Free Reference · Updated 18 May 2026
A reference inclusions checklist for end-of-lease (bond) cleans across Australia, plus state-by-state notes on which tenancy authority handles bond disputes and what evidence they expect.
Universal Inclusions
These items appear on essentially every Australian bond clean scope. Agents in every state expect them. Operators should price them into the base quote unless explicitly noted as an add-on.
State by State
Australian residential tenancy is regulated state-by-state. The core cleaning expectation is similar everywhere — the dispute process and burden-of-proof rules differ.
NSW Fair Trading
Tenancy Act 2010 sets bond conditions; landlords cannot insist on a specific cleaner. Receipts and photo evidence are the dispute-resolution standard at NCAT.
Consumer Affairs Victoria
Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (amended 2021) requires bond claim breakdown; VCAT applies the 'fair wear and tear' principle vs cleaning standards strictly.
Residential Tenancies Authority (RTA)
Form 14a Final Inspection report drives bond disputes. QCAT defers to professional bond clean receipts as evidence of compliance.
Consumer & Business Services (CBS)
SACAT requires landlord to prove the property was not left in 'similar condition' to start of lease; ingoing/outgoing condition reports are central.
Department of Mines, Industry Regulation & Safety (DMIRS)
Bond claims are decided by the Magistrates Court; photo evidence with timestamps weighs heavily.
Consumer, Building & Occupational Services (CBOS)
Residential Tenancy Commissioner handles disputes; clean to 'reasonably clean' standard vs ingoing condition.
Office of Rental Services / ACAT
ACAT applies 'fair wear and tear' with similar burden of proof to landlord on cleaning shortfall claims.
Consumer Affairs (Fair Lease & Tenancy)
NTCAT handles disputes; tropical-climate conditions can shorten 'reasonably clean' windows, especially for wet-area mould.
This is general guidance, not legal advice. Tenancy laws change — for a current dispute, check the relevant authority directly or consult a tenancy advocate.
Tenants
Operators
No. A bond clean (also called an end-of-lease, vacate, or move-out clean) is a deep clean specifically scoped to the inclusions agents and landlords expect when returning a rental bond. Standard recurring cleans cover surface tidiness; bond cleans cover ovens, grout, skirting boards, light fittings, window tracks, and other detail items that build up over a tenancy.
No legitimate cleaner can guarantee bond return — only the agent and tribunal can. What a professional bond clean does guarantee is that the cleaning aspect of the bond release has been completed to industry-standard inclusions. Many operators offer a re-clean if the agent flags specific cleaning items within 72 hours.
Usually no — carpet steam cleaning is almost always a separate quoted line item. Most agents require receipts from a professional carpet cleaner as part of bond return, especially if pets were on the lease.
The oven is the single most common bond return dispute. Some quotes include it; many treat it as a $40–$80 add-on. Confirm before booking — leaving it unscoped is the #1 source of post-clean disputes.
No state in Australia allows a landlord to dictate the cleaner. The tenancy laws all require that the property is returned in 'reasonably clean' or 'similar to original' condition — how that is achieved is the tenant's choice.
OneBookPlus turns this checklist into a working scope-of-work with photo evidence per inclusion — built for Australian end-of-lease cleaning operators.
Last reviewed and updated: by Bishal Shrestha
About the author
Founder & CEO, OneBookPlus
Bishal has over a decade of experience in digital marketing, web development, and small business consulting across Australia. Bishal has helped Australian end-of-lease cleaning operators standardise bond clean inclusions across NSW, VIC, QLD, SA, WA, TAS, ACT and NT tenancy regimes.
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