market, most properties are let through estate agents who conduct move-out inspections using a standard inventory checklist. Studio apartments, despite being compact, receive the same level of scrutiny as larger properties — sometimes more, because every surface is immediately visible.
Here is what gets checked, and what gets flagged when it is not up to standard:
Area | What Landlords Check |
Kitchen | Oven interior, hob, extractor fan, fridge (inside and out), sink, taps, limescale, cupboard faces and insides |
Bathroom | Toilet (under rim included), shower screen, bath, grout and tiles, taps, limescale, mirrors |
Floors | Hard floors mopped and streak-free, carpet vacuumed and spot-cleaned, skirting boards wiped |
Walls and Doors | Marks, scuffs, fingerprints on light switches, door handles, doorframes |
Windows | Interior glass cleaned, sills wiped, frames free from dust and mould |
General Surfaces | Dust-free shelves, cleaned blinds or curtains, cobwebs removed, bin areas emptied |
The oven and the bathroom are the two areas most commonly flagged in Dublin studio inspections. Grease buildup in an oven that has not been cleaned properly, and limescale or mould around shower seals, are the details that appear most often on dispute records.
End of tenancy cleaning is not the same as a regular tidy-up, and it is not the same as a standard deep clean either. It is a structured, checklist-driven service specifically designed to meet the inventory standards that landlords and letting agents use.
A professional end-of-tenancy clean for a Dublin studio apartment typically covers:
What is not always included: carpet steam cleaning, external windows, balcony cleaning, and upholstery cleaning are typically add-ons rather than standard inclusions. If your lease required professionally cleaned carpets at the start of your tenancy, you will likely need steam cleaning at the end — always check your original inventory report. |
Pricing across Dublin cleaning companies varies, but for a studio apartment, you can expect the following as a realistic guide:
Service | Cost (Dublin) | What’s Included |
Studio Apartment (EOT) | From €120 – €180 | Kitchen, bathroom, floors, surfaces |
+ Oven Deep Clean | + €25 – €35 | Interior oven, grill, hob |
+ Carpet Steam Clean | + €40 – €60 | Per room, stain removal included |
+ Inside Windows | + €20 – €30 | Glass, frames, sills |
Full Package (Studio) | €180 – €260 | All of the above combined |
These figures reflect the Dublin market as of 2025. The most important thing to note is the cost comparison: professional end-of-tenancy cleaning for a studio apartment typically costs €120–€260, while a typical Dublin deposit, capped at one month’s rent, is far more. Protecting your deposit with a professional clean is almost always the financially sensible decision.
These are the patterns that appear most often in deposit disputes and the ones that are entirely avoidable with the right approach.
Standard kitchen spray does not cut through baked-on grease in an oven that has been used for a year or more. Professional cleaners use commercial-grade degreasers that are not available in supermarkets. An oven that looks clean to you may still fail a landlord’s inspection.
Dublin’s water is hard, which means limescale builds up quickly on taps, showerheads, and shower screens. Tenants frequently clean around limescale deposits without removing them. On an inventory check, visible limescale on bathroom fittings is consistently flagged as a cleaning failure.
The move-in inventory is the document that your landlord will compare the property against. If it is noted that professionally cleaned carpets at the start of your tenancy, your standard vacuum will not meet the required standard at the end. Always read your original inventory before deciding what level of cleaning to commission.
During peak moving periods in Dublin, particularly June to August and around college term starts, professional cleaners are in high demand. Leaving the booking to the last few days risks either not securing a slot at all or accepting a rushed service that does not meet the required standard. Book at least one week in advance when possible.
Reputable Dublin cleaning companies offer a guarantee: if your landlord flags any cleaning issues within a defined window (usually 24 to 72 hours), they will return and address them at no additional charge. Always confirm this is part of your booking before you pay.
Clean4U’s end-of-tenancy cleaning service follows a comprehensive checklist aligned with letting agency and landlord inspection standards. Every studio apartment clean is carried out by fully insured, Garda-vetted professionals using commercial-grade equipment — the same equipment and standards applied across all our apartment cleaning services in Dublin.
We cover the full scope of what Dublin landlords inspect: oven deep clean, bathroom descaling, hard floor mopping, interior window cleaning, and all surfaces — with optional add-ons for carpet steam cleaning and upholstery if required by your tenancy agreement.
If you need a quote or want to book, call us on 1800 938 831 or use the form on our website. We recommend booking at least 5–7 days before your move-out date to secure your preferred slot.
Irish tenancy law does not specify that professional cleaning is required, but most Dublin rental agreements include a clause requiring the property to be returned in the same cleaned condition it was in at the start of the tenancy. If the property was professionally cleaned before you moved in, which most are, that sets the standard you are required to meet. Professional cleaning is typically the only reliable way to reach that standard.
Yes, if the standard of cleaning does not meet the original inventory condition, a landlord can deduct cleaning costs from your deposit regardless of how much effort you personally put in. The assessment is based on outcome, not effort. A professional cleaning receipt also provides documentation that helps in the event of a dispute.
Normal wear and tear includes things like minor carpet flattening from foot traffic, small nail holes in walls from hanging pictures, and minor paint fading over time. It does not include grease buildup in the oven, limescale on bathroom fittings, mould around shower seals, stained carpets, or dirty windows. The distinction matters because landlords cannot deduct for wear and tear, but they can deduct for cleaning failures.
A professional studio apartment end-of-tenancy clean typically takes 2–4 hours, depending on the condition of the property and the add-on services included. Oven cleaning and carpet steam cleaning each add approximately 30–60 minutes to the service time.
If you used a reputable cleaning company that offers a re-clean guarantee, contact them immediately — within 24–72 hours of receiving feedback from your landlord. Most professional Dublin cleaning services will return at no charge to address any specific items flagged. If a deposit dispute arises despite this, you can file a case through the RTB’s dispute resolution service.
Residential Tenancies Board — Security Deposits — Official RTB guidance on tenant deposit rules in Ireland
Threshold — Tenant Support Organisation — Ireland’s leading housing charity for advice on deposit disputes
RTB — How a Tenant Can End a Tenancy — Step-by-step guidance on move-out obligations
Ready to Secure Your Deposit? Call Clean4U on 1800 938 831 for a free quote on end of tenancy cleaning across Dublin. |
