Move Out Cleaning Checklist for Singapore (HDB & Condo)

The short version: a move out clean in Singapore is measured against one thing, the move-in condition the landlord or agent inspects at handover. Pass that inspection and the deposit comes back. The clean that passes is a full empty-unit deep clean, kitchen grease off the hood and oven, scale off the bathroom tiles, dust out of the window tracks, and cabinet interiors wiped. This page gives you the room-by-room checklist crews actually work to, and where deposits get docked when a step is skipped.

TL;DR

• The deposit is the whole point. Most Singapore tenancy agreements require the unit handed over clean, often with a cleaning receipt attached.
• Clean the unit empty. Move furniture and belongings out first. An empty HDB flat or condo cleans faster and far more thoroughly.
• The deduction triggers are predictable: kitchen hood and oven grease, bathroom scale and grout mould, dusty window tracks and grilles, and the cabinet interiors nobody checks until handover.
• Book the clean a day before the agent inspection so you can walk through and catch anything before the landlord does.
• Use the room-by-room list below as your checklist, whether you do it yourself or hand it to a crew.

Why move out cleaning is its own job in Singapore

End of tenancy cleaning is not the weekly tidy scaled up. It is the clean that gets graded. When you move out of an HDB flat or a condo, the landlord or the property agent walks the unit against the inventory list and the move-in photos. Anything that looks worse than move-in condition, fair wear and tear aside, becomes a line item against your security deposit.

That is the difference. A normal clean is judged by how the place feels. A move out clean is judged by how it compares to a record taken months or years ago. The crew has to think about the back of the cabinet, the top of the door frame, and the corner of the window track, because that is where an inspecting agent looks.

Most standard Singapore tenancy agreements carry a clause requiring the tenant to professionally clean the unit before returning it. Some name a receipt as proof. Even when the clause is loose, the inspection is not, agents do this for a living and know exactly where grease and scale hide.

Before the crew arrives: empty the unit first

Move out cleaning works best on an empty unit. Cleaning around your furniture means the corners, the floor under the bed, and the back of the wardrobe stay dirty, and those are the spots a handover inspection finds. So the sequence is: move everything out, then clean, then inspect.

• Remove all furniture, boxes and personal items.
• Take down curtains and blinds you are keeping (these are usually a separate add-on if they need cleaning).
• Empty every cabinet, drawer and the storeroom.
• Defrost the fridge if you are leaving it behind, the interior gets cleaned, but it has to be off and empty.
• Flag anything broken to your agent before the clean, not after, so it is not mistaken for new damage.

Book the clean for at least a day before the agent inspection. The gap is your safety margin. You get to walk the unit after the crew leaves and see it the way the landlord will.

The room-by-room move out cleaning checklist

This is the scope a full move out clean covers. Work through it room by room. Where a step is a common deposit-deduction trigger, it is called out.

Kitchen — the highest-risk room for deductions

The kitchen is where most deposit money is lost, because grease builds up where you do not see it day to day. Lead here.

• Exhaust hood and filter — degreased inside and out. This is the single most-checked surface at handover.
• Hob and stove — burnt-on grease removed from the cooktop, knobs and surrounding wall tiles.
• Oven interior — racks, glass and walls. Baked-on carbon is a known deduction trigger and a job people skip.
• Microwave — interior and door cleaned.
• Cabinet and drawer interiors — emptied, wiped, crumbs and oil film removed. Inspectors open these.
• Fridge interior — if left behind, cleaned out, shelves and seals wiped.
• Sink and countertop — descaled, stains lifted, taps polished.
• Wall tiles and backsplash — grease film off the tiles behind the stove.

Bathrooms — scale, grout and the smell test

Singapore's hard water leaves limescale on everything, and bathrooms are the second-biggest deduction risk after the kitchen.

• Toilet bowl — descaled and sanitised, including the rim and under the seat.
• Wall and floor tiles — soap scum and mineral deposits removed; grout checked for mould.
• Shower screen and glass — water marks and scale cleared.
• Sink, taps and fixtures — descaled and polished.
• Mirror — streak-free.
• Floor trap and drain — cleared so the room does not smell. A drain odour reads as "not cleaned" to an inspector.

Bedrooms, living and dining — the surfaces inspectors run a finger along

• Floors — vacuumed and mopped, including under where furniture stood.
• Wardrobes and built-in cabinets — interiors wiped, shelves and rails cleaned.
• Skirting boards — dust removed along the full run. A classic finger-test spot.
• Doors, door tops and frames — wiped, including the top edge nobody looks at until handover.
• Light switches and power points — wiped clean of marks.
• Ceiling fans and light fittings — dust and cobwebs removed.
• Aircon fascia — the visible casing wiped (note: this is the exterior; aircon servicing is a separate trade).

Windows, grilles and the balcony

• Window tracks — the channels cleared of dust and grit. One of the most-missed spots and one inspectors deliberately check.
• Window panes and grilles — interior glass and the grille bars wiped.
• Balcony floor — swept and washed down.
• Sliding door tracks — cleared, the same as window tracks.

Whole-unit final pass

• Cobweb check across all ceilings and corners.
• Storeroom and bomb shelter wiped down and floor cleaned.
• Entrance, gate and the area outside the front door.
• A final floor mop once everything else is done, so foot traffic from the clean itself does not show.

HDB vs condo: what changes at handover

The cleaning scope is the same. The inspection differs slightly.

HDB rental flats are handed back to the landlord or the agent, who checks against the inventory and the move-in photos. The kitchen, bathrooms and window tracks carry the most weight. If the flat went through HIP works during your tenancy, expect extra dust in the tracks and on ledges, factor that into the clean.

Condos add a layer: the management office often requires you to book a service lift and a moving slot, and some MCSTs inspect common-area access points. The unit clean is identical, but plan the timing around the condo's move-out rules so the crew can actually get in.

Doing it yourself vs booking a crew

You can work this checklist yourself. The two things that catch people out are time and the hard jobs. An empty unit is half a day to a full day of work, and oven carbon, bathroom scale and hood grease need the right chemicals and some muscle, not a sponge and surface spray.

When you book our move out cleaning, the crew brings their own machines and chemicals, and the price covers the edges, skirting, window tracks, cabinet interiors and oven that other crews quote as add-ons on the day. You get a fixed price up front, with everything in scope, so the cost you agree is the cost you pay. The clean is built to pass the handover inspection, which is the only test that matters for your deposit.

Protect the deposit: the handover sequence

1. Move everything out of the unit.
2. Book the clean for an empty unit, a day before the agent inspection.
3. Walk through after the crew finishes, kitchen and bathrooms first.
4. Take your own photos of the cleaned unit, dated, as your record.
5. Hand over with the cleaning receipt if your tenancy agreement asks for one.

That order is what turns a clean into a returned deposit. The inspection is comparing the unit to a record, so you want your own record too.

Book your move out clean

If you are nearing the end of a lease and want the handover to pass on the first inspection, we can take it off your plate. We send our own trained crew with their own equipment, clean the unit to handover-ready condition, and quote a fixed price with everything included.

See what move-in and move-out cleaning covers, browse the full range of cleaning services, or get your fixed price for your HDB flat or condo.