How Much Does Strata Cleaning Cost in Western Sydney? A Guide for Owners Corporations
Short answer? No single number covers it. We quote every strata building on its own, because two 30-lot blocks on the same street can need completely different amounts of work.
So you won't find a made-up average here. What you will find: the things that move a quote, the one cost figure the government does publish (what a cleaner must earn), and a few questions that'll save your committee a headache later.
We've done this since 2009, across Parramatta, Blacktown, Penrith and Mount Druitt. Here's what we look at before we put a number on anything.
How much does strata cleaning cost in Western Sydney?
Four things set the price of strata cleaning in Western Sydney: hours per visit, visits per week, when the work happens, and the hourly rate. From 1 July 2026, a full-time Level 1 cleaner must earn at least $27.08 an hour under the Cleaning Services Award 2020.
The first three come from your building. How many lots, whether there's a lift, a basement car park, a gym or pool, and how much foot traffic the lobby cops. You can't price that from a spreadsheet. A contractor worth hiring will want to walk the site first.
The hourly rate works differently. The Cleaning Services Award 2020 generally covers people who work for contract cleaning companies, and the Fair Work Ombudsman publishes its minimum rates. These figures apply from 1 July 2026, after the Fair Work Commission's 4.75% increase.
Level 1 adult cleaner, from 1 July 2026 | Minimum per hour |
Full-time, weekday | $27.08 |
Part-time, weekday (includes 15% part-time loading) | $31.14 |
Casual, weekday (includes 25% casual loading) | $33.85 |
Full-time, Saturday (150%) | $40.62 |
Full-time, Sunday (200%) | $54.16 |
Casual, Saturday (175%) | $47.39 |
Casual, Sunday (225%) | $60.93 |
Full-time, public holiday (250%) | $67.70 |
Source: Fair Work Ombudsman, Cleaning Services Award 2020 [MA000022].
Super goes on top. The ATO's super guarantee rate is 12% for 2026-27.
Keep in mind that's what the cleaner earns, not what the building pays. Insurance, workers comp, gear, chemicals, travel, supervision, the contractor's margin and GST all sit on top. Treat the award as a sense check. It isn't a price list.
What drives the cost of strata cleaning?
Square metres matter less than people expect. These five matter more.
Frequency, area by area
We see quotes that just say "twice weekly". Twice weekly for what, though? Lobby three times and corridors once is a very different job to everything twice, and the two can come out at almost the same price.
Lifts, glass and stainless steel
Fingerprints. Endless fingerprints. Lift doors and glass entries take far longer than their size suggests, and they're what owners see first when they walk in.
The bin room
Wet, smelly, and the bins have to move. Square metre for square metre, it's the slowest part of the building to clean. It's also where most of the complaints we hear about previous cleaners start. More on bins below.
Car parks and basements
A basement needs a proper sweep, and oil stains need treating, which takes time and gear. Most schemes book it monthly or quarterly to keep the regular price down.
Access and timing
Weekend work costs more. Full stop. A full-time cleaner earns 150% on Saturdays and 200% on Sundays, and a casual earns 175% and 225%. So a building that wants its bin room done on Sunday, ahead of Monday's pick-up, will pay for it.
Early starts cost a little more too. Under the award, a weekday shift that starts before 6am or finishes after 6pm attracts a 15% shift loading. Bins out before the council truck often lands in that window.
Want an actual number for your building? Book a free strata site assessment and we'll send a written scope and quote within 24 hours.
Why is a very cheap strata cleaning quote a warning sign?
Because the maths stops adding up.
A strata cleaning quote that sits close to the award wage floor is a warning sign. From 1 July 2026, a casual Level 1 cleaner must earn at least $33.85 an hour under the Cleaning Services Award 2020, or about $37.91 with 12% super. That covers wages only, before insurance, equipment, travel, profit or GST.
A quick test: divide the quote by the hours it promises. A result close to that wage floor deserves a hard question about how they make it work.
Usually something gives. The contractor trims hours, the scope quietly shrinks, or staff miss out on proper pay. Committees tend to notice a few months in, once the lobby looks tired and the contractor's phone goes to voicemail.
Ask every bidder for certificates of currency for public liability and workers comp, and check their staff are police checked. Our guide on whether commercial cleaners are police checked and insured explains what to look for.
Which strata fund pays for cleaning in NSW?
The administrative fund. Think of it as the scheme's everyday account. NSW Fair Trading lists cleaning and garden maintenance among the regular costs it covers. Owners approve the budget by majority vote at the AGM, and the treasurer or strata manager works out each owner's levy from it.
The catch? Once the AGM sets the levies, extra scope halfway through the year means finding a surplus or raising a special levy. Nobody likes that meeting. Get the scope right at budget time.
Under it all sits section 106 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW). It requires the owners corporation to maintain and repair common property. Regular cleaning is part of looking after it, and it's the first thing buyers and tenants notice.
What should a strata cleaning checklist include?
Name every common area, what happens there, and how often. Here's a starting point for strata common area cleaning. Change it to fit your building.
Area | Tasks | Typical frequency |
Lobby and entry | Floors, glass doors, mat well, letterboxes, intercom panel | 2 to 3 times a week |
Lifts | Buttons, walls, stainless panels, floor, door tracks | 2 to 3 times a week |
Corridors and stairwells | Vacuum or mop, handrails, skirting, light switches | Weekly to twice a week |
Fire stairs | Sweep, cobwebs, handrails | Fortnightly to monthly |
Bin room | Bin rotation, floor wash, bin wash, deodorise | Collection days |
Car park | Sweep, oil spot treatment, cobwebs | Monthly to quarterly |
Laundry, gym or pool area | Surfaces, floors, bins, glass | 2 to 3 times a week |
External paths and entries | Sweep, litter pick-up, leaf blowing | Weekly |
Put that list in the contract with every area spelled out. Fire stairs and plant room corridors are where cheap quotes save time, because nobody walks through them. We give every new client a full inclusions schedule before day one.
What does bin room cleaning involve, and who puts the bins out?
A proper bin room clean means hosing and scrubbing the floor, washing the bins inside and out, clearing the drain and deodorising the room. Add a pressure wash once grime builds up. A good cleaner will also tell the strata manager about leaks, pests or dumped furniture early, before they turn into an expensive fix.
Bin rotation is another job entirely. Out to the kerb before the council truck, back in after. Every week. Forget once and you'll hear about it by lunchtime. It's the gap we run into most often when we look over old strata contracts. Put in writing who does it (cleaner, building manager or a resident) and make sure the price covers it.
What costs extra on top of the regular contract?
Most periodic jobs sit outside the monthly price, so budget for them separately:
Carpet steam cleaning in corridors, usually yearly and quoted by the square metre
Pressure washing for driveways, paths and car park floors
External windows above ground level, which need height gear
A builders clean before residents move into a new building
Leave these out of the budget and they'll turn up as surprise invoices, usually at the worst time.
How do you compare two strata cleaning quotes?
Two quotes for the same building can sit a long way apart, and the hourly rate is rarely the reason.
Line them up on these first:
Same area list. Does each quote name the bin room, car park, fire stairs and paths?
Frequency for each area, not one number for the whole building.
Hours per visit. No hours, no way to check the price.
Bin rotation. In or out?
Insurance and police checks, with certificates attached.
Proof of service, like sign-in records, photos or a checklist after each visit.
Exit terms. Long lock-ins protect the contractor. We don't use them.
Most problems show up a few months in, once standards slip. We wrote about what we find when we take over from the previous cleaner, if you want to know the early signs.
Is body corporate cleaning the same as strata cleaning?
Yep. Queensland calls the owners' group a body corporate, and Victoria did too until it switched to "owners corporation". NSW uses owners corporation. The job doesn't change: someone cleans the common property on a schedule the committee signed off.
Frequently asked questions
How much does strata cleaning cost per lot?
No standard per-lot rate exists. Cleaning comes out of the administrative fund, and your levy share follows your unit entitlement, so owners with higher entitlements pay more. For a rough figure, multiply the yearly cleaning cost by your unit entitlement, then divide by the scheme's total entitlement.
How often do strata common areas need cleaning?
For most Western Sydney strata buildings, two or three times a week does the job. Lobbies and lifts need the most visits, fire stairs and car parks the fewest. Got a pool, gym or ground-floor shops? Daily cleaning is common. A walk-through of the site is the quickest way to land on the right schedule.
Is the strata cleaner responsible for putting the bins out?
Only if your contract says so. Bin rotation is a weekly job tied to council pick-up day, and it's the gap we find most often in strata contracts. Put in writing who does it (cleaner, building manager or a resident) and check the price covers it.
What is not included in a standard strata clean?
Usually carpet steam cleaning, pressure washing, windows above ground level and anything inside a lot. Cleaners quote these separately, often once or twice a year. Ask for them as line items when the committee sets the budget, so they become planned costs in the administrative fund instead of surprises.
What is the minimum hourly rate for a strata cleaner in NSW?
From 1 July 2026, the Cleaning Services Award 2020 sets a Level 1 adult floor of $27.08 an hour for full-time staff, $31.14 for part-time and $33.85 for casuals, before super. Weekend, public holiday and early-morning work pays more. The contractor's price must also cover insurance, equipment, supervision and GST.
Who chooses the strata cleaner?
The owners corporation, since common property is its responsibility. In practice, the strata committee or strata manager collects quotes and recommends someone, and the committee signs off the spend within the AGM budget. Some decisions, such as spending outside the approved budget, may need a general meeting.
Can we change strata cleaners part way through the year?
Check the notice period in your current contract first. Many strata cleaning contracts run 12 months with fixed exit terms. We don't do lock-ins at Jas Commercial Cleaning, so you can switch to us when your notice period ends, and walk away just as easily if we don't deliver.
Get a strata cleaning quote for your building
Jas Commercial Cleaning looks after strata cleaning in Western Sydney for walk-ups, mid-rise and mixed-use buildings around Parramatta, Blacktown, Penrith, Merrylands, Mount Druitt and nearby. We've worked with strata managers and committees for more than 15 years. Insured, police checked, WHS-compliant, and no lock-in contracts.
Call 0405 817 844 or book a free site assessment. We'll send you a written scope and a fixed price within 24 hours.
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