Cleaning fees

[Satya8]

Sorry if this is not the appropriate place for this question.  Looked the best to me among the options.  From a guest perspective, I have always left the host facilities in pretty much the state I found them (cleaned up before leaving). Now I am looking at some places which have a very high fee for leaning included ($65 to $85+). I am wondering if in such cases, it will be reasonable for me not to clean up?  I am not talking about trashing the place of course, but things like making the beds, washing dishes, sweeping floor/s, garbage disposal etc...?

[Jim554]

https://youtu.be/ljqjFTpggEc

[Brenda357]

I personally will not stay at an Airbnb that charges an exorbitantly high cleaning fee.  I really feel put out, after paying a cleaning fee,if the host leaves a list of chores to do prior to leaving. I’ve had to do everything from empty trash, take out linens and towels to laundry, take the trash out, start the dishwasher etc. I’ve even been asked to wash the sheets.  I just asked that hosts be reasonable in the room cleaning charges. If they get any higher, I will probably be staying in hotels.

[Emilia42]

Thank goodness for washing machines these days! Now instead of "washing the sheets" we only have to click a button 🙂

[Ana1136]

@Brenda357 good thing you have a choice, maybe hotels are more suitable for your style of traveling 🙂 

[Brenda357]

E

Actually I like staying at B&Bs and now Airbnb’s but will be more selective where I stay 🙂

[Kevin1322]

Harsh.

But fair.

[Sarah977]

@Brenda357  "Exhorbitant" is a pretty subjective term and I doubt if many hosts charge a higher cleaning fee than what they have to pay to their cleaners. But I do agree that when a host charges a substantial cleaning fee, it's not acceptable to expect guests to wash the linens, haul the trash out to the dumpster, etc. What should be expected and respected by guests is simply to clean up after themselves- not leave dirty dishes, make sure all the trash is bagged up, that sort of thing. I can understand some hosts asking that the garbage be taken outside to wherever it goes, depending on the guests- a bunch of poopy diapers left inside in an open trash bag can stink up a place really badly in a short amount of time. And since guests are expected not to leave dirty dishes (although I'd turn a blind eye to a few last-minute coffee cups myself), I don't see anything very onerous in making sure all your dishes are in the dishwasher and pressing the start button. What would be unreasonable is if the host expected you to wait around until the load was done and put them all away in the cupboards.

[Brenda357]

..

---

@Sarah977 wrote:

@Brenda357  "Exhorbitant" is a pretty subjective term and I doubt if many hosts charge a higher cleaning fee than what they have to pay to their cleaners. But I do agree that when a host charges a substantial cleaning fee, it's not acceptable to expect guests to wash the linens, haul the trash out to the dumpster, etc. What should be expected and respected by guests is simply to clean up after themselves- not leave dirty dishes, make sure all the trash is bagged up, that sort of thing. I can understand some hosts asking that the garbage be taken outside to wherever it goes, depending on the guests- a bunch of poopy diapers left inside in an open trash bag can stink up a place really badly in a short amount of time. And since guests are expected not to leave dirty dishes (although I'd turn a blind eye to a few last-minute coffee cups myself), I don't see anything very onerous in making sure all your dishes are in the dishwasher and pressing the start button. What would be unreasonable is if the host expected you to wait around until the load was done and put them all away in the cupboards.

---

What are the cleaners doing - if hosts are paying for cleaners = I would expect someone cleaning my house to empty trash, take sheets off bed, clean kitchen...so if hosts are paying someone...I guess their jobs are a lot easier.

[Sarah977]

@Brenda357  Dusting, vacuuming, scrubbing and sterilizing the bathroom and kitchen, cleaning out the fridge, washing the mirrors and windows, mopping the floors, checking to make sure dishes that aren't really clean weren't put back in the cupboards, replenishing the amenities, cleaning the ceiling fans, making the beds, putting out fresh towels, washing the garbage containers, spot cleaning the furniture and carpeting, among other things. Hours of work.

A guest wiping their own messes off the counters and stove top, washing their dishes, and maybe taking a garbage bag out to where it goes outside are a tiny drop in the bucket in the world of STR cleaning. 

[Donna184]

Well written.  Just cleaned up after a guest who prided herself, " I left the place tidy". Everything needed a thorough cleaning.  All pots, dishes cutlery, toaster, washroom, abandoned items in every cupboard. Fifth. She says she will be back in the fall. Not happening. 

[Deborah1094]

@Brenda357 I was compelled to response to your post Brenda, please consider the cost and expenses to provide you a 4-star experience.  As a superhost I  spend 3 - 4 hours cleaning my home - vacuuming, scrubbing toilets, showers, tub, and sinks, polishing stainless steel, cleaning microwaves and oven, washing kitchen cabinets, washing floors and windows, and dusting.  To sub this out I would be paying 20 - 50 dollars per hour in New England. All of the above cleaning also does not include: the washing and drying expense of towels and bedding( detergent, water fee and electricity), dry cleaning nice down comforters folks stain while eating in bed, broken dishes, trash removal costs, recycling, the cost of all the cleaning supplies and the coffee, tea, sugar and cream I provide. 

Also, I live in my home when it is not rented, but I do not return promptly each time a guest departs. So if a quest leaves trash or food out and a couple of days go by before the home is inspected that is a huge issue for pests and odors.  The same could be said for host that ask quest to run linens. I do not, but I can assume  it helps prevents wet linens from becoming moldy or musty from sitting in a pile.

Recently I had a guest leave food in pots and pans and trash in our home. Because I charged a cleaning fee, he did not feel he should have to do the  basic of things to clean up  items he used. I find that disrespectful and certainly I would reflect this behavior in  a poor rating.  

It is somewhat intuitive to assume even though some hosts don't charge a cleaning fee, they probably  roll that cost into the hosting fee. Hotels don't charge to clean, they just charge exorbitantly high room rates! All washes out in the end. My two cents!

[Neil256]

This is a great conversation. I'm planning on becoming a Air BnB host, and want to do it on a business like basis. Doing prep research.

As a BnB guest I get annoyed with the cleaning fee. I stay two nights and the cleaning fee can add 20-30% to the cost.  The cleaning has to be done and it has to be paid for as with hotels and motels.  The cleaning and cost is part of the accommodation service. If you search  on ABnB without dates you get a room rate excluding cleaning fees.  Its misleading. 

I note that some serviced apartments and motels charge a penalty cleaning fee if you leave the place dirty and dishes undone. 

My preference at present is to build the cleaning charge into the room rate, offer discount for longer stay. Include in the house rules the obligation to leave clean and tidy  in  a general sense, benches wiped, dishes done etc.  Compliment those that leave it clean, offer them extra discount for the next stay.  I want clean and tidy client repeat business.  The feedback on cleanliness and offer of discount build a relationship on positivity, and you feel better about the guest.

I believe Air BnB should charge hosts its percentage on the cleaning fee, its all part of the cost of providing accommodation. A penalty charge for cleaning is perhaps something that should not have a service fee charged on as its a recompense for costs above and beyond the normal.

Can hosts charge a penalty cleaning fee for guests that leave it dirty and dishes undone? You'd only impose it if the guest was a pig and you do not want them back.

Thanks

[Jennifer1086]

"My preference at present is to build the cleaning charge into the room rate, offer discount for longer stay."

My thought exactly.

When we travel (and we are budget travelers) and I'm looking for accommodations, I too find it very misleading to see a room rate of, say $99 per night, only to find an $85 cleaning fee tacked onto the checkout cost. (This was an actual booking we made recently.) So 2 nights @$99/night = $198 + $85 cleaning fee PLUS the airbnb service fee of $36.51 and suddenly we're looking at $319 for what at first appeared to be a $200 booking.

Oh, and there was an additional fee of $20 for our dog which the host added on as an adjustment to the booking cost AFTER I booked, to which, of course, airbnb added THEIR service fee of $2.58. 

We are super hosts of a home stay, we live on premises, we have one guest room.  We do all the cleaning ourselves. It usually takes me about an hour to clean the entire house. (It's a small house.) And I build the cost of my time into our room rate. No hidden costs. I think it's just better customer service and experience if guests don't feel like they're being gouged at checkout.

[Emma2401]

In our experience, it is after longer stays that the house need a professional cleaner more than a short stay.  We've had two longer stay over this winter and on both occasions, the house has been filthy when we've got it back.  I alway strip beds, sofa covers, dust, vacuum myself between guests but these two stays have been horrendous.  The house took 12 hours after the first guests and after this last lot, 12 hours of my time and 8 hours for a professional cleaner.  

Longer stay doesn't equal less work.

[Sarah977]

@Emma2401  Sorry your guests left a filthy house. You don't say how long they stayed, but if they stayed for 20 days, a 12 hour clean works out to 20 minutes per day, and a 20 hour clean an hour per day.

Surely it takes longer to clean a 3 bedroom house than 20 minutes, or even an hour, if guests were only staying for one night.

When people say long term stays require less cleaning, it doesn't mean in total, it means what it works out to per night. 

If I were to do a thorough deep clean of my own 2 bedroom house, all in one shot, which I keep generally tidy and clean, it would easily take 12 hours.