Cleaning
Nearly every cleaning job posted in Canberra has a deadline somebody else set: a final inspection, a settlement, a tenant turning up, a builder finishing.
The five jobs
End of lease / bond clean
Priced against an inspection, not against how dirty it looks to you. Ovens, tracks, blinds, skirting, marks on walls, inside cupboards. Ask whether carpets and windows are in the price — they're the two things most often quoted separately.
Builders clean
After a reno or a new build. Dust in every surface, stickers on the glass, silicone and paint spots, and it usually takes two passes. It's not a house clean and it shouldn't be priced like one.
Regular home cleaning
Weekly or fortnightly. The per-visit rate is normally lower than a one-off, because nothing's had time to build up.
Commercial and office
Offices in Civic, clinics, childcare, clubs, gyms. Usually a contract with a schedule, often after hours, and often needing insurance and police checks. Say so when you post — it filters straight to the right people.
One-off deep clean
Before guests, before a sale, or after a long stretch where nobody had the time. Often paired with carpet steam cleaning and windows.
Carpet and upholstery
Steam cleaning is its own trade with its own machine. Renters usually need the receipt as much as the clean.
If you are moving out of a Canberra rental
- Dig out the entry condition report before you book. You're being judged against how the place was when you moved in, minus fair wear and tear — not against showroom condition.
- Ask what a re-clean guarantee actually covers, and for how many days. Most decent Canberra bond cleaners offer one. Get the terms in writing, not in conversation.
- Keep the receipts, especially for carpet steam cleaning. Agents ask for them.
- Book earlier than you think you need to. End of month, and the end of the uni terms, are the busiest weeks in this trade in Canberra.
- Say whether the place is furnished or empty. Empty is faster and cheaper to clean, and the quote should show it.
General information only. Your tenancy agreement and the ACT's residential tenancy rules govern what you actually owe at the end of a lease.
What to tell us
- Bedrooms and bathrooms — the two numbers every cleaning quote starts from.
- Furnished or empty.
- The date it has to be done by, and whether that's firm.
- Carpet, windows, oven, garage — in or out?
- Pets, and whether there's hair in the carpet.
- Access. Will you be there, is there a lockbox, is there parking.