Between one guest checking out and the next checking in, there may be only a few hours to get the property clean, restocked and ready. Turnover cleaning works best when it is planned before the first booking, not on the morning of a tight changeover.
This guide is for hosts and short-stay managers. It covers the time window, access, a written checklist, the jobs that sit outside a clean, and the questions worth asking any cleaner. It is also clear about which parts we can and cannot help with.
Start with the turnover window
Your checkout and check-in times set the window. How long the clean takes depends on the size of the property, how many guests stayed and how they left it.
- Build in a buffer for a late checkout, a property left in a worse state than usual, or a delay getting in.
- Plan same-day changeovers in order: clean first, then linen and restocking, then a final check before the next guests arrive.
- Share your calendar early. Tell your cleaner about bookings as soon as they come in, and ask how changes and short-notice requests are handled.
With us, sending a booking request is not the same as a confirmed booking: we confirm the date and time with you, and if a time does not work we suggest another. For tight turnovers, sort this out well before the date.
Sort out access once
Every turnover needs the cleaner to get in without you there. Write the details down once and keep them current:
- how to get in, whether a lock box, key safe or smart lock
- building entry, intercom or concierge instructions, and which lift to use
- where to park, and whether visitor parking is time-limited
- where the bins and the bin room are
- what to do if a guest is still there when the cleaner arrives
In apartment buildings, check whether the owners corporation has rules for contractors, such as booking a lift or signing in. Access details you give us are stored in a restricted part of our system and are never included in emails.
Write the turnover checklist down
A written checklist means every turnover is done to the same standard, whoever does it. Not every line is a cleaning job, so mark who does each one.
| Area | Every turnover | Now and then |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | Benches, sink, cooktop and appliance fronts; leftovers cleared from the fridge | Inside the oven and the fridge |
| Bathrooms | Shower, basin, toilet, mirrors and floor | Grout and the shower screen in detail |
| Bedrooms | Beds made with fresh linen; surfaces dusted; under the beds checked for left items | Mattress cleaning, blinds |
| Living areas | Surfaces dusted; floors vacuumed and mopped | Carpet and sofa cleaning, interior windows |
| Outside | Balcony swept; rubbish into the bins | Balcony mopped |
| Final check | Windows locked, lights and heating or cooling off | — |
Take photos of each room set up the way you want guests to find it, and keep them with the checklist.
Decide who does the jobs that are not cleaning
These are part of every turnover, but they are not cleaning, and many cleaners do not offer them. Decide who is responsible for each before your first guest:
- Linen and towels: washing, drying and supplying them. We do not offer a linen or laundry service, and washing and ironing are not part of our home cleans. If you want beds made with linen you leave out, ask us first.
- Restocking: toilet paper, soap, tea and coffee, and any welcome items.
- Guests: messages, check-in instructions and key handover.
- Damage, repairs and lost property: who checks for damage, who arranges repairs, how anything found during a clean is reported to you, and who returns items guests leave behind.
Plan the deeper work between bookings
Turnover cleans keep on top of each stay, but the details still build up: the inside of the oven and fridge, blinds, interior windows, mattresses, sofas and carpets. Book these into a gap between guests rather than squeezing them into a same-day changeover.
Mattress steam cleaning is one example. Our mattress steam cleaning is listed for short-stay and holiday properties, and you should allow several hours with good ventilation before the bed is made, so it does not suit a same-day check-in. What to expect from mattress steam cleaning explains the visit.
Questions to ask any cleaner
- How much notice do you need, and how are bookings confirmed?
- What happens with a late checkout or a same-day change?
- What does each visit include, and what costs extra?
- Do you handle linen, laundry or restocking, or not?
- How do you get in, and how are access codes kept?
- How will you tell me about damage, missing items or lost property?
- How is the price set if a guest leaves the property in a much worse state?
- If I have several properties, is there one contact, and an invoice per property?
How we can help
Our home cleaning can be booked as one-off cleans, priced from the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the condition and any extras. A one-off clean of a one-bedroom apartment starts at $319 + GST, and a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house at $579 + GST. Each visit covers the kitchen, bathrooms and toilets, dusting of reachable surfaces and the floors, and extras such as inside the oven, inside the fridge, interior windows, blinds and a balcony sweep and mop can be added. If a property is very different from the details you gave, we talk to you before doing any extra work.
We do not offer linen or laundry, restocking, guest communication or key handover to guests. Before you plan turnovers around us, contact us with the property, your usual checkout and check-in times and how often you expect changeovers, and we will tell you plainly what we can cover. If it is your first clean with us, how to prepare for your first professional home clean covers access, priorities and what to put away.
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