The simple steps Sydney homeowners take to get the most out of every visit
You have booked a professional house clean. The cleaners are arriving in a few days. Everything is sorted — but should you be doing anything before they show up?
This is one of the most common questions we hear from homeowners across Sydney, and it is a reasonable one. After all, you are paying for a professional service and you want to get the most out of it. The good news is that preparing your home does not require a lot of effort. In fact, it only takes about 15 to 20 minutes and makes a genuine difference to the quality of the clean you receive.
Here is exactly what to do — and what you absolutely do not need to bother with.
1. Declutter Surfaces — But Do Not Clean Them
The most useful thing you can do before your cleaner arrives is to clear clutter from the surfaces that need to be cleaned. Countertops, bathroom shelves, kitchen benches, coffee tables — if these are covered in items that need to be moved before cleaning can even start, your cleaner spends a portion of their time tidying rather than cleaning.
Move dishes to the sink or dishwasher. Put loose items like remotes, books, kids’ toys, and paperwork somewhere out of the way. Take personal items off bathroom counters and into a drawer or basket. This is not about making things look nice for the cleaner — it is about giving them clear access to the surfaces they are there to scrub, disinfect, and polish.
Important distinction
Decluttering and cleaning are two different things. Your job before the visit is to tidy, not to pre-clean. Do not wipe down your benches or scrub your shower before the cleaner arrives — that is their job and you will be duplicating effort you have already paid for.
2. Secure Your Pets
If you have a dog, cat, or any other pet that has the run of the house, arranging for them to be out of the way during the clean makes a significant difference. This is not only for the cleaner’s comfort — though many cleaners do appreciate it — it is also about the quality of the result.
Pets that follow cleaners from room to room, sit on freshly mopped floors, or investigate the vacuum cleaner repeatedly add time to the job and can leave footprints, fur, or mess in areas that have just been cleaned. If possible, keep pets in one room, put them in the backyard, or arrange for someone to take them out for a walk during the visit.
If you have a pet and have not mentioned it when booking, it is worth letting your cleaning service know in advance. A good professional cleaning company will send cleaners who are comfortable with animals, but it is always better to give them a heads up.
3. Identify Any Special Requests Ahead of Time
Standard house cleaning services follow a set checklist covering all the main areas of your home. If you have something specific you want paid extra attention to — a bathroom that has not had a proper clean in a while, a stovetop that needs degreasing, marks on skirting boards — tell your cleaning provider before the visit rather than on the day.
When clients mention specific priorities at booking or via a quick message beforehand, cleaners can allocate their time accordingly. Mentioning it at the door when the cleaner has already planned their schedule for the visit is less effective.
Most professional cleaning services have a straightforward way to communicate these requests. If you are using our house cleaning service, you can note any special requirements when you submit your quote request and we will make sure your cleaner is briefed before they arrive.
4. Make Sure Access Is Sorted
This one sounds obvious but causes more scheduling headaches than almost anything else. Before your cleaner arrives, confirm how they are getting in. Are you going to be home? If not, have you arranged a key, a lockbox code, or access through a building manager?
For houses this usually means leaving a key under the mat or in a lockbox, or letting a neighbour know. For apartments, it is more involved — particularly if you live in a high-rise with security access, intercom systems, or car park requirements. Strata buildings sometimes have specific rules about when tradespeople and service providers can enter, so it is worth checking if there are any restrictions that apply to your building.
If you live in a Sydney apartment and are not sure what is involved, our apartment cleaning service page covers exactly how we handle building access, key collection, and strata requirements — it is something we deal with every day across hundreds of Sydney buildings.
5. Put Valuables and Fragile Items Away
Reputable professional cleaning companies police-check and background-verify every cleaner before they work in a client’s home. That said, it is still good practice to put away items of significant value or anything particularly fragile before a cleaning visit.
This includes jewellery left on dressers, expensive electronics in open areas, irreplaceable ornaments on low shelves, or important documents on desks. It is not about distrust — it is simply a sensible habit when anyone, professional or otherwise, is working through your home. It also removes any awkwardness or concern from both sides of the arrangement.
Fragile items are also worth securing simply because cleaning involves movement, vacuums, mops, and cloths being taken through every room. An ornament near the edge of a shelf is more likely to be knocked accidentally during a clean than at any other time.
6. If It Is a Deep Clean, Do Not Pre-Clean — But Do Tidy
If you have booked a deep cleaning service rather than a standard regular clean, the same principles apply — tidy up clutter and clear surfaces — but there is an extra consideration worth knowing.
Deep cleaning is designed specifically to reach the areas that regular cleaning misses: inside the oven, behind appliances, grout lines, inside cupboards, rangehood filters, window tracks, and so on. If you spend an hour pre-cleaning these areas before your deep clean arrives, you are essentially doing part of the job you have already paid for.
Our deep cleaning service in Sydney is built around a thorough 50-point checklist that covers every area of your home from top to bottom. The best use of your time beforehand is simply to tidy loose items from surfaces and make sure the cleaner has clear access to every room — everything else is our job.
7. Brief Your Cleaner at the Start — Briefly
When your cleaner arrives, a one or two minute walkthrough is genuinely useful. You do not need to narrate every room in detail, but pointing out things like a particularly grimy bathroom, a room that needs less attention because it is rarely used, or a surface that requires a specific product or a delicate touch helps them work more efficiently.
The key word is briefly. Professional cleaners are experienced and know what they are doing. A short, focused briefing is helpful. A detailed running commentary through every room is not necessary and can make both parties uncomfortable. Mention your priorities, answer any questions they have, and then leave them to get on with it.
8. What You Do NOT Need to Do
There is a common misconception that you need to tidy your home to a certain standard before a cleaner arrives — as if the house needs to look presentable before a cleaning professional walks in. This is not the case.
Here is what you do not need to do before your cleaner arrives:
- Pre-clean surfaces, scrub your bathroom, or wipe down your benches — this is their job
- Vacuum or mop floors in advance
- Make beds (unless you have requested this not be done)
- Deep clean your oven or appliances
- Apologise for the state of the house — they have seen everything and are there to help
The only real preparation is decluttering so they can access surfaces, and sorting out access so the visit runs smoothly.
One More Thing: Setting Up a Regular Schedule
If this is your first professional clean, it is worth knowing that the first visit often takes slightly longer than subsequent ones. This is simply because the cleaner is new to your home — they are learning the layout, getting familiar with your preferences, and starting from whatever baseline your home is currently at.
Most Sydney homeowners who start with a one-off clean end up setting up a regular fortnightly or weekly schedule once they see the results. Ongoing regular cleaning is faster, more cost-effective, and keeps your home consistently in good shape rather than requiring a reset every time.
If you are curious about how our regular cleaning schedule works — including how we match you with the same cleaner every visit — you can read more on our regular cleaning page. And if you want to see exactly what we cover on every standard clean, our cleaning checklist breaks it down room by room.
Ready to Book Your Professional House Clean in Sydney?
Preparing for your first professional clean is straightforward — a quick tidy, cleared surfaces, sorted access, and a brief word with your cleaner on arrival. That is genuinely all it takes. The rest is our job.If you are looking for a reliable, police-checked, fully insured cleaning service across Sydney — from the eastern suburbs to the north shore and everywhere in between — you can get a free quote here and we will come back to you within 60 minutes. No obligation, no hourly surprises — just a clear flat-rate price and a team that shows up and does the job properly.
