End of Tenancy Cleaning in St John's Wood

We had a third-floor mansion flat in one of the portered blocks on the east side of Wellington Road — the kind of building where the communal entrance has a marble floor, the porter sits behind a mahogany desk, and the lift has a mirror and a bench. Three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a guest WC, a large reception room with a dining area, and a separate kitchen. An American family — two children at the American School on Loudoun Road — 3 years at £5,800/month. Hanover managing from their St John's Wood High Street office.

Porter parking underground — pre-booked the day before. Goods lift to the third floor. Registered at the desk, given the time slot: 08:30 to 16:00.

The reception room took the first hour. About 28ft by 18ft — the proportions that make these Wellington Road mansion blocks special. Herringbone parquet floor across the entire room, laid in the 1930s when the building was constructed. Specialist product, working with the grain of each block. The parquet had that deep honey colour that 90 years of wax and light produces — the same boards that have been walked on since the building opened. A marble fireplace on the interior wall: white with grey veining, a simple Art Deco surround with geometric detailing. pH-neutral on every surface, a soft cloth into the geometric grooves. The marble was immaculate — the family had maintained it well. Two tall windows overlooking the Wellington Road plane trees, each with heavy curtains now removed. The curtain pole brackets left small wall marks — photographed, standard for furnished lets.

Cornicing: a simple coved moulding, consistent with 1930s mansion-block design. Dusted. The ceiling was high — about 10ft — but lower than a Victorian villa. Radiators cleaned behind. Skirting boards wiped.

The kitchen — separate room, about 14ft by 10ft. A Miele integrated oven, built into handleless cabinetry. Door off, glass out, spray, 20-minute dwell. Two passes on the lower cavity — 3 years of American Thanksgiving turkeys alongside the usual weeknight cooking. Induction hob in a marble worktop — glass product on the hob, pH-neutral on the marble. Dishwasher interior wiped. Extractor recirculating, filter soaked. Fridge-freezer: integrated, cleaned including gasket. Floor: marble tile, pH-neutral mop.

Two bathrooms. The en-suite had a walk-in shower with two glass panels and marble walls. Same protocol as our Knightsbridge marble-bathroom work — descaler on the glass and chrome only, marble walls pH-neutral wiped, cloth protecting the marble edge during descaling. ~260 ppm, 3 years, two passes per panel. The family bathroom had a freestanding bath (cleaned inside, behind, underneath) and a separate shower cubicle. Guest WC: straightforward. Total bathroom time: about 80 minutes.

Three bedrooms. All with parquet or engineered timber. The master had a walk-in dressing room — every shelf, rail, and drawer wiped. The children's rooms had the usual marks: Blu-Tack on one wall, a sticker on a wardrobe, a small scuff on a door. All cleaned.

Hanover came the next afternoon. Their NW8 lettings director — he manages properties across the Wellington Road mansion blocks and knows every flat in the building. Reception: parquet walked in socks, fireplace geometric detail finger-tested, wall bracket marks noted as furnished-let standard. Kitchen: oven torched, marble worktop inspected, marble floor checked on hands and knees. Bathrooms: marble walls inspected for etch marks (none — we were careful), shower panels angled, bath torch-tested behind. Children's marks: resolved. 25 minutes. Passed.

Deposit back in 10 days via the relocation company. Full return. The family were relocating to New York — the father's posting had ended, the children were transferring schools.

St John's Wood mansion flats are a specific property type — 1930s construction with parquet, marble, and porter services, occupied by international families on 2–5 year postings. The checkout process reflects the rents: at £5,800/month, the agent checks on hands and knees. The Thanksgiving turkey residue and the curtain-bracket marks are the details that separate an NW8 clean from a standard London clean. Both are normal use. Our guide on deposit dispute evidence covers how we document furnished international lets.