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We have found a great local cleaner that we use. This past guest cooked a lot apparently and was in her words the messiest guest we have had. She sent a few pics, nothing looked trashed, just generally kind of a slob.
Would you give a slight bonus to your cleaner in this situation? I think it would be nice, but I hate to set a precedent for future cleaning. In general, i think our guests tend to leave the units fairly clean, so I hope it evens out.
I donât know your situation butâŚ
I clean my own rooms but I have often thought that if I had a cleaner I might pay them a percentage of the cleaning fee based on the number of stars for cleaning received. If there was no review assume 5 stars maybe.
Our cleaner charges a flat rate. Sometimes he can be done in an hour or hour and a half, sometimes it takes him close to three hours. I figure it all evens out. We are being charged a very reasonable rate so I just give him a decent tip every few months. I donât base it on whether one guest was messier than another.
Iâd say yes. Our cleaners plan on being there 3 hours, for a flat rate. Rarely do they need to stay longer, but they would, and occasionally do. I always throw in $50 or so for their time. The way I see it is I have absolutely wonderful cleaners (âyou could eat off the floorâ- type cleaners). And they reliably show up. I wouldnât dream of asking them to work for free, when I am profiting a lot. And I guess you could say that this small consideration goes a long way towards loyalty.
Kitchens are nasty to clean, when I have to hire a cleaner I always give a nice bonus when they have to deal with the messy ones, and she is fantastic when responding to last minute calls when I get called out to work.
Maybe a gift card or a home baked good. Something to say thank you.
How often do you find yourself paying extra?
I do the cleaning myself and often find unexpected âbonusesâ. Great quality cheeses left in the fridge, a pineapple or two, wine or beer (or vodka quite often), expensive shampoos and toiletries and sometimes one-off things (a lovely kimono, a stylish umbrella etc.) and I am not too proud to take them as a nice little bonus. Guests sometimes leave cash tips. (The best I got was over $100 - the guests had had a four-figure win at the casino). Your cleaners might find the same.
But on the subject of bonuses in general, I avoid giving cash. Cash is often used by the recipient to pay an outstanding utility bill, go towards the grocery shop or fill the car with petrol. Thatâs no fun, though helpful. I like to give bonuses that give enjoyment to the recipient - a gift voucher as @Lynick4442 suggests, wine, theatre tickets, a spa session etc. When youâre going a job like cleaning (donât I just know) then itâs lovely to receive something thatâs more of a treat.
If you value your cleaner I would defiantly give them extra for anything like this. I give my cleaner a bonus at Christmas AND at the end of a busy summer as a thank you. She is worth her weight in gold.
I give the cleaner the entire cleaning fee, my last two sets of guests did not use the shower or any towels. I think it evens out.
RR
Our caretaker gets paid by the hour and has advised that he considers our situation as âmore than fairâ. So, I donât give him a bonus/tip for bad situations but I do give him a bonus/top at holidays and after the end of a busy season.
Weâve operated our rental since June 2018, and are booked about 25 days a month. In that time, I needed to give the cleaning crew extra money twice.
Hi Brandt, so far only twice. Weâve been in business for 7 months.
If I were you, I would give her extra pay considering that hotel cleaners only tend to bathrooms and bedrooms. Cleaning a messy kitchen can be time consuming. She probably spent another hour. I would request money from guest for additional cleaning and give it to her. Guests are suppose to clean after themselves, especially when using the kitchen.
If I was my cleaner, which I am, I would be pretty happy with the gourmet unopened leftovers purchased by guests. The next guest gets the unopened non perishables we donât want, which so far I have listed for them in communication, so they wonât buy them in case they were planning to.