End of Tenancy Cleaning in Waterloo

An 8th-floor apartment at Southbank Place — one of the newer developments between Waterloo Station and the river. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, an open-plan kitchen-living room, and a winter garden (enclosed glass balcony) looking north across the Thames toward the Houses of Parliament. A couple — she worked in the Southbank Centre, he worked in the City — 14 months at £3,400/month. LiFE Residential managing from their Westminster Bridge Road office.

Concierge parking underground — pre-booked the day before. Goods lift to the 8th floor. Fob access, registered at the desk.

Kitchen-living area. Open plan, about 24ft by 14ft. Kitchen section: integrated Bosch oven behind handleless cabinetry. Door off, protecting the panel. Glass out, spray, 20 minutes. One pass — 14 months, a couple who cooked a couple of times a week. Induction hob in a Corian worktop. Extractor recirculating, filter soaked. Dishwasher wiped. Fridge-freezer integrated, cleaned. Floor: engineered oak throughout.

The winter garden — about 8ft by 5ft, fully enclosed in glass. Floor-to-ceiling panels on three sides. The Parliament view is through this glass. Each panel cleaned. The frame tracks had condensation residue — these enclosed spaces trap warm air against cold glass. Wiped. Floor: same engineered oak, specialist product.

Living section: the rest of the open plan. Floor-to-ceiling windows on the north side. Cleaned from inside. No tracks — fixed panels with a single opening section. Skirting wiped. Radiators (concealed behind panels) — panels removed, radiators cleaned, panels replaced.

Two bathrooms. Both walk-in showers with glass panels. ~260 ppm, 14 months. One pass each. Modern fittings, chrome, wall-hung toilet, vanity. Quick. No mould — good extraction, new building. Maybe 35 minutes for both.

Two bedrooms. Both with carpet, both with built-in wardrobes. The master had a mirrored wardrobe — glass cleaned. The second bedroom faced south — a different view, toward the railway lines, quieter than you'd expect from the 8th floor.

Apartment front door wiped both sides. Concierge notified.

3 hours. Modern building, light use, no surprises. The winter garden is the only thing that adds time — an extra room of glass that traps condensation.

LiFE Residential came the next morning. Their SE1 lettings manager — she does these South Bank developments every week. Kitchen: oven photographed open, worktop inspected. Winter garden: each panel checked, condensation tracks noted as clean. Bathrooms: panels angled, chrome checked. Wardrobes: opened. Concealed radiators: panels checked. About 12 minutes. Passed.

Deposit back in 8 days. Full return. The couple were moving to Bermondsey — she wanted to cycle to the Southbank Centre, he wanted to walk to Borough Market. Different flat, same stretch of river.

Waterloo is Zone 1 cleaning. The modern apartments are quick because the buildings are new, the surfaces are engineered, and the tenants don't stay long enough to build up serious grease or scale. The winter garden is the local quirk — a glass room that exists because the river view is worth enclosing. We clean the glass, clear the condensation tracks, and the Parliament view comes back. Our guide on deposit dispute evidence covers concierge-building digital checkouts.