House clearance in Geneva, handled in English

If you are leaving Switzerland

This is the situation we handle most often for English speakers in Geneva, and it has a predictable shape: a contract ends, a relocation is confirmed, and suddenly a fully furnished flat has to be emptied in two or three weeks — usually while you are also dealing with a job, a move and an unfamiliar Swiss handover process.

• We work in English throughout — visit, written quote, buy-back statement, invoice and disposal certificate.
• We can quote from photographs if you are short of time, then confirm on site.
• We can work after you have left, provided the letting agency or a trusted contact gives us access. Documents and settlement are handled by email and bank transfer.
• Your furniture usually has value. Expatriate flats tend to be recent, complete and in good condition, which makes the buy-back deduction here the highest we apply anywhere in the canton.

The Swiss handover: what nobody warns you about

The état des lieux de sortie — the exit inspection — surprises almost every foreign tenant in Geneva. It is far stricter than in most countries, and your deposit genuinely depends on it. The property must be handed back completely empty and cleaned to a standard that goes well beyond ordinary housekeeping.

Agencies in Geneva consistently check the same points: the oven and, above all, the extractor hood filters; the window frames, rails and runners rather than just the glass; silicone joints in the bathroom; the blinds, slat by slat; and the cellar and balcony, which must be empty too. These are rarely the things tenants clean first.

One distinction is worth knowing, because it saves money: agencies separate cleanliness, which is entirely your responsibility, from wear and tear, which is not. Faded paint, a patinated parquet floor or a yellowed joint are normal ageing, amortised over the fitting's accepted lifespan, and cannot be charged to you at full cost.

Our end-of-tenancy cleaning is a flat CHF 480.– and includes a touch-up guarantee: if the agency raises any cleanliness objection at the inspection, we come back free of charge before the keys are handed over.

What we do, and what we charge

Everything is priced on the volume actually removed, never by the hour, and the quote becomes fixed and binding once we have seen the whole property, cellar included.

Swiss VAT not applicable. Quoted after a free site visit, then fixed and binding.

The full breakdown, including a real itemised quote from a Geneva estate clearance, is on our prices page.

Licensed, declared, insured

Clearance is an industry where undeclared labour is common in Geneva, and where a cheap quote often means the disposal taxes were never paid. Two things are worth checking with any company you consider, including us.

• We hold a cantonal licence to trade in second-hand goods, issued by the Geneva Police du commerce et de lutte contre le travail au noir (reference 2025-CO-AUT-Vente objet usage-3612, valid to 30 November 2028). It obliges us to keep a register of everything we buy back — which is your guarantee of traceability.
• We issue a disposal certificate confirming that waste went to licensed cantonal facilities. Most letting agencies now ask for it, and it is included in our price.

No subcontracting: the people who visit you are the people who do the work.

Where we work

All 45 communes of the canton of Geneva, at the same rates — there is no distance surcharge. That includes the areas where we most often work in English: Grand-Saconnex and Pregny-Chambésy near the international organisations, Meyrin and the CERN area, Cologny, Chêne-Bougeries, Versoix, and the city itself.

Commune pages (in French): Grand-Saconnex, Meyrin, City of Geneva, Cologny, Versoix, Chêne-Bougeries.

Frequently asked questions