This is a popular time of year to be moving, whether you are an expat, or just changing flats. I just thought I would post a few helpful hints based on my both my professional (relocation consultant)and personal experience (over 20 moves)to get you through the stressful ordeal of moving.

If you have professional packers coming in, while this might appear to be a dream come true, it actually involves a lot of preparation. They will pack everything in sight unless instructed not to, so carefully sort and mark what is not to be packed. Even something like a TV cable could belong to your house, not you. That's not a big deal, but packing documents like passports, arline tickets or travel papers is, not to mention medications.

Don't wait until the last minute to look for all the keys you need to return to the owner. If you have small kids, you might have put away their room keys so no one locks themselves in their room. Take the keys out of hiding. Tape them to the top of the door frame (with non marking tape)If you are missing a room key, this is not a disaster. First check to see if any of the other room keys fit that lock. Unlikely, but worth a try. If not, then look for the number on the door lock and you will need this number to get a key. If there is no number, if you live in an apartment and you know any of your neighbours, ask them if you can try their room keys. You might find a match and then you can just take the key to get a new one. When you return their key, take a bottle of wine, or chocolates with you. A room key will cost 10 - 15 chf. If you don't find a number, or a neighbour, you will have to pay for the landlord's time and trouble to find a key. On your inspection report when you took over the place it should have been noted if any room keys were missing from the start so check that first to be sure you don't go looking for what never existed. You might discover you haven't lost any keys.

If you lost a mailbox key, you can make a copy as long as it is not a security key. Most key places have mailbox keys. Try and get one that looks as close to the original. (square or round style) Mailbox keys cost 12 chf approximately.

House keys are a much bigger problem as they are almost always a KABA key. Your lease will say how many keys you have been given. You cannot make a copy of the KABA key unless you have the id card from Kaba so you are going to have to go through the owner on this. Best to come clean. If you live in an apartment and your key opens common area doors as well as your own, you don't need to pay for new cylinders for the common doors. What you need to do is pay for the replacement of your own unique lock(s) and the correct number of keys. The new key number will surely almost be the same as the original key, but will vary. For example if the key was xyz1234 the new key will be xyz1234-1. It will open the common doors and then your new lock(s).

Keys are a very big deal here so don't underestimate how serious this will be taken. Some leases specify a blanket figure for key replacement, others it will be the actual costs as per the invoice. They will deduct this from your deposit.

There are numerous other tips I could pass along but over the years these are the two things that almost always seem to come up with my clients.
Happy packing!

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This could become a very helpful thread, so far we have only tips for moving in a new home.

If you live in an urban area and rent the moving van, make a parking site reservation at the police. Else you might find a parking fine on your van or worse, could have to carry the household items farther than necessary.

If the van can be parked on private property, like a visitor spot in the parking complex, couldn't you just leave the police out of it and talk to the property manager? Regardless of where you live, unless it is in the middle of nowhere, you need to work out the access for the moving van or truck. If you are moving overseas, and the container will be packed on site, whether it is a 20 foot or a 40 foot it is going to need space. If you live in an apartment, contact the property manager or have the moving company do so directly. If you live in a house, you need to talk to the neighbours if you are going to block their access or need to borrow some of their parking, and as Nathu said, talk to the police or have the moving company do so on your behalf. If you have disturbed the neighbours, when you are all done take them chocolate or wine. This will leave them with sweet memories of your stay here.

Thanks. I have noticed that so many posts are about moving here yet seeing the number of ads offering things for sale, there are lots of people leaving. I think repatriation to one's homeland, or moving to a new expat posting is not only stressful in itself but there are so many details to take care of on this side. Just to name a few...
1. lease cancellation and how to do this properly
2. Giving your rental property back, the cleaning (very important) appliance service, final utility readings, the dreaded inspection, mail forwarding
3. Arranging movers, figuring out what to do with unwanted items, finding temporary accommodation for your family and possibly pets
4. travel arrangments for your family and possibly pets
5. deregistration at the Gemeinde
6. and of course, let's not forget, settling your taxes

At the same time, you are likely also trying to make arrangements at your new destination. It can be overwhelming. On top of this, if you have children there are those end of year parties and you are supposed to be baking goodies in the midst of all this chaos and your children are asking for sleepovers so they can spend some extra time with friends they are going to leave behind.

If you've been through this, you know what a trying time this can be. Stay cool.....it will all come together.

One last thing, if you have a garden that you are responsible for, maybe just grass or trees as well, it needs to be in a good state when you leave. Some property management companies have the "before" pictures of your garden so beware of this.

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Well then, to add to this thread here is my contribution of what has to be done/cleaned when LEAVING a flat



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What has to be done/cleaned when moving out of an apartment?


My father in law has built the house we live in, it contains eleven apartments and I am running it more or less with the help of an agency who is responsible for all the paper work. Living like normal tenants in this house, gives me insight to both sides -as landlady as well as tenant. I should also add that living in the Canton of Berne I can list what is more or less often required here. It can vary a great deal from Canton to Canton!

Well then, you have found the house of your dreams, handed in the notice to leave the apartment timely and are now asking yourself: ’What the hell do I need to do now? So that the day of turning over the apartment will be as smooth as possible.’

After you have emptied the apartment, the BIG cleaning starts. This is the most dreaded part of any move in my opinion, and many ask themselves how on earth will they be able to meet the required squeaky cleanliness. Well, it might be a tiny consolation to you, your predecessor in that apartment had to go through the same steps……………………. I am trying now to list the required demands to meet as well as hints and tips on how to achieve it, with a normal effort and maybe some elbow grease.
Did I tell you, before I landed here, where I am living now for the past 10 years, I moved house 14 times (in 9 years)!!!


The part that’s IMHO very important is the kitchen!

-Oven has to be cleaned, as well as the metal baking sheets
-Ventilator above the stove has to be cleaned of grease, if required the filter has to be replaced as well, if you have a metal filter you can pop it in the dishwasher
- Water taps have to be cleaned of lime scale, if need be, replaced
-Hob will need a scrub as well
-Fridge has to be thawed and all shelves and indoor containers must be cleaned with soapy water
-Kitchen cupboards have to be washed with soapy water inside and out, as do the shelves
-Surfaces are also best cleaned with a soapy water, or a special cleaning product for chromium-steel or granite surfaces
-Dishwasher should be cleaned with one of these special tablets for thorough cleaning
-Make sure that all the door handles or knobs are fitted and not broken
-The brownish ‘smear’ in the kitchen sink and on the valve, can easily be brushed away


Hints and tips on kitchen cleaning:

A very handy thing is a steam cleaner, if you have one, you already know it’s benefits, if you haven’t got one, then try to get a friend to lend you theirs or maybe you can rent one somewhere………They are incredibly useful for cleaning the ventilator of all the grease! And come in handy for cleaning the oven and hob too.

The day before the big cleaning starts, put the water taps (neoperl) in plain vinegar, Putzessig or special lime scale cleaner BUT bear in mind that the special cleaners (Durgol, Cillit Bang, Bref etc) can be so strong that they not only clear the lime scale off, but also the chrome……………

Spray the oven and baking sheets with a special cleaning product and let sit overnight.

ATTENTION: CHECK MANUAL about cleaning!!!
If the oven is a catalystic one (selbstreinigend /auto-nettoyant)!! Then you have to remove the special elements on the inside, possibly on the back also, BEFORE spraying!!
These special elements can, once removed from the oven, be soaked in warm soapy water and then brushed with a soft brush. Refrain from using anything hard or sharp to grate off the dirt, you’ll destroy the special surface!! And are liable to pay for replacements!!
When replacing the elements after cleaning, make sure the rough side is towards the oven and the smooth side towards the oven wall.


Remove the filter of the ventilator, and spray the ventilator also with a cleaning product, one I can recommend is called, INTENSIF Fettlöser M10, you can use the same product to spray the hob as well. Let sit overnight as well!
Switch off the fridge and defrost, remove the shelves and indoor containers.

Prepared like this the cleaning shouldn’t need too much elbow grease the following day.

Hint:
To get rid of a possible smell in the fridge, after you’ve cleaned it with soapy water, rinse with a mix of half vinegar and half water. I don’t know why, but it really gets rid of any smell that sits sometimes in fridges.

A Ceran hob/ Glaskeramik, profits from a wash with a special detergent, it not only covers tiny scratches very well, it also puts a layer on the surface protecting against scratches etc.

The old style hobs, with three or four black electrical plates, can be made look like new with a special blackening paste for the heating plates. This paste is widely available in supermarkets, Drogeries etc in Switzerland

Remove all sticker residues, a good cleaner for that is WEGA NOF, http://www.scjohnson.ch/de/products/wega/nof/index.php
Dab some of it undiluted onto the stubborn sticky bitJ and let sit for a moment. It should almost peel off after some, then you can wash the spot with some soapy water and won’t have any scratch marks left.

-------- ---------- --------- ------------- ------------- --------------- --------------


Also something we look very closely at, are the wallsand the carpets/flooring. Because obviously these can look old, before their time, when heavily (ab)used.

We had a tenant recently, who managed to drill umpteen large holes in EVERY single freshly painted wall (including the bathroom!!), needless to say the apartment looked terrible, despite his best efforts to cover up the holes, we had to repaint the whole apartment again after just ONE year, of him and his wife, occupying it !!!!


At very latest the day before the general cleaning;

Fill the holes in the wall with mastics or plaster and make sure you choose the right colour of the paste, give it a chance to dry overnight and should it shrink too much, you can still add some more and even it out the next day.


Spray stains on carpets with a special, not too strong stain remover and let sit overnight, before you ‘deep clean’ the carpets, either with a HOST ™ dry clean system or a HAGERTY™ shampoo cleaner.

If you are not sure about the product you bought for stain removing on carpets interacting with the colour of your carpet J, try it out a couple of days before hand on a hard to detect small spot. Otherwise you could get a nasty surprise, if you use it without testing………………………….



HOST extractor vac Cleaner:

This is a large vacuum brush cleaner; very often you can rent it in a furniture store, respectively at specialized carpet stores.
The method of cleaning with this system is easy and quick!
You purchase the special HOST sponges, tiny sponges that are soaked with a cleaning liquid along with it. At first you Hoover the carpet with the HOST, the special brushes will remove dirt and prepare carpet for cleaning. Then the sponges are strewn on the carpet and you kind of massage them into the carpet, where they clean and bind the dirt. After about 30 minutes you pass over the carpet again and Hoover the sponges out. This system ensures that furniture marks are lifted and less visible, also you can step on the carpet immediately afterwards, no need to wait. The machine is a bit heavy to handle at first, but you get soon the knack of it, also the sponges can cause a bit of a mess (look like sawdust), so have a small hoover ready to clean up the rest.

http://www.hostcarpetcleaning.com/


HAGERTY spray-ex system


This is almost solely offered to rent from Drogeries in Switzerland. Along with the machine you can purchase the special shampoo.

Hoover the carpet normally before you start cleaning, then mix the shampoo with water as required, and you can start to work away, by spraying the shampoo on the carpet and extracting it with the next move. You might need to go over the carpet twice……………………
IMHO, the downside on this system is that it gives the carpet less of a lift, see furniture marks, and you need at least 24 hours wait until you can step on the carpets again.
Unfortunately, I was not able to find a website for HAGERTY, only a variety of web pages of various Drogeries popped upJ




Windows


Must be cleaned inside and out as do the window frames, some agencies also ask that the shutters respectively outside blinds have to be cleaned as well……………………..




Bathrooms


Here as well, make sure the water taps (neoperl sieves) are cleaned of lime scale, if necessary; replace them as well as maybe the rubber-sealing ring. Make sure the set of soap and toothbrush glasses is complete, ask your janitor if he has replacements, saves you time and money and you will have the right size and ‘brand’ to fit the already fitted holding device.
Pour a sink cleaner (Abflussreiniger) into the siphon of the lavabo and toilet bowl, and let it sit overnight.
Also remove all self-installed stick-on hooks, if the sticky tape won’t come off use WEGA NOF ( see above)
Bathroom cabinets also have to be cleaned inside and out.










Fittings, such as lamps, wall mounted kitchen roll holder etc.

If you want to leave back for example a lamp because you have no use of it anymore, some landlords accept that without problem, but be prepared to fall onto the worst agency clerk ever, who wants everything done by the bookJ J and asks you to remove EVERYTHING!! Same goes for wall-mounted kitchen roll holders and similar things.
If you can, ask the janitor, the agency or the landlord himself about how they handle this, before turning over the apartment.


Other rooms etc


We ask that the attic compartment and the cellar have to be swept and of course cleared of any clutter, same counts for the garage or parking space in a garage.
If you have a fresh oil stain on the parking space, a good means to soak it up, is cat litter box sand.

Balcony and terrace have to be swept and on a balcony the sieve of the drain should be cleaned as well.



I am sure I have forgotten some bits ad bobs, but this seems already quite a lot of requirements to meet or fulfil, so I leave it at that. And I’d like to point out that I have listed more things than one possibly has to do, according to the saying forewarned is forearmed……………………



Some general information



When turning over the apartment, make sure you have the Protocol of when you took over the apartment on hand, so you can see, if damages have been done by you or if they already existed when you took over the place and can’t be liable for them.
Also make sure that the agency clerk, landlord or whoever is present, notes everything onto the new protocol!
Be that new damages, or be that stuff like walls =Ok or Miserable or freshly painted or general statements of the state of the apartment/house

DON’T SIGN anything, unless you are sure you are really liable for it! Some landlords are abusing their powers and you could end up paying through your nose for damaged stuff you are not fully responsible!

By example walls, have a lifetime (as they call it) of 10 years, so if you moved in when the appt, was new and are moving out after 5 years and one wall has to be re painted you have to pay only for THAT wall and not the whole room and you pay only 50% of what it’ll cost to paint ONE wall!!!
And this cost is most likely to be paid from your insuranceJ



Caution Money


See separate article


Taking over the new apartment


A bit like turning over your old one, when taking over the new apartment make sure that everything is on the protocol, topics such as damages, state of the walls and floors, how many keys belong to the apartment and other such things.
Then in the span of ten days make a so called Mängelliste, of things you found not in order, that could be a water tap that’s leaking, the sun stores on the balcony can not be lowered, a large scratch in the floor tiles, simply everything as minor as it may seem and send this (preferably with registered mail) to the agency, landlord or whomever is responsible for your lease of the apartment.
They then have time to repair these faults, or depending what it is, at least put them on the protocol, so that you won’t be held liable should you move out of the apartment.


I hope this helps a little to all those who face the task of moving house……………….

©sylv 2005

Thanks for one of the most thorough and detailed pieces of information on what is expected to be cleaned and how. When we gave back our last house, I tried to think of everything that could be scrutunized at the inspection. I took off all the electrical plate covers, washed them and replaced them. It makes a huge difference. We did the cleaning ourselves for several reasons:

1. the house was absolutely filthy when we took it over so clearly the owner has very low standards
2. to save money
3. we had the extra time between new house and giving back old house.

We didn't have carpets but ceramic tiles and marble and the worst thing about these floors is the grout (fugen) which collect all the dirt.

I just want to add, if you hire a cleaning company, and you may have to do this because you do not have the time or energy or desire to clean the place yourself, shop around and as long as the company gives you a guarantee, go with the one that offers the best price. Just be sure they are not leaving anything off. The guarantee means that a representative from the cleaning company will be there when you give the house back and if the landlord is not satisfied with the way something has been cleaned, the cleaning company will speak on your behalf.

The cost of an end cleaning varies depending on the size of your flat or house, and what is involved (carpet cleaning or not, for example).

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Cleaning really depends on your landlord, some are stingy some are not. In my experiences the two things the stingy ones look at immediately:

1) Window of the oven (it is a bugger to clean)
2) they roll down the shutters and look on the inside of them, also areal bugger to clean (outside is easy, inside not so)

Biggest tip: Go to the Mieterverband (MV), and get a guy to come and do the control and hand-over with the landlord (and you present). Especially with language an issue. Its about 100Fr to be a member of the MV, then I think about another 100Fr to get dude to come, but he saves a fortune in peace of mind over being potentially taken advantage of, as well as a possible actual fortune of false claims against your depo.

Thanks for this info, it really helped

Thanks all the posters for the information...I can now practically make a checklist and verify if everything is clean before I leave

I am never moving ever!!!

I know how you feel but once you get settled in a new place, almost all is forgotten.

Thought I would mention that if you are moving out and have carpets to clean, you can rent a machine from Coop Bau and Hobby. Machine rental is 20 chf for 24 hours. You need to buy the correct shampoo (amount will vary depending on how many square metres of carpet you need to clean.

They will provide instructions (D/F/I) with the machine.

We have a miele perfect clean oven and are not sure how to tackle the cleaning. I have read on the internet that these ovens are really easy to clean (clue is in their name) but I haven't found this to be the case. Is just soap and water ok, or can you use special oven cleaners? I'm scared i'll damage any special coatings and be a few hundred CHF out of pocket as a result. Any tips on how best to clean one of these ovens?

I have never been fortunate to have one of these. if you don't have the original instructions on hand, I'd give Miele a call and ask them. Have the model number of your oven on hand. This is found on a label inside the oven, often inside the door frame.

You can download the operating instructions in English from here:

http://www.miele.co.uk/customer/Oper...tructions.aspx

Thanks for the help. I'll hotfoot it back to my apartment and get the serial number thing. Hopefully it will be looking all sparkling and clean by the time the week is done.

On the subject of carpet cleaning, you can rent a Satrap machine for cleaning carpets at Coop Bau and Hobby. The machine rental is 20 francs for a 24 hour period. They provide a sheet of instructions (G/F/E) with some illustrations but the machine is very easy to work. First you must vacuum your carpets with a regular household vacuum.

On top of the machine rental price, you need to purchase the shampoo. The amount needed will vary depending on the amount of carpet you need to shampoo. A one litre bottle of shampoo is 12 francs which will cover an area of 25 m2. It is important to test the carpet in a small, inconspicuous area to be sure it is colourfast.

A few important points: use the correct water temperature for the type of carpet and be sure to mix the correct amount of shampoo with water. The instructions are on the bottle (G/F/I) but unfortunately they are for an amount that is larger than the water tank in the machine so your math skills will come in handy.

You will need a power supply and while the cord is quite long an extension cable should not be necessary but check first.

You will need to dump the dirty water somewhere so keep this in mind before you have thoroughly cleaned the bathroom.

You may need a pitcher or pail to fill the water tank of the machine (shower hose will work too) but keep in mind that once full the machine is very heavy.

If you have a multi level house, start at the top and work your way down. If you have one level but carpet in the halls and stairs, do the rooms first, and save the halls and stairs last.

Don't wear shoes. Bare feet are best and keep a towel on hand to keep drying your feet.

Your house is going to get very humid. Opening the windows will only help if it is dry and cool outside. Drying time will vary depending on the carpet.

Stains are a problem. Before you start, take a good look around the room. If you have post it notes, put them down on the stains. You can buy stain remover at Coop but this product needs to be used with great care or you can remove the colour along with the stain. I prefer to use the carpet shampoo and rub it into the stain.

If the carpets were previously cleaned and stains remained, you will probably not be able to remove them either.

Once cleaned you may notice things such as carpet near a door is faded from the sun. This is particularly obvious if a small carpet was placed on top of the carpet to keep it clean near the door. No amount of cleaning is going to fix this problem.

The more water you can extract from the carpets the faster they will dry. Also, keep in mind that the machine is noisy so you will not be able to use this in the quiet times. If you have already taken lights down, you won't want to work at night anyways unless you have a light source.

It's really not that difficult, though you will find your arms and back may start to hurt if you have a lot of carpet to clean. Try to find someone to help you.

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I live in Richterswil and will be giving my flat back in the next month or so.

Do you have a list of cleaning companies with guarantees that I can call?

I got a quote from a company affiliated with my movers, but they are asking 1900CHF, and I think that is very high. I understand it's a lot of work based on the list you gave, however, my apartment is spotless as it is, so it's the detailed work that needs to be done.

What are reasonable prices for this type of work? My apt. is 135sqm, 5.5 rooms.

Thanks!!

Marc

Actually I think the above post raises a good point; my apartment is also very clean (due to my Monica-like cleaning tendencies) but i'm not entirely sure whether the kitchen and bathroom would pass the cleaning inspection. Can you hire professional cleaners to clean just part of the apartment (for example just kitchen and bathroom)? Before you say to ring a cleaner and find out, i'm not moving, I just wondered from a theoretical point of view.........(and for something to bear in mind for the future)

Hi everyone,
Thanks a lot for posting all the tips for giving back the house in CH. By the way, could anyone please recommend me some cleaning companies in Zurich including name, detail contact, and average price for 2.5 room (about 55 m2), old apartment, without teppich.

Any feedbacks and suggestions are appreciated.

How about painting?

We are leaving our flat after 1.5 years, but due to our boys several walls are marked and likely to need paint. You know, coffee, pens, ...

Should I do it myself (I have tried it before, and have a couple of days) or leave it to insurance?

We are MV members.

How badly are they marked and do you know when they were last painted? Normal painted walls are deemed to have a lifespan of 8 years, so if the walls were painted 7 years ago you would only be required to pay 1/8th of the cost of repainting the wall. Also, just because a part of the wall is defaced, you could argue that it only needs touching up and not repainting totally.

Also, your insurance will still make you pay a deductible unless you have also taken out the deductible insurance with the MV which will then see everything covered.

In any case, if you decide not to touch it up yourself and to face the music when you give the place back, you may want to get a MV rep to join you. I think it costs about SFr 120, but they will argue your case for you and make sure you are not paying more than you need to.