Aussie cleaner exposes hidden area renters forget to clean

An Aussie cleaning expert has revealed the “neglected” areas tenants often forget to clean before moving out of a rental property.

An Aussie cleaning expert has revealed the “neglected” areas tenants often forget to clean before moving out of a rental property.

Kacie Stephens, who runs Melbourne-based company The Big Clean Co, shared the spots that “property managers have ‘hawk-eyes’ for” in a recent TikTok.

“Anxious about your final inspection? These are the five things … you can complete before move out day,” Stephens said in the video.

Cleaning expert reveals areas tenants often forget to clean before moving out. Picture: TikTok

Anxious about your final inspection? Here are five tips for cleaning day. Picture: TikTok

The first, she said, was to pay attention to fans of all varieties: whether they be on the ceiling – which she suggests wiping with a microfibre cloth or a mop – or an exhaust fan in the kitchen or bathroom.

“Exhaust fans can just pull off. But sometimes, if they’re old, the clips snap easily and they won’t go back in,” Stephens warned.

Another area that’s commonly missed by renters when they’re vacuuming, she said, are window tracks – which “property managers are obsessed with”.

Property managers are ‘obsessed’ with window tracks. Picture: TikTok

‘Vacuum excess [dust] out using a small attachment.’ Picture: TikTok

“Vacuum excess [dust] out using a small attachment, then a cloth over a grout with a brush or toothbrush,” she said.

You can also use a toothbrush “to get into the corners” when cleaning your oven – another vital box to check on your exit report.

Elsewhere in the kitchen, pay attention to wiping down “neglected greasy knobs” on kitchen appliances (like the oven).

While it’s not uncommon for renters to move into a dirty home, Stephens said she and her team “clean them for a living and the standard is so incredibly high for what they need to be”.

When cleaning your oven, use a toothbrush ‘to get into the corners’. Picture: TikTok

Elsewhere in the kitchen, ‘don’t forget those greasy knobs’. Picture: TikTok

The comments on Stephens’ video – which has been viewed over one million times – were filled with people agreeing these were spots they’d missed when leaving a property, and that they’d paid a price as a result.

“I cleaned literally everything and forgot about the oven. Was charged $45 for getting to clean it,” one wrote.

“Our real estate agent charged us over $200 for ‘cleaners’ because of those f***ing window tracks,” said another.

While a third wrote that property manager’ obsession with door and window tracks “is real”.

“We got a professional in to do ours and the landlord complained there was a single dead fly in the garage window frame.”