To leave an accommodation as found AND justifying cleaning costs

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

Has any host found a way to instil in guests that they should 'leave the accommodation as they found it' in lieu of their rental obligations whilst at the same time as charging a cleaning fee?

We charge a diminutive cleaning fee but I'm questioning whether to just delete that and add it to the nightly rate? We charge £65 cleaning fee and over an average 3 night stay and extra £20 added to the rate wouldn't be an issue.

What is the killer is this; you expect that guests would "leave the place as they find it'" as they're supposed to do, but instead, they leave it like the dustbin man has just spilled the contents of the bins all over the floor and there's been an unholy demonic massacre in the oven.

Having a cleaning fee makes the excuse that the guests "are paying for cleaning" when obviously the fee covers no such state.

What is the sensible solution?

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Rowena29 

SNORT! It takes me 11 hours alone, to do it properly.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Susan17 

There I was thinking I was getting sorted... Then Boom! Back to where I started :-0

That 1% has a lot to answer for.

[Susan17]

Lol! Yep. None of us are too fond of the 1%! 

You can take a horse to water.. :))

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

Its taken as granted that guests don't read. However, the last bunch left the House Manual open on the cleaning page, so obviously had a look. They're probably not the first to have done that. That page and where the WiFi password is.

[Ute42]

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@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0, @Susan17 

I look at this entire cleaning situation in a 1 year context. I have 30 to 40 sets of guest per year, each group has 5 to 10 people. Most people leave the place ok, one repeat guest leaves the place in a much better condition than I provided it at check in – she's a cleaning maniac. Guys groups are in general messier than families. I do not have problems with people leaving a real mess. Over the course of a year, sometimes I have to clean more than usual, but in the end it averages out. And I would never start a discussion or an argument or even make a claim if the check-out cleanlyness was under average.

What helps a lot is that I rent 90% of my dates not through airbnb but through other distribution channels where I can charge a 200 Euro security deposit in cash at check in. Guests treat a place much better when You have their money in Your hands and they behave better as well.

Not being able to charge a cash security deposit is one of the big disadvantages of the airbnb-platform.

When I travel myself I do not clean the place when I leave. I don't rent budget places and for the money I spend I expect to be released from mopping the floor.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Ute42 

not through airbnb but through other distribution channels where I can charge a 200 Euro security deposit in cash at check in. Guests treat a place much better when You have their money in Your hands and they behave better as well.

Absolutely! Here too, although not in hand but held on account. Amazing how it focusses their respect.

We wouldn't expect guests to mop floors, although we do provide a mop and bucket if they need one for whatever reason.

[Maia29]

So if we as hosts, charge a cleaning fee AND expect guests to clean up after themselves, then what is the point of booking an Airbnb instead of a hotel? Especially if the host's pricing is close to that of a hotel. I don't expect my guests to clean on their holiday. MOST of the time, guests leave my place in decent shape.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Maia29 

Every accommodation will find its niche. the closest comparison and competition to hotels I would think would be those listings which accommodate 1 or 2 guests. I think thats the market which hotels want to attract and that market where the competition would be tighter. Hotels don't provide full kitchen facilities and a homely atmosphere.

Price is not the only competitive aspect. Larger hotels in our area are installing self-contained accommodation pods in their grounds aimed at up to two sharing. They include separate lounge and bedroom, no kitchen (they want their restaurant filled) and a hot tub in nice surroundings. For two, the cost is £415 per night. We accommodate 8 with a kitchen. Our base rate including the hot tub and a full kitchen would be £300'ish a night. Depending how you calculate your own Value For Money, we fare 5x better for VFM.

Weirdly, Hosts on Airbnb seem to compare their competitiveness to other hosts listings rather than like you have just suggested to local hotels. In my example, are we 5x better value for money or underpricing by 80% ?

Like for like... Are there many private 1 bedroom lodges on Airbnb with a Hot tub and no kitchen? No. There might be a 1 bedroom lodge with a Hot tub and with a kitchen but they won't be charging £415 a night. Why not?

Independent Home Share hosts offer fabulous value for money, and I believe we deserve better recognition for the service we provide and as a non-commercial venture and as a service to our guests, it is not unfair to ask that guests pay for us to clean up after them rather than charge them for not including a kitchen.

I can see that if you have low priced local hotel competition, or maybe if there are commercial self-catering options, then the cleaning fee might be difficult to justify, but, with everything headline costs are never the final fees and the benefits are never equal.

[Anonymous]

@Maia29  I'm nauseated by the possibility that some people do, indeed, choose to book hotels because they know they can make a horrific mess with total impunity. Hotel housekeepers experience in a typical day things that the average Airbnb host would kick and scream about in these forums for weeks, but their compensation is a small fraction of what an homeowner-host is likely to earn from a multi-day booking. I truly hope that when you stay in hotels, you don't assume that it's morally ok to leave a wreck behind you just because the person who has to deal with it is likely to be a female first-generation immigrant who doesn't have the power to retaliate.

I'm not a big fan of cleaning fees, myself - or at least the practice of calling them "cleaning fees," since as I always say they are really just short-stay supplements. But even so, I don't think they're incompatible with asking guests to leave the property in such a state that it can be changed over same-day with a regular cleaning routine - which would entail changing linens, sanitizing surfaces, dusting, and floors, but wouldn't generally mean washing every dish in the house or scrubbing grease out of an oven.

It's up to the guest to decide whether the advantages of choosing an Airbnb are worth the total cost, or a hotel is more appealing. The market is seldom ever a logical beast, but I'd presume that hosts who overvalues their listing compared to the competition is going to suffer either in bookings or in ratings.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Anonymous 

“I always say they are really just short-stay supplements.”

Is that a ‘thing’?

Can ‘Short stay supplement’ be added to the extra fees identified as such?

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

Just feeling frivolous in the face of removing encrusted Sunday Roast from the bottom of the oven using a builders' cold chisel.. 

I've worked out a way to scientifically mark cleanliness for guest reviews.

Just deduct the numeric level of 'stuff' from 5 stars in the vacuum at the end of cleaning!

[Maia29]

@Anonymous I would never leave a mess at a hotel or an Airbnb. I always naturally clean up after myself and I leave a tip for the cleaner when staying at a hotel. I feel bad leaving the bed unmade when I check out (even though I realize they are going to change it anyways). 

The reason why I don't incorporate the cleaning charge into my nightly rate is because all of the hosts here charge cleaning fees in order to have a lower price show up when searching units.

[Anonymous]

" all of the hosts here charge cleaning fees in order to have a lower price show up when searching units."

This might have been the case in the past, but currently, the price that shows up in search results is the average nightly rate after the cleaning fee has been added. Searches without dates no longer display prices at all. Perhaps this strategy is outdated.