There is no standard price for strata cleaning. The cost is set by the scope you ask for: how much common area there is, which areas are included, how often each is cleaned and what periodic work sits on top. Two quotes for the same building can differ widely simply because one includes the fire stairs, bin room and car park and the other doesn’t.
This guide covers what drives the cost, how to compare quotes like-for-like, and which contract terms matter. If you first need to understand what strata cleaning includes and who is responsible for it, start with what is strata cleaning.
Strata cleaning is usually quoted as a fixed monthly or per-visit fee for routine cleaning. Periodic tasks, such as carpet steam cleaning, are quoted separately. Some providers also give hourly rates for extra work.
We don’t publish a price list, because two buildings with the same number of lots can need very different scopes. Price guides online are typically written by cleaning companies from their own jobs, and they rarely say whether prices include GST or which buildings they are based on. Treat them as rough indicators at best. The reliable way to get a number is a site inspection and a written scope.
Price follows the common-area floor space and the number of separate spaces to clean, not the number of lots. A 30-lot block with one lobby and open walkways is quicker to clean than a 30-lot building with several lift cores, enclosed corridors on every floor and three car park levels.
Frequency is the biggest lever a committee controls. Cleaning entrances and lifts three times a week instead of twice adds labour every week of the year. Setting frequency area by area (lobbies more often, low-use corridors less often) usually gives better value than raising the whole building’s frequency. Periodic jobs are set area by area too: entrance sliding doors only need their tracks cleaned a few times a year, and our guide explainshow to clean sliding door tracks.
Check whether each quote includes:
Leaving out one of these is the most common reason a quote looks cheaper.
Carpet steam cleaning, hard-floor scrubbing or strip and seal, high-level dusting and full car park cleans are usually priced per occasion. Ask for them as separate line items with a planned month so you can budget for them.
Ground-floor retail, commercial tenants, short-stay apartments or a busy pool and gym mean more dirt, more waste and more frequent amenity cleaning. Mixed-use buildings may also have different work health and safety obligations from residential-only schemes (see below).
Stone, timber or polished concrete floors, large internal glass areas and high ceilings may need specific products, machinery or access equipment. External high-rise windows and façades need specialist access and are normally a separate quote.
Restricted hours, after-hours or weekend cleaning, lift booking rules, limited parking for the cleaning team and key or fob handling all affect labour time and cost.
Scheduled inspections, photo reports and a dedicated account contact take management time. They are often what separates a low quote from a reliable one, so price them in deliberately rather than by accident.
Spill clean-ups, flood response, dumped-rubbish removal and post-event cleans are usually charged at extra rates. Agree in the contract how they are approved and priced.
If the same provider also handles grounds maintenance, waste and pest control, you can reduce duplicated visits and have one point of contact. Make sure each service is still priced and scoped separately so you can compare it.
NSW Fair Trading advises getting multiple quotes to estimate cost accurately. It also states that “you will need at least two independent quotes for items more than $30,000”. In large schemes, an item costing more than 10 per cent of the amount estimated at the AGM requires a majority vote. A multi-year cleaning contract can pass the $30,000 mark, so confirm with your strata manager how the threshold applies to your contract.
Who can approve the contract depends on your scheme. The owners corporation can have the strata committee or the strata manager hire workers such as cleaners. The committee’s powers, and any spending limits, are set by the owners corporation and your by-laws. Where a building manager recommends a cleaning contractor, they must disclose in writing any benefit they will receive, such as a referral fee or commission.
NSW Fair Trading describes the administrative fund as the “everyday fund” for day-to-day expenses, giving window or carpet cleaning and lawn mowing as examples. When you set the annual budget, include periodic cleaning tasks as well as the routine fee so levies cover the full-year cost.
Most of what protects the scheme sits in the contract itself, so read it before signing. Check:
For a clause-by-clause review of any cleaning agreement, including renewal, price review and liability terms, see our commercial cleaning contract checklist.
Per-lot figures can mislead, because the price follows the common-area space and scope, not the number of lots. Two 30-lot buildings can need very different hours on site. Once you have quotes on the same scope, divide the full-year total, including periodic work, by the number of lots if you want to show owners the levy impact.
Not always, and online price guides often don’t say either way. Ask every bidder to state whether each line is GST-inclusive, then compare GST-inclusive annual totals so the committee is comparing the same number.
There is no standard term. A shorter term, or a longer term with a performance exit and a planned review, gives the committee room to act if standards slip. Remember that a multi-year contract’s total value can pass the $30,000 mark where NSW Fair Trading says at least two independent quotes are needed.
If you’re setting the administrative fund budget or getting ready to re-tender, ask us to quote against the same written scope you give everyone else. B&K Services provides strata and common-area cleaning across Sydney, Wollongong and the Illawarra and Nowra and the Shoalhaven. We inspect the building first at no cost, so the quote reflects your actual common areas, and our insurance and certification documents are available for the committee’s file. After the contract starts, scheduled quality checks and a dedicated account manager give the strata manager something to report against.
Request a free strata cleaning quote or call 1300 136 954.