Cleaning Guides

End of Lease Cleaning Checklist

The Fantastic Team
Published: Nov 29/2019
Last update: Apr 27/2023
3min read
Views: 322

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Everyone who has had to move more than a few times in their life understands how important is to leave the property they’ve rented in the condition they found it in. That being said, one of the main tasks is cleaning the house or apartment. And we aren’t talking about a general dusting and a quick vacuuming. No, before you move out, you’ll have to successfully complete the so-called end of lease cleaning mission that involves restoring the initial state of the property to the last detail.

The end goal of the task is to leave your landlord happy, so you can have your deposit back.

But what does an end of lease cleaning actually include? Continue reading to find out!

End of lease cleaning checklist

Clean the kitchen
Clean the bathroom
Clean the living room
Clean the bedrooms
Clean the entrance hall, hallway and staircase
Take care of the exterior areas
Additional helpful tips

Kitchen

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Some parts of your home will require a bit more attention than others when it comes to cleaning, and the kitchen is definitely one of them. Here is a general list of all the areas you need to take care of and how:

Cooking areas
Thoroughly clean your oven, racks, griller, and the stovetop, too. Once you are done, you need to make sure that you’ve removed all detergent spots and wipe marks.
Exhaust hood
Depending on the type of hood you own, you should either change the filter or wash it. Also, don’t forget to remove any oil marks.
Sink
Polish the water spout and taps of your sink. If you see any icky leftover food bits in the drain – remove them.
Countertop and other surface areas
Take your time and wipe down everything. If your kitchen work areas are made from a capricious material, use the appropriate cleaning detergent.
Cupboard and drawers
Empty all of your storage spaces and give them a good wipe. Pay extra attention to the area where you store your glasses – sometimes after washing, they leave small water circles behind.
Dishwasher
Clean both the inside and the outside of your dishwasher. Again, if you see any food bits left in the filter – wash it.
Refrigerator
Get a friend to help you pull out the refrigerator and clean behind the appliance and underneath it. Of course – take care of any food stains inside and give the door a good wipe.
Walls
Destroy any existing spider houses, scrub off small stains and marks, and if needed – repaint some areas.
Floors
Vacuum the whole room and pay extra attention to the areas around your appliances. After that, mop the floor and if you have any carpets, you can steam clean them to disinfect the items.
Windows and sills
Clean all of your windows both on the inside and outside. The same applies to their frames and sills.
Ledges
This one is time-consuming but necessary – wipe clean all ledges including the top of the doors, skirting boards, etc.

Bathroom

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Cleaning the bathroom is definitely one of those house chores that nobody likes doing. Sadly, when it comes to end of lease cleaning, you just can’t skip the place. Here is how to clean the bathroom before you move out:

Mirrors
Scrunch up a piece of newspaper, grab your favourite detergent and wipe clean the mirror. Make sure you don’t leave any marks behind.
Toilet
When it comes to the toilet, surface cleaning just won’t cut it. You’ll need to disinfect the whole thing and clean the inside of the toilet tank.
Shower
Remove any mould from the showerhead, taps and glass screen. Dry the cleaned areas and don’t forget to do some polishing to make them extra shiny.
Basin and drain
Wash the basin and drain. Take care of the benchtops and wipe down the wall tiles and taps. If you want to be on the safe side, you could also disinfect them.
Small bathroom items
Remove any built-up gunk from the soap holders, clean the toilet paper holder and polish the towel rails.

Living room

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Generally, cleaning the living room involves a lot of dusting and vacuuming, however, the list doesn’t end there. Here is everything else you need to do before you move out:

Cupboards and shelves
Empty the cupboards and remove all books and decorations from the shelves. Dust and wipe everything.
Floor
Vacuum the whole room. Don’t forget to clean the areas under the furniture. Mop the floor once done.
Rugs and carpets
In Australia, steam cleaning the carpets is required from all tenants before they leave the property. Of course, before you do that, remove hair, dust particles, crumbs, etc. with a vacuum cleaner. Steam cleaning is not a simple procedure and it takes at least a few hours, so keep in mind the time necessary for cleaning the carpets.
Furniture
Dust all of the furniture that comes with the property and polish any wooden parts it has. It’s also a good idea to put them back in the position you’ve found them.
Walls
Like with the kitchen, take care of any wall spots by carefully scrubbing them. If you find some stains that are hard to clean, try concealing them with a bit of paint.
Blinds and curtains
Dust the blinds and if you can, wash the curtains. We suggest placing your washer on a lower heat setting to be on the safe side.
Lights
Wipe all of the light switches. Dust all lampshades and replace any non-working or flickering light bulbs.

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Bedrooms

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The process of cleaning the bedrooms in the property is no different from the one for the living room, except for a few additionals tasks:

Mattress
Carefully vacuum the mattress, and if you can, steam clean the item to disinfect it.
Bed frame
All you have to do is dust the bedframe and polish it.
Wardrobes, cupboards, and drawers
Once you’ve removed all of your personal possessions, dust and wipe both the inside and outside of your wardrobe, cupboards, and drawers.
Mirrors, picture frames, and other wall decorations
Wipe clean any mirrors and dust the picture frames. If the bedroom comes with any other wall decorations – clean those, too.

Entrance hall, hallway and staircase

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Generally, these kind of spaces are on the smaller side and don’t have many furnishings, which means that you will be able to clean them a lot faster. Here is what you need to take care of in the entrance hall, hallway and staircase before you move out:

Remove cobwebs
It’s a good idea to destroy any existing spider houses before you move out of the property. Leaving them behind will give the house or apartment a messy look. Get a broom or your vacuum cleaner and remove them.
Curtain rails and picture frames
Just give them a quick dusting are you are basically done with them.
Mirrors
Again, like in the other areas we’ve listed, you’ll have to polish any mirrors you might have hung up in the property to remove fingerprints and dust.
Doors
Wipe the top part of the doors to remove dust and polish them on both sides.
Light switches, fittings, lampshades, etc.
Clean all light switches, light fittings, power sockets, and plugs. Don’t forget to dust the lampshades.
Woodworks
Dust and wipe all skirting boards and other types of woodwork.
Banister, stairway, and railings
A general dusting will do the job. If you want to take the extra mile, you could also polish the fixtures.
Floors
Finally, vacuum and mop the floors and you are basically done.

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Exterior Areas

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Once you are done with cleaning the main areas of your house, you should concentrate on the following tasks:

Veranda and patio
Clean any outdoor surfaces like the veranda or patio. If the property comes with a BBQ or garden furniture – take care of those, as well.
Garden
Don’t forget about the garden. Mow the lawn, do some weeding and sweep the paths.
Pool
If the property has a pool, make sure to clean it from any leaf debris and take care of the filter.
Outdoor lights
Make sure that all outdoor lighting is working properly.
Garage and driveway
Sweep and wash the garage and driveway. Try to remove any dirt or oil marks. Test the garage door to make sure it’s working.
Trash bins
Wash all of the waste bins in the house.
Compost bin
Make sure that there are no letters left in the letterbox and clear out the compost bin.
Basement
Remove any items you’ve left in the basement. Sweep the floors and remove cobwebs.

Additional helpful tips

As you can see, cleaning your property prior to moving out involves quite a lot of areas and the task will eat up a serious amount of your time. That’s why it’s a good idea to do your best to optimise the whole process. Here is what you can do:

Prepare a bucket or some type of container with all of your cleaning supplies inside to carry around the house. This way, you won’t need to go back and forth between the area you are cleaning and the place where you store your detergents, sponges, etc.
Use this universal rule: Clean from left to right, back to front, and top to bottom.
Always start the process with dry cleaning tasks like vacuuming your carpet or sweeping the floors. Once you are done with those, you can proceed with chores that involve water.
Do you own any pets? If yes, make sure to take care of the entire living space by thoroughly disinfecting it against insect pests. Also – it’s a good idea to fumigate the property.
Give your removals team a helping hand by taking care of any hazardous or prohibited items they can’t relocate. If you don’t know what the professional can and can’t move, we advise you to contact your removals company for more information.

Takeaways

Thoroughly clean the property. When you’re planning to move out, it is extremely important to pay attention to detail and there are no steps you want to skip. After all – you want your deposit back, right?
Start early. Having more time to properly clean your apartment or house will make the whole process less stressful and will bring better end results.
Call professional cleaners to help. If you aren’t sure that you’ll have enough time or aren’t sure that your landlord will be happy with the results, it’s best to leave the task to a professional end of lease cleaning company.