Outrageous cleaning fees

[Mark211]

People are killing this platform with their ridiculous cleaning fees. I tried to book a "$55 a night" room for two nights. The total bill came to $274.

 

[Dean43]

Yep! Hotels don't charge a cleaning fee. There should be limits on this. Hosts are getting greedy and offering poor service on top of that. They need to do it right or don't do it at all! What once was disruptive gets destroyed by greedy Hosts and poor property managers. The best way to fight back is destroy their ratings. Be very critical! That's the only way we fight back. Hit them hard where it hurts. Harsh ratings so other guests can see it and criticize their lack of quality amenities and poor service. Push back hard!!! It's the only way!

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Dean43 Apologies for the late reply. But I feel the need to ask why you are being so vindictive with a desire to destroy a host's ratings just because hosts charge a cleaning fee. The fair and reasonable approach is just to not book with them.

[Lorna170]

Airbnb SHOULD just take the cleaning fee hosts charge, and then average it out over the number of nights on a guest's stay. They don't offer that option.   

Every time a guest leaves my property it is thoroughly cleaned for the next guest.  Housekeeping spends a minimum of three hours (sometimes as much as 5) conducting the cleaning.  IF it were a single bedroom and bathroom, it would cost a nominal fee for an hour of housekeeping.

BUT, it is a whole house property.  So.... my guests want clean sheets and duvets on two beds in two separate bedrooms.  Bedrooms need dusting, vacuuming and floors washed, especially after animals. Towel sets for 4 guests (with spares) have to be washed / changed out. Bathrooms need wall wipe-down, shower, sink and countertop sanitizing, toilets done and checked for plumbing function.  The living room and dining area require dusting, vacuuming and floors washed.  All electronic equipment (TV, lamps, outlets, etc.) need to verified as working properly. The kitchen...oh, the kitchen... requires inspection and rewashing of pots, pans, utensils, dishes, glassware, coffee makers, knife blocks, scrub out of microwave, refrigerator, dishwasher, oven and cooktop.  Sanitizing of sink and countertops, check plumbing... (unbelievable what people shove down the sink).  The change-out of the hot tub (empty, scrub and refill) takes 2 hours too!

My housekeeper cleans both my house and my rental properties.  She can breeze through my house in a few hours because she is doing bathrooms, vacuuming and dusting.  But cleaning the rental property for a guest who is going to search for dust bunnies, takes pictures of a mark on a wall or the leaves that blew onto the deck and who is determined to find fault with the condition of a rustic cabin is going to take a very long time and is a significant expense.  

My cleaning fee is $100 per rental.  A guest who comes for 2 nights may feel that this is excessive, but those who stay for a week think it is fair.  My actual cost for cleaning, i.e., what I pay as a living wage to my housekeeper is much more than that.