Moving in
Cleaning a new home before you unpack: the move-in checklist
Quick answer: Record the condition first: photograph every room and fill in your entry condition report before you clean anything, so a home that wasn't clean is on paper. Then clean top to bottom while the home is empty, inside every cupboard and appliance, and finish with the floors before the furniture arrives.
What to record and when, what should already have been clean, the order of work for an empty home, and fitting the clean between the keys and the truck.
- End of lease clean
- From $423, live from our booking calculator, checked 6 October 2026
- Our record
- 1,726 completed end of lease cleans
Record the condition before you clean
If you're renting, your entry condition report is what the home will be measured against when you leave. Photograph and note everything first, including dirt, because once you've cleaned it the evidence is gone.
The entry condition report records the start of your tenancy. If the oven was greasy on day one and the report says "clean", that's the standard you'll be held to when you leave. So write what you find in plain words: "oven greasy, racks stained", "hair in shower drain". In NSW a report signed by both sides is presumed correct unless you wrote a comment disagreeing, so put your notes on the report itself.
How to photograph it
- Wide, then close. A wide shot from the doorway shows the room; a close-up shows the mark or the grease.
- Number photos to the report. Follow the report's room order and name files to match, such as "Kitchen 04 oven".
- Keep them dated. Keep the original files and email them to yourself or the agent on the day.
- Open things. Oven, fridge, cupboards, wardrobes, exhaust fan covers and window tracks.
Consumer Affairs Victoria recommends dating and labelling photos and attaching them to the report. If you've bought the home there's no entry report, but photos before you start are still worth taking.
When the entry condition report is due back, by state
The return window runs from 5 business days in Victoria to 2 weeks in the ACT. In WA you return it only if you disagree. We couldn't verify a South Australian deadline, so check with Consumer and Business Services.
| State | When you return it | Where the rule is | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW (Sydney) | Within 7 days after you take possession | Residential Tenancies Act 2010 s 29(3) | A report signed by both sides is presumed correct, except where you wrote a comment disagreeing (s 30) |
| VIC (Melbourne) | Within 5 business days of moving in | Residential Tenancies Act 1997 s 35(2) | No report given? You can complete one yourself (s 35(3)). Either side can ask VCAT to amend an inaccurate one within 30 days of the agreement starting (s 35A) |
| QLD (Brisbane, Gold Coast) | Within 7 days after moving in, or after receiving it if it came late | Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 s 65(3)–(4) | The lessor or agent returns a copy within 14 days (s 65(5)) |
| WA (Perth) | Only if you disagree: return a marked copy within 7 days | Residential Tenancies Act 1987 s 27C(1)–(3) | The landlord gives you the report within 7 days of moving in. Return nothing and you're taken to accept it |
| SA (Adelaide) | Not verified. Check with Consumer and Business Services | Guidance: CBS Tenant Information Guide | You get a signed inspection sheet at the start; it can be used in a bond dispute |
| ACT (Canberra) | Within 2 weeks | Residential Tenancies Act 1997 s 29(3) | ACT guidance says if you don't return it in time, you're taken to agree |
Section numbers are from each state's residential tenancies Act, read on 5 October 2026. The South Australian row and the ACT "taken to agree" point are official guidance, not law. This is general information, not legal advice. Sources are listed at the end of this guide. Checked 5 October 2026. General information, not legal advice.
What the last tenant or landlord should have left clean
In NSW and WA the law says the landlord must hand the home over in a reasonable state of cleanliness. Elsewhere we haven't confirmed an equivalent rule, so record the condition and raise it in writing.
- NSW: the landlord must provide the premises in a reasonable state of cleanliness (Residential Tenancies Act 2010 s 52(1)).
- WA: the landlord must deliver vacant possession in a reasonable state of cleanliness (Residential Tenancies Act 1987 s 42).
- Elsewhere: ask your state's tenancy authority. Your exit is still judged against the condition at the start, which is why the record matters.
Many renters clean a dirty home themselves, say nothing, and later find the report says "clean". Do it the other way round: photograph it, note it on the report, and email the agent the photos the same day, asking them to arrange a clean. If you clean it yourself so you can move in, say so in that email, and keep it all until your bond is back.
The empty-home checklist, in order
Work top to bottom and finish with the floors, so dust that falls is picked up last. Do the kitchen and bathrooms while every cupboard is empty, because you won't get the chance again.
Every step in this view is ticked. Untick ‘Hide steps I’ve ticked’ to see them again.
Before you start
Clean only after every room is recorded.
Check before the clean is booked.
Kitchen
Crumbs in corners, sticky shelf edges, the tops of overhead units.
Including the door glass. Note its condition on the report first.
Grease collects on the underside and in the filter.
If one comes with the home: shelves, then the folds of the door seal.
Last, so anything knocked down from above is wiped up.
Bathrooms and laundry
Dust shows from the doorway.
Note old staining that won't shift on the report.
Photograph it and tell the agent in writing before you clean it.
Clear the last occupant's hair now.
Under the rim, the hinges and the floor behind.
The machine will cover that gap for years.
Bedrooms and living areas
Insects in the covers, dust on blade tops.
If the home has them: wash, dry fully and refit before first use.
Shelves, rails, runners and the robe floor.
Easier now than behind a bed.
Windows, then floors last
Vacuum the tracks before you wipe them.
Vacuum, then mop hard floors to suit the surface, working back to the door.
Not a legal list: the order we'd use for an empty home, so nothing gets dirty again once it's done.
Move-in clean or deep clean: what's the difference?
A move-in clean is for an empty home and goes inside everything. A deep clean is for a home you're already living in, with furniture and belongings in place.
Our move-in clean is our end of lease package booked for the home you're moving into: the same checklist, extras and price. With the rooms empty it reaches inside every cupboard and drawer, the wardrobe floors, and where the fridge and washing machine will stand.
A deep clean works around furniture and belongings and goes after build-up in a lived-in kitchen and bathroom. It suits a home a few weeks after you've settled in, not the day you get the keys. Costs are in the move-in and end of lease and deep cleaning price guides.
Same-day keys and truck: fitting the clean in
Book the clean for the gap between getting the keys and the truck arriving. If keys and furniture come on the same day, clean first and book the removalist for the afternoon.
An empty home cleans faster and better than one full of boxes, so the order is keys, photos, clean, truck. If you can collect the keys the day before the move, clean then. If they're on the same day, ask the removalist for an afternoon slot, check the power and water are on, and arrange access (a lockbox works) if you won't be there.
If there's no gap at all:
- Have the boxes stacked in one room or the garage, and clean the rest first.
- Clean the kitchen cupboards and wardrobes before anything goes in them.
- Clean the floor where big furniture will stand before it's pushed into place.
Walk through before the furniture arrives. If we did the clean and something was missed, tell us within 48 hours and we'll come back to re-clean the items you list, under our terms.
What happens after the move
A move clean is often the start of keeping a new home clean, not the end of it.
Simply Maid booking history · not today’s price
- 6.6%
- of our move-clean customers started regular cleans afterwards
- 63%
- of those started at a different postcode from the move clean: most likely the new home
1,716 completed move cleans (moving in and moving out together) on our previous booking platform, December 2015 to March 2025, for 1,604 customers; 82% of them in Sydney. Computed 5 October 2026.
Questions people ask
Should you clean a house before moving in?
Yes, even if it looks clean. It's the only time every cupboard, wardrobe and floor is empty, and it's far easier than cleaning around boxes and furniture later. If you're renting, photograph the condition and note it on your entry condition report first.
What is the difference between deep cleaning and move-in cleaning?
A move-in clean is done in an empty home and goes inside every cupboard, drawer and appliance. A deep clean is for a lived-in home, working around furniture. Our move-in clean is our end of lease package booked for the home you're moving into.
What should I do before moving into a new house?
Check the power, water and hot water are on, photograph every room, and if you're renting, fill in the entry condition report. Then clean top to bottom while the home is empty, finishing with the floors, and only then let the furniture in.
Who pays if the rental wasn't clean when I moved in?
In NSW and WA the landlord must hand the home over in a reasonable state of cleanliness. In other states, ask your tenancy authority. Wherever you are, photograph it, note it on the entry report and ask the agent in writing to arrange a clean, so you aren't held to a higher standard than the one you moved into.
How long does a move-in clean take?
We book 4h 50m of cleaner time for a two-bedroom, one-bathroom home. A team shares that time, so a team of two is on site for about half as long. A larger home, or one left dirty, takes longer.
When you're ready
Book the clean between the keys and the truck
Get a fixed price for the home you're moving into, then choose a time after you get the keys and before the furniture arrives. Nothing is booked or paid at this step.
Want to see what's included first? Move-in cleaning
Sources
The laws, regulators and services this guide relies on, with the date we read each one.
- Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (NSW), NSW Legislation. Read 5 October 2026. Entry condition report returned within 7 days (s 29(3)); signed report presumed correct, except for dissenting comments (s 30); landlord provides the premises reasonably clean (s 52(1)).
- Rental property condition reports, NSW Fair Trading. Read 5 October 2026. Detailed reports and time-stamped photos.
- Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic), Victorian Legislation. Read 5 October 2026. Entry condition report returned within 5 business days (s 35(2)); renter's own report where none is given (s 35(3)); VCAT amendment within 30 days (s 35A).
- Condition reports, Consumer Affairs Victoria (2025-03-24). Read 5 October 2026. Date and label photos and attach them to the report.
- Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 (Qld), Queensland Legislation. Read 5 October 2026. Entry condition report returned within 7 days; copy back to the tenant within 14 days (s 65).
- Entry condition report, Residential Tenancies Authority. Read 5 October 2026. Take photos and note every mark, stain and chip.
- Residential Tenancies Act 1987 (WA), WA Legislation. Read 5 October 2026. Property condition report within 7 days of moving in; a tenant who disagrees returns a marked copy within 7 days (s 27C(1)–(3)); vacant possession in a reasonable state of cleanliness (s 42).
- Tenant Information Guide, Consumer and Business Services SA. Read 5 October 2026. The signed inspection sheet given at the start of a tenancy (January 2026 edition).
- Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT), ACT Legislation Register. Read 5 October 2026. Condition report copies by the day after possession (s 29(1)); returned within 2 weeks (s 29(3)).
- The Renting Book (January 2026), ACT Government. Read 5 October 2026. Taken to agree if not returned within two weeks; photos and videos can be attached (p. 34).
- Terms of service, Simply Maid. Read 5 October 2026. Re-clean terms: report within 48 hours of a move-in or move-out clean.
General information, not legal advice. Tenancy law differs by state and changes; check the official source for your state before you act.