Cleaning Service Questions

[Nini-S0]

Cleaning questions for host

How does the cleaning fee work? What are reasonable prices for a turnover cleaning, starting from a room to a full house? What are your cleanings supposed to get done, and what's the host's responsibility? Do you usually get a package deal with your cleaners something like 5 cleanings for $500 or something else? If someone could explain to me their process that would be amazing. 

[Karen114]

@Nini-S0 Cleaning fees vary based on location.  What one would pay for a 1 bed one bath in Manhattan would be very different than one would pay for the same in Alabama.  It's all local if you will.  

It looks like from your profile that you have a cleaning service.  I owned and operated a residential cleaning service for 17 years in Massachusetts.  It's a tough business for sure.  We did all residential bi weekly cleaning.  That being said, the type of cleaning that is done in regulary bi-weekly cleaning is very different than what is done in Airbnb turnover cleaning.  

The pros-

Not cleaning around pets and children, nobody working from home 😊

The spaces are cleaned on a very regular basis so no build up of dirt and grime.

The spaces are typically clutter free so easy dusting and floor work.

Your work day will be between 10-4 as those are check out check in times.

The cons-

Plan on working 7 days a week Turnover cleaning happens all days of the week unless you state otherwise.  My cleaners do not work on holidays or Sundays and that is my decision and I book/block my calendar accordingly. 

You never know what you may walk into- 95% of the time it's fine and business as usual and the other 5% could look like a bomb went off.  (You want to work with a host that has some good rules in place to avoid this type of encounter)

You will always be changing linens and either washing them on site or taking them off site to be washed by you or a service

Laundry is time consuming if doing on site so that will have to factored into your rate/time.

Not every host respects their cleaner's time and will put unjust demands on them with last minute late check outs or early checkins, cleaning on major holidays etc.  That will be up to you to define when setting up the service.  If you can accomodate last minute schedule changes than that is fine, if not it would have to be communicated.

As far as pricing is concerned,  you can charge a premium as  good Airbnb turnover cleaners are very difficult  to find. Most hosts pass the cleaning fee on to the guests so it is an expense of doing business for them. Just breaking into the business it may be fine to offer promos but would not make that a normal thing.  As most hosts will tell you, discounted rates don't bring the best guests. 

  In the hosting business, cleanliness is the number one factor in their success. A couple of bad reviews about cleaning and they are pretty much done.  The same applies to you as a cleaner, you must be better than average. 

Finding hosts to clean for- You can search listings in your area,  however do not contact the host via Airbnb soliciting yourself.  Use the map feature to figure out where they are and local assessor sites to reach them via postal mail. Their mailing address will not be the Airbnb address.

Join local FB groups in your community and put the word out that you are offering turnover cleaning. If you are in a touristy area there should be a few groups to join.

I hope this helps 🙂  As a former cleaning company owner and host since 2010, I am happy to answer any questions you may have so feel free to reach out. 

[Nini-S0]

I really appreciate this, thank you. 

[Wendy-May0]

That is a good question. You’re hitting on the most critical operation in STRs, it's not just a clean, it's a turnover, and getting the system right is key to 5-star reviews and remote management.

The first thing to know is that the cleaning fee you charge guests should really just offset your costs, it’s not meant to be a profit center. You have to pay a commercial rate because a professional STR turnover takes about 1.5 to 2 times longer than a regular residential clean. This is because of all the staging, inventory checks, and the essential laundry management.

For pricing, these numbers vary widely by city, but for a reliable, professional turnover service that manages the laundry, here are typical US/Canadian dollar ranges: A Studio or Small 1-Bed is usually $60 - $85. A 2-Bedroom Flat/House runs between $100 - $140. For a Large 3-Bedroom, expect to pay $140 - $200+ for a comprehensive clean and restock. The best advice is to focus on paying a high enough hourly rate to keep the best cleaner, don't just shop for the lowest price.

The cleaner’s job is much wider than just mopping. Your checklist must cover four essential things: the deep clean, washing and making all beds perfectly, staging (making it look exactly like your listing photos), and restocking all consumables like coffee, soap, and two fresh rolls of toilet paper. Your job is mainly to provide the supplies and the perfect checklist; their job is to execute and report damage.

Finally, avoid package deals like "5 cleans for $500." The workload is too variable, so almost everyone pays a flat, set per-turnover fee that covers the average time. If you want to incentivize them, offer a small bonus for hitting consistent 5-star cleanliness scores.

What part of the current turnover process, laundry, staging, or communication, is giving you the most stress right now?

[Nini-S0]

This was really on point, Thank you for this. 

[Helen3]

Hello @Nini-S0 

This community is for Airbnb hosts and guests to ask questions relating to Airbnb.

from your profile it appears you offer cleaning services .

its really up to you to decide what services you offer and how much you charge for them .

the hosts responsibility is to manage the listing . Your responsibility would be to provide any services you agree to provide the host @Nini-S0