The 'Reasonably Clean' Standard Under SA Tenancy Law (Section 69(3))

Section 69(3) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1995 (SA) sets out what a tenant has to do with the property at the end of a tenancy. In plain English: you must leave the premises in a reasonable state of cleanliness and reasonable condition, having regard to their condition at the start of the tenancy and to fair wear and tear.

The standard is 'reasonably clean'. It is not 'spotless'. It is not 'professionally cleaned'. It is not 'as good as new'. It is reasonable, in the eyes of a reasonable person, with allowance for the normal wear that comes from someone actually living in a property.

This matters because the entire end-of-lease cleaning industry markets to a 'spotless' standard. That is fine if you want a spotless property and you have the money for it. But spotless is not the legal test. Reasonable is. If you understand the difference, you understand why a thorough DIY clean often passes inspection, and why a perfectly fine clean is sometimes wrongly rejected by an agent looking for a reason.

Fair wear and tear is the deterioration that comes from normal use of a property over time. It is not damage. It is not neglect. It is the ordinary, expected ageing of a home that has had people living in it.

Things that are normally fair wear and tear:

• Minor scuffs on walls from furniture, footwear or daily movement
• Carpet flattening in heavy-traffic areas
• Faded paintwork from sunlight
• Small marks around light switches and door handles where hands touch every day
• Loose tap washers, ageing grout, slight discolouration of older silicone seals
• Worn cushioning in older venetian blind cords

Things that are NOT fair wear and tear and may sit outside s 69(3):

• Burn marks, cigarette holes, large stains
• Damage from pets that was not declared or permitted
• Mould caused by failure to ventilate or report a leak
• Holes in walls from un-approved picture hooks not properly filled
• Filth and grease build-up in the kitchen from a tenancy where the oven was never cleaned

The practical test agents apply: would a reasonable person looking at this property say 'a tenant has lived here for the agreed length of time and left it clean and presentable', or would they say 'a tenant has not cleaned this'? If the answer is the 1st, you are inside s 69(3).

A condition (inspection) report is completed at the start of the tenancy. Under the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2025 (SA) reg 4, this report records the state of the property when you moved in. At the end of the tenancy, both you and the landlord or agent should inspect the property and compare it against that original report.

The condition report is the baseline. It tells anyone reading it what the property looked like when you took it on, which decides what 'fair wear and tear' allows for and what counts as a change you caused.

What to do at the start of a tenancy:

• Fill in the condition report carefully. Do not let an agent or landlord rush you. You usually have a set period after move-in to complete it.
• Take dated photos of every room, every cupboard, every wet area, the oven inside, behind appliances, marks on walls, the carpet condition. Date-stamp them and email them to yourself so the timestamp is on file.
• Note anything pre-existing in detail. Tiny marks on walls, oven build-up, carpet stains, scuffed skirtings, mould in silicone seals - all of it. If it is on the report, it cannot be claimed against you at the end.

What to do at the end:

• Dig out the original condition report.
• Walk the property and take dated move-out photos in the same angles and order as your move-in photos.
• Compare the move-out state against the move-in state. Anything in your move-in photos that the agent later flags is not your problem.

Many Adelaide leases include a clause that says something like 'the tenant must have all carpets professionally cleaned at the end of the tenancy'. This is among the most common questions we get from renters: 'My lease says I must use a professional carpet cleaner. Do I have to?'

Consumer and Business Services (CBS) has specifically listed 'all carpets shall be professionally cleaned by the tenant at the termination of the tenancy' as an example of a term that may be unenforceable, because it requires a tenant to do something the Act does not require. Under s 69(3), carpets only need to be in a reasonable state of cleanliness, with allowance for fair wear and tear.

If the carpets are already reasonably clean (you have vacuumed thoroughly, no fresh stains, normal wear for the length of the tenancy), the Act does not require a professional clean. The lease term may not be enforceable on top of that.

If the carpets are not reasonably clean (pet accidents, food spills, smoking residue, visible high-traffic dirt the vacuum will not lift), a professional steam clean is usually the cheapest way to get them inside the standard - and you would arguably need to do it whether or not the lease says so.

An agent can recommend a cleaner. An agent generally cannot compel you to use a specific operator if the carpets already meet the standard. This is general information only. If you are in a dispute over a carpet term, confirm your position with CBS on 131 882 or a tenancy advice service before you respond to the agent. For the cost ranges and scope of a carpet steam clean, see /services/carpet-steam-clean and /cost/carpet-steam-clean-cost.

Following the same principle, a lease cannot demand more of a tenant than the Act allows. Examples of clauses that may sit outside s 69(3) and may not be enforceable:

• A clause requiring the tenant to use a specific cleaner the agent has nominated, when the property already meets the standard
• A clause requiring fumigation or pest treatment regardless of whether there is a pest problem
• A clause requiring repainting or wall washing when there is only fair wear and tear
• A clause requiring re-staining of decks, polishing of floors, or other restorative work beyond cleaning

The key test is always the same: does the Act actually require this? If the answer is no, a contractual term that adds to your statutory obligations may be unenforceable. Again, this is general information. The Act is the floor; the lease can add reasonable obligations on top, but it cannot demand more cleaning than the Act allows. Confirm anything specific with CBS or a tenancy advice service.

Agents inspect against a known list of trouble spots. Knowing what they look for is half the battle.

Kitchen: the oven (inside, racks, trays, glass door), the rangehood and filters, the cooktop, the splashback, benches free of crumbs and stains, cupboards wiped inside and out, sink and tapware free of limescale. A neglected oven is the single most common cleaning claim agents make.

Bathrooms: shower screen free of soap scum, grout cleaned (not necessarily 'as new'), toilet inside and out including the base, vanity, mirror, exhaust fan. Mould on silicone seals depends on age - if it is old, fair wear and tear; if it is recent and obviously from not ventilating, it is on the tenant.

Laundry: tub, taps, behind and under appliances where accessible, dryer lint filter, cupboards.

Floors: vacuumed throughout, hard floors mopped. Carpets in a reasonable state for the length of the tenancy.

Windows and tracks: interior windows cleaned, sills and tracks wiped.

General: skirtings, switches, doorframes, tops of doors wiped. Cobwebs removed. Light fittings dusted. Cupboards and drawers cleaned inside and out.

Walls: spot-clean obvious marks. A full wall wash is not required by s 69(3) and is generally only needed if there is visible dirt beyond fair wear and tear.

You do not need to scrub the property to a hotel standard. You need to remove the dirt that a tenant has accumulated through ordinary living, so the property comes back to the condition it was in at move-in (per your condition report), allowing for fair wear and tear.

Understanding the 'reasonably clean' standard changes how you approach booking a clean. 3 practical takeaways:

1st, you have a real choice. If you have kept the place well, you have time, and you are willing to do thorough work, a DIY clean to the s 69(3) standard is legally fine. You do not need to pay for a professional clean to meet the law. See our /guides/diy-vs-professional-bond-clean guide for the honest trade-offs.

2nd, a professional clean is insurance, not a legal requirement. The reason most renters book one is that they are moving house at the same time, they have run out of time, and they want a paid invoice as evidence if the agent disputes the clean. Those are all good reasons. They are not legal reasons.

3rd, if you do book a clean, you are paying for a defined scope. Get a fixed written quote with a scope list. If the agent later disputes the clean, you have evidence of exactly what was done. If the cleaner missed something inside scope, most independent operators in Adelaide offer a free re-clean within 48-72 hours (that arrangement is between you and the cleaner, never a platform promise). See /guides/how-to-choose-an-end-of-lease-cleaner for what to look for, or get matched with up to 3 Adelaide cleaners through /tools/find-a-cleaner.

If the agent flags the clean, the question is whether the items the agent has flagged actually sit outside the s 69(3) standard. Tiny dust on the edge of a wardrobe, a small mark on a skirting, a faint streak on a window: these are details a perfectionist might want addressed, but they are not what the Act requires. Major issues like a neglected oven, mould build-up the tenant caused, visible filth in bathrooms or kitchens: these are different.

The process if the agent disputes the clean:

• Ask for the rejection in writing with the specific items the agent says fail the standard.
• Compare the items against your condition report and your dated move-out photos. Anything that was already there at move-in is not your problem.
• Compare the items against the scope on your bond clean invoice (if you used a cleaner). Anything inside scope is the cleaner's responsibility to address.
• If you used an independent cleaner who offers a re-clean, contact them within their stated window (usually 48-72 hours).
• If you and the agent cannot agree on the bond, the CBS process kicks in: 14 days to dispute a bond claim, then conciliation, then possible referral to SACAT.

Full walk-through in /guides/what-to-do-if-your-agent-rejects-the-clean and /guides/sa-bond-refund-process.