The places I see people wasting the most time:
1) A place that doesn't usually have chometz needs a check not an inch by inch scrub. Unless you have small kids that eat around the house, or you tend to eat in your bedroom, check the drawers (no need to spring clean them), check the closet shelves and the clothing pockets and cuffs, vaccuum everywhere - voila! your bedroom is done.
2) If you're selling it to a goy - don't scrub it! dishes, pots, etc Food cabinets don't need to be emptied and spring cleaned before being closed up for the goy. For those who don't sell actual chometz, check with your rov if crumbs on the pantry shelves count.
3) Toys. Close up the majority for the week. Take out the things they really play with and clean those to leave out.
Cleaning toys for Pesach doesn't mean making the toys clean. Grunge is NOT chometz. Prepare a shissel with water and add a bit of cleanser, such as Mr. Clean. All plastic toys get dunked and put onto a towel. Sit on the floor and dunk Lego/ Duplo, little people toy. A little tedious, but all the chometz is fully nullified. Of course if you see a chunk of dirt on a piece, toss it into the cabinet to save for after Pesach. Large plastic toys can be sprayed with a cleanser/ water mixture without being wiped down and actually cleaned.