An apartment exterior cleanup notice is a formal reminder from landlords or property managers to tenants, informing them about scheduled cleaning or maintenance of the building’s outer areas. It ensures safety, cleanliness, and compliance with property upkeep standards.
Maintaining a safe and clean space is an important aspect of property management. Landlords often lease out their properties to tenants who step into the space to start their own ventures.
Whether for offices, gyms, or retail stores, myriad commercial businesses require space. In that process, they often overlook the importance of cleaning.
To ensure the overall cleanliness of the building or the apartment exterior, a tenant may receive a notice from the landlord requiring an apartment exterior clean-up.
It comprises guidelines for commercial tenants to tidy their spaces. As a result, it will enhance the apartment’s safety and ambiance.
This blog will provide information about the clean-up notice for apartment maintenance. Also, you will learn when landlords can serve their tenants with a notice.
What is an Apartment Exterior Clean-Up Notice?
In a commercial setting, when occupants of an apartment don’t follow the cleanliness protocols, the higher authorities send them a notice to do the needful.
An apartment exterior clean-up notice is a formal document a landlord sends to their tenants when the condition of the exterior is in question.
It informs tenants of the cleaning tasks they should consider for property maintenance. The apartment exterior clean-up notice includes the following:
- Specified date
- Detailed description of the clean-up
- Affected units or addresses
- Reference to the lease agreement’s clauses
- Deadline for completing the apartment’s outdoor cleaning
What counts as “apartment exterior”?
Apartments are a type of commercial real estate that occupants can use for various business purposes. It can be anything from a retail facility and offices to gym centers. When it comes to apartment exteriors, it generally includes the structural and visual parts of the space from the outside.
These are parts that involve the overall building structure or areas that require utmost supervision and maintenance. The common apartment exterior areas include:
- Hallways
- Entrances
- External walls
- Roofs
- Front porch
- Driveways
Purpose of a clean-up notice
When landlords rent commercial apartments to tenants, they expect tenants to follow certain cleaning guidelines and safety standards.
While most tenants diligently follow the protocols, there are times when they overlook the importance of cleaning, violating the lease agreement. And that results in a shabby and unattractive space.
Authorities such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Department of Buildings (DOB) set cleanliness and safety standards for various commercial spaces. To ensure tenants are complying with these standards, landlords should take strict measures.
When tenants fail to follow safety measures, landlords issue cleanup notices. The purpose of sending such notices is to formally address the cleanliness issues and to provide them with a deadline to complete the cleaning tasks.
When is an Exterior Clean-Up Notice Necessary?
Leasing out properties or apartments to tenants comes with certain responsibilities. Of course, tenants expect a clean and well-maintained space when they occupy the property. But it also comes under their purview to clean a space from the outside.
When tenants fail to maintain the property’s exterior as required by local and government authorities, landlords send them a formal notice.
The following are the scenarios when landlords send exterior clean-up notices to tenants:
Routine Property Inspections
As a tenant, it is your responsibility to ensure the property is maintained. And that includes the building’s exterior. For that, you should conduct routine inspections to ensure the space aligns with the apartment maintenance guidelines. Landlords can send cleanup notices when the space shows signs of untidiness or when you don’t regularly inspect the property.
Complaints from Neighbors or Other Tenants
Neighbors may complain to the apartment landlord if they face any cleanliness concerns from another tenant. For instance, after an office party, if other tenants find overflowing bins left outside the unit or in the shared hallways, they can escalate the matter to the landlord.
Under such circumstances, the landlord will have no other choice but to address the issue through a notice for apartment exterior clean-up.
Lease or HOA Rule Violations
Landlords can serve tenants with a notice to clean the exterior of the property when their actions violate the lease agreement. Moreover, they can also hold you accountable if you violate the Homeowners Association (HOA) rules.
These groundscaping rules clearly underline the cleanliness standards that every tenant should follow. Wrongful waste disposal or improper lining up of trash bins in common areas can result in violations.
Health, Safety, and Pest Concerns
Sending clean-up notices to tenants becomes paramount when their spaces compromise the safety and health standards of people. Irregular trash disposal, leaving food out, and unchecked water leaks are signs of poor sanitation and maintenance.
Such situations can trigger pest concerns, such as the growth of harmful bacteria and mold accumulation. When landlords find these issues and realize that tenants are not adhering to the safety guidelines, they can issue a notice.
What to do when you receive an apartment exterior clean-up notice?
Receiving an apartment exterior clean-up notice as a tenant can disrupt your relationship with the landlord. They lease out properties with the expectation that you would adhere to the community standards for cleanliness. Failing to do so can land you in such a complex situation.
Often, tenants don’t understand the safety guidelines for exterior cleaning set by authorities. And that leads to getting an exterior clean-up notice for apartment maintenance. Additionally, tenants in commercial settings have other responsibilities, such as running their own businesses. Thus, they don’t have time to clean the space themselves.
It is under such circumstances that tenants hire cleaning services. These services are provided by experienced professionals who are well-versed in local guidelines for cleanliness standards and safety measures.
Moreover, they have expertise in various exterior apartment surfaces, including wood, rock, and vinyl. And accordingly, these cleaning agents use methods and tools to tidy up the space. From exterior debris removal to deep cleaning hallways, they do it all.
Role of Cleaning Services in Exterior Clean-Up
Cleaning services ensure prompt, thorough exterior upkeep. They are here to make the tenants’ lives easy. They work from a checklist that covers all necessary cleaning areas and the tools to use during maintenance. Moreover, with industry experience, they ensure tasks comply with health and safety guidelines.
Offers a Cleaning Checklist
Checklists are an integral part of professional cleaning companies. Whether it’s a gym facility or a retail store, the experts will know what to include in the checklist for exterior cleaning.
For instance, when it comes to gym facilities, professionals can follow a gym cleaning checklist and work according to its instructions.
The checklist functions as a visual guideline for cleaning agents. They look up at it and perform their cleaning responsibilities. From such a document, professional cleaners would determine which spaces need cleaning and why.
Focus on the Areas to Clean
Tenants hire exterior cleaning services because they have the expertise to identify which areas require attention to detail. As you have specified that you’re hiring them for apartment exterior clean-up, they will focus on different exterior areas.
These areas include roofs, hallways, external walls, front porch, and driveways. Cleaning services send a team of professionals to your premises to perform cleaning duties.
As these areas are high-traffic zones, cleaning professionals need to be thorough in their upkeep. The professionals take responsibility for removing debris from the entryways before the actual cleaning. Through sweeping, mopping, and sanitizing, they ensure that the exterior areas are spotless and clutter-free.
Use Effective Tools and Techniques
Cleaning services understand how tools and methods play a pivotal role in exterior clean-up. Hiring professionals makes the process seamless. The use of advanced tools and techniques speeds up the cleaning process and enables tenants to complete the necessary action upon receiving the notice.
Since people spend more time in apartment exteriors, they use proactive cleaning methods. And that includes deep cleaning and routine maintenance. Cleaning agents inspect every area and understand the assignment. From emptying trash bins to scrubbing the floors, they perform a range of tasks.
They also involve a set of high-tech cleaning tools to make the space sparkle. These tools include High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) vacuum cleaners, high-tech floor cleaners and scrubbers to remove dirt and grime, and disinfectant sprays to sanitize the commonly touched zones.
Follow Apartment Exterior Clean-Up Compliance and Community Exterior Standards
Tenants often receive notices from landlords due to their lack of understanding of health and safety measures. Under such circumstances, cleaning services play a major role. Since they offer professional services, it is their core responsibility to comply with environmental regulations and local safety and health codes.
These professionals are usually thorough with HOA rules, and thus, you are guaranteed effective cleaning. Their due diligence on these codes and safety protocols can save you from hefty penalties if you violate or fail to follow the guidelines.
Every cleaning and maintenance work is different. So the safety regulations vary, depending on the purpose. For instance, when it comes to hazardous waste disposal and treatment, cleaning professionals will have specialized techniques to handle the issue.
Provides Tailored Approach
Though the process of apartment exterior clean-up is similar, the requirements may differ from one tenant to another. When you hire commercial cleaning services, they listen to your concerns and develop a tailored approach.
Some tenants might look for cleaning solutions on a day-to-day basis, while others would require a quick exterior clean-up right after an event. These serve different purposes, and the approach to their maintenance will also differ.
Moreover, with a tailored approach, cleaning services can meet the upkeep requirements you’re requesting. And that makes it a cost-effective process as well.
Avoid the Apartment Exterior Clean-Up Notice with Prime Cleaning Services
An apartment exterior clean-up notice can impact your reputation as a tenant. But it is something you can expect when you don’t meet the safety guidelines that the landlord mentions in the lease agreement. To comply with all cleanliness protocols, hiring cleaning services can be a lifesaver.
At Prime Cleaning Services, we dedicate ourselves to developing the best cleaning solutions for your needs. From deep cleaning to day porter services, we offer a wide range of services.
Also, our cleaning experts use a wide range of tools to perform quality cleaning. And that includes HEPA vacuum cleaners, robust disinfectants, and mechanized floor scrubbers.
Apartment Exterior Clean-up Notice: FAQs
Q: Can a landlord hire a cleaning service and bill the tenant without their consent?
A landlord can hire a cleaning service and bill the tenant only when it is mentioned in the lease agreement. Often, landlords perform this task to ensure tenants take responsibility for maintaining the safety and health of their occupants.
Q: How do exterior clean-up rules differ for single-family rentals vs. multifamily apartments?
When it comes to exterior cleaning, the rules for single-family rentals and multifamily apartments differ. Mainly, single-family rentals are independent in making cleaning decisions and follow their own responsibilities, adhering to safety regulations. However, in multifamily apartments, it is the property managers or landlords who are responsible for maintaining the space.
Q: Are landlords required to provide dumpsters or waste disposal options when issuing a notice?
No, when landlords issue a notice to tenants, they don’t provide dumpsters or waste disposal options. It falls under the tenant’s purview to take necessary measures, such as calling a cleaning service, and they would be responsible for waste management.
Q: How can landlords encourage tenants to maintain exteriors without sending notices?
Landlords can encourage tenants to maintain exteriors without sending notices by building a strong relationship from the start. They can clearly set their cleanliness expectations for the tenants and be polite in their approach.
Q: What happens if multiple tenants share an outdoor space that is unclean?
When multiple tenants share an unclean outdoor space, it can impact their health and well-being. For these reasons, it is necessary to use effective cleaning solutions for routine cleaning.
