Our busy lives don’t blend well with the need to do household chores to keep the house looking clean. Hiring a cleaning service on a regular basis can actually be a great, time efficient and stress free way to take care of your home. Data from the HomeAdvisor.com shows the average cost per cleaning to be around $160.
At $160 monthly or even bi-monthly, many people turn away from cleaning services, but ManageCasa is here to shed light on how to make regular cleaning services more affordable.
1. Understand the cost breakdown
The cost per hour for a cleaning service generally ranges from $25 to $35, not including the cost of supplies. For an apartment, this may results to 3-4 hours of cleaning, and for a single family home, this may take up to 5-6 hours. In addition, you often also need to pay or at least supply cleaning supplies. If you pay the cleaning service for the cleaning supplies they used, you will need to choose between different grades of supplies. A few example costs include: window cleaners can be $3-8, dish soap can be $2-3, and floor cleaners can be $10-20.
2. Be selective about what you want cleaned
One way to keep the cost down is to be selective on what you want cleaned. There are easy tasks that perhaps you don’t mind doing, such as wiping off countertops or vacuuming. Or perhaps there are tasks you simply dread thinking about – cleaning the bathroom or the kitchen perhaps? You can request a cleaning service to do certain areas or tasks. This can help limit the number of hours that you are paying for a cleaning service.
3. BYOS
Bringing your own supplies can help drive the costs down; the cost of supplies can be anywhere from 5-10% of your bill! Shaving off $10 every time, multiplied for 12-18 cleaning services a year can save you up to $200 a year!
4. Independent cleaning services can be cheaper
There are a number of cleaning services to choose from, and many with lower rates are often operating independently from a company. With the rise of online cleaning services and review services online, independent operators rely on reviews to attest to their quality and credibility. Their rates can be as low as $15 per hour, as opposed to the $25-$30 range. If you are open to independent operators, make sure to check websites like Handy.com, where you can find individuals and view their reviews.
Maid services tend to charge more because they have taken the proper steps to be bonded, licensed, and insured. On the upside, they have better dependability since they operate as a business of multiple cleaners, but on the downside, they will cost more.
5. Find local deals
Many companies like AngiesList, TaskRabbit, Handy, or even Groupon are making cleaning services more accessible at a lesser price. Keep an eye our for coupons or first time deals from these online service providers!
