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Cleaning a house before selling in Peoria, IL
Short answer: Declutter first, then book a deep clean 2 to 5 days before the listing photos if you still live there, or a move-out clean if the home is already empty. With Wrenly Home a deep clean is $175 to $429 by bedrooms ($269 for 3 bed/2 bath) and a move-out clean is $229 to $575 ($369), supplies included. If you move out before closing, book a move-out clean once the furniture is gone. Peoria-area homes recently spent about five to six weeks on the market[3][2], so plan on keeping it showing-ready too.
Updated 2026-10-23. Wrenly prices come straight from our live price list; third-party figures were read from the numbered sources on 2026-10-23. Disclosure: Wrenly Home sells house cleaning in the Peoria, IL area, and our own prices are included and labelled.
Why clean before you list
In the National Association of REALTORS' 2025 Profile of Home Staging, the most common improvements sellers' agents recommended were decluttering the home (91%), cleaning the entire home (88%) and improving curb appeal (77%)[1]. Listing photos matter: 88% of sellers' agents said including photos in the listing was more important or much more important to their clients, and buyers' agents ranked the living room (37%), primary bedroom (34%) and kitchen (23%) as the most important rooms to stage[1]. Those are the rooms to get spotless first.
NAR's deputy chief economist notes that the typical seller has lived in the home for 10 years[1]. After that long, it's easy to stop seeing the dust on fan blades, the film on shower glass and the grime along baseboards, which is exactly what a deep clean is for.
Deep clean or move-out clean?
| Your situation | Book | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Still living in the home while it's listed | Deep clean, $175-$429 | Furniture and belongings stay; we detail baseboards, doors, fans, vents, blinds, sills and tracks, and shower grout. |
| Home is empty when it's photographed | Move-out clean, $229-$575 | Adds the insides of empty cabinets, drawers, closets, the fridge and the oven, which buyers open at showings. |
| Living there now, moving out before closing | Deep clean before photos, then a move-out clean | The first clean sells the home; the second hands it over clean once the furniture is gone (Wrenly suggestion). |
| Selling a parent's or an estate home | Move-out clean after it's emptied | Anyone can book and pay for a clean at the home's address; give access details in the booking notes. See booking for a parent. |
Side by side, task by task: deep clean vs move-out clean.
Timeline: from listing to closing
| When | What | Who |
|---|---|---|
| 3 to 4 weeks before listing | Declutter, pack what you won't need, finish small repairs, start on the yard. | You (and your agent) |
| 2 to 3 weeks before photos | Book the clean. We confirm your date by email within one business day; we don't do same-day cleans, and if we can't schedule you within 10 days you get a full refund. | You, online in a minute |
| 2 to 5 days before photos | Deep clean (living there) or move-out clean (empty). Leaving a few days before the shoot leaves time for a free re-clean if anything was missed (Wrenly suggestion). | Wrenly Home |
| Photo day and showings | 10-minute daily reset: beds made, counters clear, dishes away, towels straight, trash out, pet bowls and litter out of sight. | You |
| While listed | Optional: an every-2-weeks plan keeps floors, kitchen and bathrooms showing-ready ($179 a visit for 3 bed/2 bath; cancel when you go under contract, billing stops at the end of the paid cycle). | Wrenly Home, if you want it |
| After the furniture is out, before the final walk-through or closing | Move-out clean: adds the insides of empty cabinets, drawers, the fridge and the oven. Water and power must still be on. | Wrenly Home |
What condition the home has to be in at closing is set by your sales contract, not by us; ask your agent what yours says before you schedule the last clean.
Prices by home size
| Home | Deep clean (living there) | Deep with WELCOME40 | Move-out clean (empty home) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio / 1 bed (1 bath incl.) | $175 | $135 | $229 |
| 2 bed (2 baths incl.) | $209 | $169 | $289 |
| 3 bed (2 baths incl.) | $269 | $229 | $369 |
| 4 bed (3 baths incl.) | $339 | $299 | $459 |
| 5 bed (3 baths incl.) | $429 | $389 | $575 |
| Each extra bathroom | +$25 | +$25 | +$30 |
Worked example: a 3-bedroom, 2.5-bath two-story counts as 3 bathrooms, one more than the 2 included. A deep clean is $269 + $25 = $294; a move-out clean is $369 + $30 = $399, with the inside of the fridge and oven included. For a similar home (3 bed/2.5 bath two-story, about 2,200 sq ft), CottageCare Peoria publishes a first-time cleaning of $273 and a vacant move-out of $546 before add-ons, with the inside of the fridge +$65 and the inside of the oven +$75[4]. CottageCare prices by the room and Wrenly by bedrooms and bathrooms; these are examples, not quotes.
What a sale's cleaning costs, start to finish
For a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home at our current prices, before the one-time WELCOME40 discount.
| Plan (3 bed / 2 bath) | Cleans | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Living there until closing: one deep clean before listing photos | $269 | $269 |
| Moving out before closing: deep clean before photos, then a move-out clean once the furniture is out | $269 + $369 | $638 |
| Vacant when listed: one move-out clean before photos | $369 | $369 |
| Deep clean before photos, every-2-weeks visits for about 5 weeks of showings, then a move-out clean | $269 + 2 × $179 + $369 | $996 |
The last row uses a recurring plan: the first visit is the deep clean, every-2-weeks visits follow at $179, and you cancel when you go under contract. Fewer or more showing weeks change the number of $179 visits. For context, NAR found a median cost of $1,500 for a professional staging service (and $500 when the agent staged it)[1].
How long Peoria homes stay on the market
| Measure | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Median days on market, Peoria metro, September 2026 | 35 days (August: 37) | Realtor.com via FRED[3] |
| Average days on market, 309MLS area, effective 9/30/2026 | 39 days | Peoria Area Association of REALTORS[2] |
| New listings / closed sales in the same snapshot | 685 / 514 | PAAR[2] |
| Average sales price / homes in inventory | $179,900 / 1,092 | PAAR[2] |
PAAR's figures cover ten counties (Peoria, Tazewell, Fulton, Hancock, McDonough, Schuyler, Woodford, Marshall, McLean and Mason), not just the towns we clean in. Either way, a typical listing is shown for several weeks, so the clean before photos is the big one and the rest is upkeep. Your agent has the numbers for your neighborhood and price range.
Room by room: what we clean, what you do
| Room | The clean covers | You do before we come (Wrenly suggestion) |
|---|---|---|
| Living room | Dust shelves, sills, blinds, fans and vents; baseboards; vacuum and mop. | Clear surfaces, remove extra furniture, family photos and piles. |
| Kitchen | Counters, backsplash, sink, stovetop, appliance fronts, microwave inside, cabinet fronts; oven inside on request (always in a move-out); fridge inside in a move-out. | Clear counters to one or two items; empty the dish rack and the fridge door clutter. |
| Primary bedroom | Dusting, baseboards, fans, blinds, floors; bed made. | Fresh bedding, nothing on nightstands or under the bed. |
| Bathrooms | Toilet, tub/shower, grout and soap scum scrubbed, sink, mirrors and fixtures disinfected. | Personal products into a bin under the sink; fresh towels. |
| Closets and cabinets | Inside cabinets, drawers and closet shelves when they're empty (move-out clean). | Buyers open doors: thin out closets in an occupied home. |
| Entry, garage, outside | Entry floors and mats. Not included: garages, decks, exterior windows, gutters. | Curb appeal: sweep the porch and walk, wash the front door, tidy the yard. |
Not included in any clean: exterior windows, gutters, garages, decks; moving furniture heavier than one person can safely lift; biohazards (mold remediation, pests, bodily fluids), hoarding situations; anything that needs a ladder taller than a two-step stool; laundry, dishes beyond a sink load, and organizing. We don't shampoo carpets. Full lists: deep cleaning checklist and move-out cleaning checklist; getting the home ready for a cleaner: how to prepare.
For listing agents
Send your sellers here, or give them code WELCOME40 for $40 off their first clean (book by November 30, 2026). Sellers book and pay us directly, and you get printable checklists and quick quotes on request. We don't pay referral fees or anything else of value to Illinois real estate licensees. Details: referral partners.
Who cleans the home
Your home is cleaned by established, well-reviewed local cleaning professionals and small cleaning companies we subcontract with. Before one takes a Wrenly job, they must show solid public reviews and a reference we contact, complete a paid trial clean we inspect against our checklist, carry their own liability insurance (we keep their certificate of insurance on file) and sign a subcontractor agreement.
If something is missed
If something on our checklist was missed, tell us within 48 hours of the visit (a photo helps) and we will come back and re-clean those areas free, usually within 3 business days. If a re-clean doesn't work for you, we credit the price of that visit instead (or refund it, up to the visit price, if you have no upcoming visit). Cancel 24 hours or more before the visit for a full refund; with less notice it's refunded minus the $40 late-cancellation fee (cancellation policy).
Frequently asked questions
Should I have my house professionally cleaned before selling?
If you can, yes. In NAR's 2025 Profile of Home Staging, cleaning the entire home was the second most common recommendation sellers' agents gave (88%), after decluttering (91%) and ahead of curb appeal (77%). A professional deep clean also gets the parts sellers stop noticing after years in a home: baseboards, fans, vents, blinds, window tracks and shower grout. Declutter first, then clean.
How much does it cost to clean a house before selling in Peoria, IL?
With Wrenly Home, a pre-listing deep clean is $175 for a studio or 1-bedroom up to $429 for 5 bedrooms ($269 for 3 bed/2 bath), and a move-out clean of an empty home is $229-$575 ($369 for 3 bed/2 bath), each plus a fixed amount per extra bathroom. New customers who book by November 30, 2026 can take $40 off the first clean with code WELCOME40. For comparison, CottageCare Peoria publishes $209-$393 for most first-time cleanings and $349-$786 for vacant move-outs, with appliances extra.
Deep clean or move-out clean for a house I'm selling?
It depends on whether you still live there. If your furniture and things are still in the home when it's photographed and shown, book a deep clean. Once the home is empty, book a move-out clean: it adds the insides of cabinets, drawers, closets, the fridge and the oven, which buyers will open. Many sellers book both: a deep clean before the listing photos and a move-out clean before the final walk-through.
How far ahead should I book a cleaning before listing photos?
Two to three weeks ahead, for a clean 2 to 5 days before the photographer comes (Wrenly suggestion). We confirm your date by email within one business day and don't do same-day cleans; if we can't schedule you within 10 days you get a full refund. A few days' gap before the photos leaves time for our 48-hour re-clean guarantee if anything was missed.
How long will my house be on the market in Peoria?
Recently, about five to six weeks. Realtor.com's median days on market for the Peoria metro was 35 in September 2026 (37 in August), and the Peoria Area Association of REALTORS' 309MLS snapshot effective September 30, 2026 shows an average of 39 days on market across its ten-county area. That's long enough that a single clean before photos won't last through every showing, so plan a quick daily reset, or a recurring clean while the home is listed.
Can you clean while my house is listed, between showings?
Yes, on a recurring plan: the first visit is a deep clean, then every week, every 2 weeks or monthly at the lower recurring price ($179 every 2 weeks for 3 bed/2 bath). There's no contract; cancel from your account when you go under contract and billing stops at the end of the cycle you've paid for. We can't do same-day cleans before a showing.
Do I need to be home, and can you use the listing lockbox?
You don't need to be home. Put access details (door code, key location or how to get in) in your booking notes. If you want us to use a lockbox your agent controls, arrange that with your agent first. If we can't get in at the scheduled time, it counts as a late cancellation.
Do you clean carpets, outside windows or the garage before a sale?
No. We vacuum carpets and clean interior glass, sills and tracks, but we don't shampoo or steam-clean carpets, wash exterior windows, or clean garages, decks or gutters. We also don't haul away junk, move heavy furniture, paint or make repairs; book those separately.
Sources
- National Association of REALTORS: NAR Report Reveals Home Staging Boosts Sale Prices and Reduces Time on Market (2025 Profile of Home Staging, survey of 1,266 Realtors, February 2025). https://www.nar.realtor/newsroom/nar-report-reveals-home-staging-boosts-sale-prices-and-reduces-time-on-market. Accessed 2026-10-23.
- Peoria Area Association of REALTORS (309MLS): Market Data, monthly home sales for Peoria, Tazewell, Fulton, Hancock, McDonough, Schuyler, Woodford, Marshall, McLean and Mason counties (effective 9/30/2026). https://www.309mls.com/. Accessed 2026-10-23.
- Realtor.com via FRED (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis): Housing Inventory: Median Days on Market in Peoria, IL (CBSA), MEDDAYONMAR37900. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MEDDAYONMAR37900. Accessed 2026-10-23.
- CottageCare Peoria: House Cleaning Prices (Last updated September 2026). https://cottagecare.com/locations/peoria/house-cleaning-prices/. Accessed 2026-10-23.
- Illinois Department of Revenue: Does Illinois tax sales of service?. https://tax.illinois.gov/questionsandanswers/answer.129.html. Accessed 2026-10-23.
Market figures and other companies' prices change; check the sources for current numbers. If anything here is out of date, email hello@wrenlyhome.com and we'll correct it.