Bond back.
Guaranteed.

An exit clean is priced against a room-by-room checklist rather than by the hour, because the standard the agent applies is fixed. The base scope covers the kitchen from top to bottom — benches, splashback, inside and outside of every cupboard and drawer, sink and taps descaled, oven, griller, cooktop and range hood — plus every bathroom, all hard floors, walls spot-cleaned, skirting boards, doors and frames, switches and light fittings, and window interiors with tracks and sills.

The items commonly quoted as extras are carpet steam cleaning, external window cleaning above ground level, blind and curtain cleaning, garage or driveway pressure washing, full wall washing where marks are extensive, and pest treatment where the lease requires it after pets. None of these are hidden costs — they simply need to be named on the quote so you can compare properly.

If your lease has specific clauses, mention them when you request the quote. Requirements for professional carpet cleaning or pest treatment with a receipt attached are common in Sydney leases and change what has to be invoiced separately.

The final inspection is a comparison against the condition report taken at the start of the tenancy, allowing for fair wear and tear. The agent is not looking for a perfect property; they are looking for the difference between the property they handed you and the property you are handing back.

In practice the same short list decides most inspections. Inside the oven and under the cooktop. The range hood filter. Shower grout, screens and the silicone line. The toilet, including behind and underneath. Window tracks and flyscreens. Inside every cupboard and drawer. Skirting boards and the tops of door frames. Marks on walls. And the carpets.

Outdoor areas catch out more tenants than anything inside. Balconies, courtyards, garages, external laundries and letterboxes are all part of the tenancy and all get inspected. Photograph the finished property on handover day — it is the cheapest evidence you will ever collect if the bond is later disputed.

Oven cleaning is the single most common re-clean item. Baked-on carbon on the door glass, racks and base needs dwell time with the right product rather than a wipe-down, and the range hood filter usually has to be degreased separately from the hood itself.

Carpets are the second. Vacuuming does not satisfy a lease clause asking for professional cleaning, and steam extraction lifts traffic lanes and marks that a vacuum cannot touch. Booking it as part of the same job keeps the sequencing right, so nobody walks across freshly cleaned carpet to finish the kitchen.

Blinds and window tracks are the quiet ones. Venetian slats hold dust that shows immediately in daylight, and window tracks collect grit that an agent will run a finger through. Both are quick when they are on the checklist and expensive when they force a second visit.

The order that works is: move everything out, then clean, then inspect, then hand back the keys. Every variation on that order costs money. Cleaning with furniture still in place leaves outlines on carpet and dust behind appliances that the agent will find at inspection.

Leave a buffer. Booking the clean for the morning of the final inspection removes any room to correct something the agent raises. A day or two of margin turns a potential bond dispute into a short return visit.

If you are handing back on a weekend or around a public holiday, book early. The last week of the month is the busiest window for exit cleans across Sydney, and short-notice bookings are much harder to place then.

The tenant is responsible for returning the property in the condition it was received, fair wear and tear excepted. That covers cleanliness, rubbish removal and any damage caused during the tenancy. It does not extend to repainting a wall that has simply aged or replacing carpet that has reached the end of its life.

The landlord or agent is responsible for maintenance and for anything that was already in that condition when the tenancy began — which is exactly why the original condition report matters so much. If the oven was already stained at move-in and the report records it, that is not a bond deduction.

Landlords and agents also book exit cleans in their own right, between tenancies or before a property goes to market. The scope is the same; the motivation is presentation and re-letting speed rather than bond recovery.

Cheap quotes are usually cheap because of what has been left out. Before comparing prices, line up the inclusion lists side by side and check specifically for carpet steam cleaning, oven and range hood, blinds, window tracks, external windows, balcony and garage.

Then check what happens if the agent is not satisfied. A re-clean guarantee is only useful if it is written down, has a stated window, and does not require you to pay a callout fee. Ask how quickly a return visit can be scheduled; the answer usually matters more than the price difference.

Finally, confirm insurance and check that the company quoting is the one doing the work rather than subcontracting it out on the day. Sydney Clean Group quotes exit cleans on a written inclusion list and backs the work with a bond back guarantee. Call 02 9139 8401 or request a free quote online.