Shorts Stays Complaining about Cleaning fee

[Chamaine0]

Hello

I own a small elite cleaning Service and I co host for a few Super Host and Clean for others.  Here is the problem. Lately we have had reviews complaining about the cleaning fee. These are whole houses or condos some located on the beach. We have nothing but 5 stars for our cleanliness and the in the same review that one raves about how clean the home is they also complain about paying a fee. 

We are in a tourist area (Destin FL) and my fees are below that of local management companies. 

The complaints have mainly come from people on short stays who think they should pay less. Rather they are there 1 night or 10 the house doesn’t get any smaller the work still has to be done. Bedding has to be washed and changed in every room , towels and so forth. The furniture still has to be vacuumed as our beautiful sand gets everywhere. Every surface has to be cleaned , floors mopped. 

I’ m just be fuddled how someone can leave a hand written note for the cleaning staff about our attention to detail and how they have never stayed in a rental so clean then complain about the fee which was clearly listed at the time of booking.

Now with the new Supper Host requirements my owners are nervous over the 4 stars for Value Because of fees bringing down their standings. They have asked me to come up with something to include in their listings but I’m unsure if this is what to do. Any Ideas ?

[Juan63]

I've traveled the world Sandra. Ignorance is bliss in Denmark I guess, one of the most homogeneous countries in the world. We fundamentally disagree on the role of government. We will go in circles here, besides we are WAY off topic. Trump's good policies don't match his bad rhetoric, so you are confused about his leadership. Sounds like you don't know much about the USA, living in Denmark.

[Sandra856]

I also would like to add that we don't have government sanctioned industies. Denmark is an old western European country with liberal, ordinary companies...haha it is almost a joke. 

[Juan63]

So you're saying your government doesn't control your healthcare? That is a joke..lol

[Sandra856]

@Juan63 They don't control it no. They are using the tax payers money to make a health care system because that is what the public want. If the voters want another system the voters will get another system and the government will do whatever the voters decide. That's how a democratic political system works. They do as they are told by the public. 

[Juan63]

You're naive how it works. Your government absolutely regulate and control the healthcare system in Denmark, fact.

[Sandra856]

I'm not naive. I'm just lucky to live in a country were you can trust the government and your neighbor and in general no one wants to screw you over. That's why we are constantly on the top of the lists of great countries to live in.

[Chenxi--Edwin-0]

The high cleaning fee and extra fees are always off putting. There could be a simple solution. Just put everything under one price. 

When buying groceries, you don't need to add a base price to a transportation cost, then a packaging fee, and a shop rental maybe. Just one price. 

The cleaning is indeed a cost of operating accommodation. Does it really need to be separately charged to the end customer?

[Sarah977]

@Chenxi--Edwin-0  If a host generally gets the same length bookings, say one or two nights, or only takes week-long bookings, etc, they could pretty easily build it into the nightly price. But since a listing normally just gets cleaning and prepared once before a guest arrival, the cleaning fee only gets charged once no matter how long the stay. So if a host added the cleaning fee to the base price- what they need to charge for each cleaning, that would mean that someone who rented for 2 weeks would be paying far more for cleaning proportionately than someone who stayed for one night. 

Lets say a host paid their cleaner $50 for each cleaning. So they add $50 to the nightly price. Someone books for one night and pays that nightly fee. The house needs to be cleaned again after that guest leaves. You book for one week- that $50 that was built-that means you'd be paying an extra $50/night for each night you stayed for 2 weeks, even though the place only got cleaned once before you arrived. You see the dilemma?

[Ute42]

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@Sarah977 

Very well explained, that's exacetly the way it is.

Here's a similar example: Here in Germany if You buy a brandnew car, the customer always gets charged transportation cost. Transportation costs are the amount of money that is required to move the new car from the carfactory, e.g. BMW in Munic to the dealers location, e.g. Berlin. That's 500 Kilometers = 500 Euros transportation costs.

If a customer buys a new car and drives said car for one year his or her annual car transportation costs are 500 Euros.

Now if some other customers decides to buy a brandnew car every week, he or she will be charged 500 Euro 52 times per year and his or her annual transportation cost come out 26,000 Euros. Who triggered these insane trasportation costs? The customer who buys a new car every week.

Same with airbnb guests. If an airbnb guest decides to rent a place for one night only he or she triggers the cleaning costs, the place has to be cleaned again after one night only. Why didn't the guest rent the place for 2 weeks? I don't know, we'll have to ask that person.

I don't understand why guest are complaining about cleaning costs they themselves have intentionally and wilfully and completely out of a hosts control provoked.

Cc: @Chenxi--Edwin-0 

[Giselle174]

I do not have a problem with cleaning fees. I understand the same cleaning needs to be done whether you stay one night or thirty. I have issue with the amount being charged in ratio to the per night fee for the rental. I have seen it anywhere from no cleaning fee to ones that are higher than the nightly rental. What I would like is for Airbnb to standardize cleaning in the sense that a cleaning fee can't be a certain % higher than the nightly rate. If cleaning is more expensive in some places they should be able to increase the nightly rate to cover any additional cleaning costs. 

My other issue is the fact that I have to pay a cleaning fee but then am expected to clean before I leave. I always clean up behind myself and leave the place neat but I vehemently object to being asked to take out garbage and recycling, strip the beds, start a load of laundry, etc whch is the job of the cleaner. I have never paid a cleaning fee anywhere else in the world and still been expected to do part of the cleaner's job. Has a hotel or a B&B ever asked you to do that? I also noticed the places that require you to do more of the cleaning have the highest fees. The requirements are never posted in the listing either so you don't find out until after you've paid and you're just stuck if it is not cancellable. I would definitely not book these places if I knew in advance what was required and it is only fair that these things be disclosed to guests prior to booking. 

Airbnb fees are high enough without being gouged on cleaning and I'm sure some hosts are taking a profit on the cleaning fee. I would just like to see it standardized in a fair way that works for both hosts and guests. 

[Debra300]

@Giselle174,

I don't think your idea will gather any traction.  You should read all sections of the listing description, because checkout and cleaning rules are definitely provided for a guest to read before making a reservation.  

Here is a screenshot of what's in my listings:

[Giselle174]

@Debra300 Thank you for pointing that out - I was not aware that was listed probably because you have to scroll all the way to the bottom and expand the section in order to find it. I will be sure to read that from now on prior to booking. 

I still don't think as guests we should have to do any of the cleaning besides picking up after ourselves which includes cleaning any dishes and messes in the kitchen and things of that nature that are really common sense.

Airbnb needs to have some sort of policy with regard to the fee as well. I use Airbnb a lot - 3-4 times/month and in several countries so I have seen it all. I am not just an occasional user with a skewed perspective. I noticed the cleaning fee is highest in the  US aand so is the expectation of what should be cleaned before leaving. 

[Ann72]

@Chenxi--Edwin-0  Can you come up with a formula that would calculate how much to add to the nightly price that would take into account 1-night, 2-night, 3-night, 4-night, 5-night, 6-night, and week-long stays over the course of a year?

I didn't think so.  That's why there's a separate cleaning fee.  It's the same fee whether it's one night or 6 nights.  A $100 cleaning fee is $100 for one night, but $20 per night for 5 nights.

Of course you hate fees.  Everyone does.  They're on telephone bills, bank statements, airline bookings, and hotel reservations.  If you don't want to pay a cleaning fee, just tell the host.  They'll be fine with that as long as you're fine with doing the cleaning when you check in.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Chenxi--Edwin-0 I think it may work differently outside of the EU but when you search for properties from in the EU you get the list of available properties with a nightly average fee that includes all cleaning, taxes etc. As a result you only have to focus on the nightly price when comparing properties - how it is made up is entirely irrelevant.

[Christine615]

Ignore it. I agree with you. It takes as much time to clean after a weekend as a week. The only time the cleaning is more extensive is when the guests have stayed for several weeks but the increased nightly fees make up for it.