If you’ve rented a house or an apartment at least once in your life, you’re probably familiar with this. But for the clueless ones, read on for some nuggets of information on End of Lease Cleaning vs Bond Cleaning: What’s the Difference?
Here’s the deal. Every time you rent a property, you must pay a certain amount of money to the owner of that property right off the bat. That cash is called a bond.
Fast forward to the day when you’re already packing your things because you’ve decided that you’re not going to renew the contract. What happens to that money?
The good thing is you can get it back. The catch is you will have to give that property a deep cleaning and repairing to make it look good as new. Only then will you be able to retrieve that bond. By law, the owner of the property must give it back to you in full once an agent gives his or her approval.
But once you’ve failed to smarten up that house close to its original state, it’s either the owner will take a chunk of that money and give the rest to you, or worse, you’re gonna have to leave empty-handed.
End of Lease Cleaning vs Bond Cleaning
Don’t get too caught up with the terminologies. Bond cleaning and end-of-lease-cleaning are the same and can be used interchangeably. Bond is the payment that you make beforehand which you would want to retrieve at the end of your leasing contract. We hope we’ve cleared things on that.
What exactly happens during bond cleaning?
Just a little heads up, a lot will happen during the process. Since the goal is to make the property look good as new, going deep into every nook and crannies is the best way to go.
While it’s alright to suit up and take the job, we don’t highly recommend doing it all on yourself. Trust us, it’s not like your usual clean-ups where you half-heartedly do everything. This type of cleaning needs more time and expertise to achieve the main goal: which is to transform it into an open-house worthy property.
Your hands are going to be full, anyways. So just pack your bags, leave the house and let a team of professional cleaners do the dirty work.
But how clean is clean?
Looking at the standards released by the Residential Tenancies Authority, bond cleaning must be done in a very detailed way. There are highly specific areas that must be given some TLC. Below are some of the areas that were specified the by the RTA:
Kitchen
- Cupboards must be cleaned inside-out
- Wipe all countertops and other surfaces
- If the oven, microwave, dishwasher, and fridge were supplied, it must be in pristine condition
- Degrease the cooktop, grill, and clean the rangehood
- Wash the sink and taps must be working well
- Make sure windows, windowsills, and door frames, and fly screens are not damaged
- Deep vacuum the carpet floor, wash it if it’s wooden or tiled
Bathroom
- Scrub the sink, bath (including the taps), and toilet
- Remove the grime and mold off the tiles, walls and ceiling
- Clean or replace the shower curtains
- Make the mirror and other surfaces sparkling clean
Rooms
- Clean all the surfaces (floors, doors, windows, windowsills, mirrors, cupboards, and skirting boards)
- Dust off the fans, and clean the air conditioning filters
Outdoor
- Mow the grass, remove the weeds, and trim the edges
- Remove any debris off the pool like leaves and others
- Empty out the trash bins
- Scrub the oil stains on the driveways and garage
- Don’t forget the cobwebs
General
- Remove all trash from the property
- Clean the carpets
- Conduct pest control if stated in the agreement
Is Hiring Professional Cleaners Really Necessary?
End-of-lease cleaning is an expert’s work. Not to undermine your cleaning abilities, but it can only go as far dusting off the furniture, sweeping the floors, and other little tasks. And by the end of the day, you’re already knocked out with a ton of tasks left to be completed.
You just can’t do this on your own. That’s why hiring professionals is the best way to go. Because they have an expert team and the right tools to make a hard day’s work a lot easier.
If you’re planning to get your house cleaned before the end of your contract, it’s better if you seek help from a trusted cleaning service company now. If you want to know more about bond cleaning, check out this article.
