The most common scheduling mistake on a construction project is booking one post-construction clean and expecting it to hold. It will not, because trades keep working after the cleaners leave. On two recent Coral Gables projects, an 8,000 sq ft, $13 million new build and an 8,000 sq ft penthouse at Regency Parc, Miami House Cleaning saw both ends of the problem: one property needed three separate cleans on the contractor’s schedule, the other needed a single complete pass before leasing showings began. Here is how to decide which stages your project needs and when to book them.
Stage 1: the rough clean, once the dust-making trades are done
When: after drywall, sanding, flooring and tile are finished and before final fixtures, appliances and paint touch-ups. What it does: lifts the heavy load of construction dust and drywall powder from every surface, removes adhesive and grout haze, and gets the building to a state where finishing trades can work without spreading grit. Crew: the largest of the three. On the Coral Gables new build this was 15 cleaners for two consecutive days across the main house, guest house and pool house.
Book this too early and the next trade undoes it; book it too late and the finishing crews track dust into finished surfaces. The right moment is the day the last dust-producing trade signs off.
Stage 2: the post-paint clean
When: after the painters’ final coats and touch-ups. What it does: removes sanding dust, tape residue, drips on hardware and floors, and the fine particle layer that painting leaves in every room. Crew: medium. The new build took 12 cleaners for this pass. Many projects skip this stage and pay for it at handover, when a walkthrough finds paint dust on every windowsill.
Stage 3: the pre-staging or pre-showing detail
When: the day before staging furniture, listing photography or the first leasing showing. What it does: the fine detail: streak-free glass, spotless stone and millwork, fixtures with no fingerprints, floors ready for stagers or tenants. Crew: the smallest, but the highest standard. The new build took 6 cleaners; the Regency Parc penthouse, which had no earlier passes, needed a full crew to do the whole job in one visit before the leasing team started showing it.
A simple scheduling rule
- New construction or full renovation with painting still to come: plan on all three stages. Quote each one separately, because the labor is different.
- Finished residence going straight to lease or sale: one complete pass, timed to the first showing, with a crew sized for the square footage.
- Single-room remodel: usually one clean after the last trade leaves.
Our post-construction rates are flat by finished square footage, from $1,500 for spaces under 1,500 sq ft to $10,000 for spaces under 10,000 sq ft, and we quote stage-specific work on request, because a rough clean and a pre-staging detail of the same square footage are not the same job. The full tiers are on our post-construction cleaning page. We clean only and do not haul away debris.
Who we schedule this with
General contractors, construction companies, builders, realtors, landlords and interior designers across Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County. Both Coral Gables projects are written up on our reviews page: the three-phase new build and the Regency Parc penthouse. If you have a handover, staging date or first showing coming up, see post-construction cleaning for general contractors or request a free estimate, or call 754-354-6072 with your square footage and stage.