Cleaning Fee $0-$150-$300 which is best?

[Jeff541]

As an Airbnb Host we are allowed under the Airbnb system to offer a posted room rate (just like any hotel) and also charge a "cleaning fee" which the guest making the reservation will ONLY SEE once they proceed to make a reservation. Both are added together to in essence equal a "TOTAL nightly room rate" (before taxes etc.).

After reading Airbnb and others advice I offered my home at a very low room rate with a high cleaning fee (encourage long term stays etc.). My "TOTAL nightly room rate" was still far less than the local hotels, and all the other Airbnb listings in my area...however a recent guest (self-admitted "anal retentive clean freak") seemed motivated by (her words) my "extremely high cleaning fee" (ignoring the low "Total Room rate"). This seemed to prompt her to fabricate stories about the cleanliness of my home and request that the entire fee be paid to her directly.

The average cleaning fee charged in my area is $150...I charged double or $300 (don't want short term stays etc.) but after the hassle-time of dealing with the former guest I am considering dropping the fee entirely to $0...and increase my room rate (Hotels use this format all the time...in essence cleaning & damages & consumables etc. are included in the room rate)

What’s your thoughts???

Charge $0 (increase rates a lot)… Charge $150 (increase rates to match others) ...Keep it at $300 (my low room rates remain)

IT IS NOT worth it to me to go through arguing over "cleaning" refunds again...was a pain!!! I am thinking this guest was motivated by high fee???...but maybe such requests happen no matter what the fee is?...I don’t know… Thanks All

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Jeff541

cleaning fee is often used as a discount for stays between 2-6 nights but guests don, 't look at it that way. For them, it is a charge for cleaning and they have no idea how many hours we spend on every turnover ( messaging, waiting for them to arrive, check-in, cleaning, laundry etc...)

300$ cleaning fee is a lot. If you want to attract longer stays like 7 + nights then you may increase the nightly price, lower your cleaning fee and offer the weekly or monthly discount.   You can also set a minimum length of stay

[Paul154]

@Jeff541

Keep it simple. 

Charge the same cleaning fee as your neighbors (for an equivant place and equivalet minimum stay)

Let the market decide - so you don't have to.

[Helen267]

It's why I don't have a cleaning fee at all, but an insanely complicated daily rate with different discounts based on length of stay. In Scotland it is conventional that the rental price includes cleaning - no one (myself included) understands or likes the cleaning fee as a way of encouraging longer stays.

[Jeff541]

Thanks...

Do any or all of you believe the higher "cleaning" fee motivates guests to complain or ask for a refund?

Does a guest have the right and ability to ask for a Cleaning refund-rebate even if the cleaning fee is $0?

Perosnally I wish Airbnb would eliminate the fee...rename it...or make it standadrized i.e. equivilent to 1 nights room rate

[Emilia42]

@Jeff541, everyone likes and wants a discount. They DON'T want things added on to the price. My sister always reminds me that she will pay $300 for a t-shirt online. But as soon as she sees a $10 shipping charge added to a $260 t-shirt she will take her business elsewhere. 

[Pete69]

Think of the "cleaning fee" as a "short-term stay fee".  I won't even bother with 1 night stays, so I have it set to a minimum stay of 2 nights. I really don't like 2 night stays either. Sometimes a 2-night booking will block out someone who wants to stay for longer than 2 nights. You can discourage these shorter stays by raising your cleaning fee and lowering your nightly rate.

[Pete28]

The last time I checked Airbnb was continuing in the US with its pricing games of only showing base price on the map and sliders. So if you want to get bookings figure out how to set base to keep you below the 300+ point.

Then set cleaning fee to $25 or more to actually make money

Then set max night stay to 2 nights so your Cleaning fee does get squeezed by long bookings

Yes, this is how Airbnb has chosen to run its business...

[Emilia42]

I wish we had more discount options for length of stay. No just weekly and monthly. In the guest's eyes a "cleaning fee" is exactly that. It has to do will all and everything ‘cleaning.’ They don't think of it as a "short stay fee." If they are paying a high cleaning fee they may think they don't need to clean a thing - the maid will do it. They may expect service everyday if they think they are paying for it. They may think they are clean enough people and try everything they can to get out of paying it. Also, if a guest cancels within your cancelation policy they will be refunded the cleaning fee.

[Elena87]

@Emilia42

Using 'rule set' there are custom discount settings with more options now available.

2 to 6 nights inclusive and 14 nights as well as the weekly and monthly options.

[Emilia42]

@Elena87, really? I still don't have that option. Maybe they are testing it in different areas?

[Andrea2150]

@Emilia42 I am new to Airbnb 1 year here in Napier New Zealand.

Even we have this pricing available! We are usually the last to get new systems being antipodeans! Perhaps we are the guiney pigs!

I have enjoyed your comments on pricing and have found them helpful. Have been trying to tinker with my pricing and discounrs to optomise it but clearly there are some ways to work your listing to optomise it which the system doesnt teach. Keen to learn and put in the ground work if you have any readings etc to guide me or your experience.

It seemed like Helen might have an interesting system.

Regards

Andrea

[Christopher187]

I regularly use high cleaning fees (up to $600) to create a minimum cost of entry.  I don't care so much if the stay is 1 day or 4, I just don't want to deal with any bookings less than a few hundred dollars.  For me, the cost of turnover is high.  Turnover cost will vary drastically from one host to another.

I get plenty of guests inquiring and complaining about the cleaning fee in their first message.  It serves as a good tool for me to weed those people out as potential problem guests.  The more sensible guests seem to understand my pricing structure and I haven't had any guest complain about the fee after the fact.  For the duration of booking I prefer, my listings come out cheaper than others with little to no cleaning fee.

[Jeff541]

best of luck my friend...all makes logical sense thank you...but sometimes (guests can widely vary) you may get the combination I did...which has been a nightmare

The guest who made the reservation @ a total fee of $105/night (cheaper than a cheap hotel room and any other Airbnb)...for a 2 brd-2 bath luxury condo...was the supposed husband of the wife (self proclaimed critical neat freak) that actually checked in... 3 days later she found out the clean fee was $350 (extremely high in her book) and wanted paid directly for her cleaning services to my clean home...and she will depart my home in a clean state too soooo she felt entitiled to the entire fee....she has now filed directly with Airbnb to get "her money"...ie. the entire $350...ie room rate total $89/night...and I make very very little after all expenses

[Linda1351]

I have a three-night minimum and a $100 cleaning fee for any of the stays. No complaints, and fortunately, I have a cleaning service that will accept $100 each time.