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Hmm, I don’t charge a cleaning fee (we do the cleaning ourselves) but maybe I should start - it would be a nice little extra! Most of our guests leave the place super-tidy (especially the French, @Rsv, that was probably your problem!) and most wash the dishes, but I’m not particularly fazed if they don’t, though I might moan a bit to the Husband. I certainly wouldn’t write a nasty review on the strength of it. In fact since the apartment doesn’t have a dishwasher it rather does me a favour since I can take the dishes upstairs to our machine and make sure they’re really clean! As posters above have said, it takes almost as long to clean a “clean and tidy” listing as a messy one.
All our guests leave food in the fridge (not usually cooked dishes but opened - or unopened - packets and cans). They are all going to catch planes, so their only alternative is to throw it away, which seems a huge waste to me when some is perfectly good. They leave fruit, vegetables, cheese, youghurts, wine etc. These used to be an extra for my cleaning lady (and yes, in spain I’ve never encountered a cleaning man) but now we do the cleaning we share anything useful with our Nigerian friend who helps in the garden.
Having said all this, when I’m a guest I always leave the place spotless, to the extent that the Husband worries that we’re going to miss the plane! I like to do it because I’m a neat freak, but I don’t expect my guests to do this and I don’t look on it as not “respecting my home”. In fact I think the words “respect” and its opposite are overused nowadays … but that’s just the old biddy in me talking!
I share your opinions in this matter… I actually prefer guests to leave some dirty dishes in the sink than “washing” them in a hurry and then putting them wet and not properly clean in the cabinets… But…While it might be the case that the owner exaggerated in her review, but on the other hand, there are dirty dishes and “dirty dishes”… This all sounds benign, however it might be the case that the dishes were left with the dry remains of food on them for days or that the guests didn’t bring the trash out for days… This would give a different picture than a few dirty dishes and a bit of garbage in the bin. I have some feeling that we don’t know the whole story. I would like to see this host’s profile and check wether she was slamming other guests for leaving the apartment dirty. If it’s an isolated incident, then it might be the case that Rsv is not telling us the whole story.
If I paid a 110 cleaning fee, I wouldn’t “clean” before leaving, but I would at least get rid off my mess.
Getting rid of a mess and cleaning are not the same thing. I would make sure trash was in the trash bin, dishes were at least rinsed of food debris, so they wouldn’t attract insects.
If there were obvious food spills, I would wipe them up, but not mop the whole floor.
Don’t leave the dirty towels strewn all over the place, but in a pile on the bathroom vanity. Make sure the toilet is flushed and free from disgustingness.
Leftover food is a tricky one. If it were something like restaurant leftovers or milk about to reach its sell-by date, then it should be tossed. But if you bought a bottle of ketchup that was barely used? Maybe the next guests would like it. Maybe the cleaning crew would?? Hard to say. Some people are loathe to waste food.
Taking the trash out depends on the situation: If it’s an apartment with a trash chute on the floor, then, sure, take it out. If it’s in a suburban area, it might be better to let the cleaning crew handle it, because different communities have different schedules and rules.
Basically it’s just common sense. Follow the guidelines given by the host. If there are none, just get rid of your own mess, but you don’t need to polish and sanitize the place.
Actually, that’s quite a reasonable amount for the south of France… but was it really only 60 square feet? Do you mean meters? An additional rate of 105 Euros may be on the high side if it is a very small space, especially depending on how many beds have to be done.
I don’t expect people to prepare the house for the next groups (vacuum, dust, change bedding, sweep, bathrooms), but I DO expect them to leave the kitchen and bbq the way they found them. I state this is in our policies before they book. We also have a ‘check-out’ list.
However, if someone did NOT leave the kitchen well I would have a tolerance for how much I was willing to do before asking them to pay for extra cleaning. If they were otherwise good guests I would mention this in private feedback rather than publicly. If they broke other rules their cleanliness would also be added in a review.
I expect people to do their dishes. It’s stated in my house rules and in the reminder message I send them regarding check out. I tell them it’s fine to leave them drying in the rack. I don’t want to pay my cleaner to wash a sink full of dirty dishes as we don’t have a dishwasher. It’s the one thing I specifically ask of people so if they don’t do this I am not happy and knock them for cleanliness. I wouldn’t mention it in the review, however, unless they left tons of dishes, but so far everyone’s complied other than a glass or coffee cup here or there. I do tell them where the garbage, recycling, and compost bins are located and some folks do take it out. Unless it’s smelly I prefer they leave it as they rarely sort things properly and I like to have one garbage in the unit for use while I’m cleaning. When I stay somewhere I always leave things tidy, even a hotel room; to me it’s just common courtesy. I would never in a million years leave dishes to be washed!!!
I stay at Airbnbs all the time , and honestly I am annoyed quite often when I have to clean for couple hours after myself because of the house rules. I do it obediently because it was my choice to book the property , but I wish when I pay for cleaning I wouldn’t have to clean .
I stayed at one appartment in w where I paid 100$ for cleaning and the host had so many “instructions”. I had to to start the laundry, take all uses sheets into laundry room and towels . Kitchen was asked to be left in a condition I “found it”. Well I found it in very clean condition but why after I paid 100$ I still have to throughly clean it… and spend my vacation time on it.
I am a very clean person naturlly. I don’t drop things without being sure I clean the spills and pick up crumbs.
I don’t make mess anywhere I go . I put everything in garbage bins. And I would wash my dishes. But why I have to leave everything “how I found it” still bewilders me. To leave things how I “found it” means that I have to spend 4 hours before I leave for cleaning. That’s just makes no sense.
So what am I paying 100$ for? To change sheets?
Of course as a host I love coming to my house after guests leave am find house in a condition " how they found it", it happens sometimes and I am grateful, but at the same time I kind of feel wondering why after paying 150$ for cleaning these guests cleaned everything, even washed bathrooms and floors .
My requirements are to take the garbage out, and wash dishes and grill. And that’s all. I am not asking anyone to start my laundry or wash anything else.
One of the reasons why I like to stay in hotels is just that/ I don’t want to clean after myself
Me too. My check out instructions are pretty easy. I have a cleaning fee and in no way shape or form do I ask guests to leave it pristine like it was presented to them. But if there’s excessive or careless dirty dishes or disgusting trash I’d be pissed. It just seems disrespectful.
This sounds really exaggerated. Some hosts should understand that people are paying to rent the place, they are not your buddies who should leave the place as they found it and leave you a bottle of wine as a thank you. I personally wouldn’t go somewhere where I would have to clean extensively after my stay and worry about falling below host’s standard in doing so. What I especially don’t understand is how hosts whit such demands dare to charge cleaning fee…
I think that people just have different perspective on this issue. For me, the cleaning fee is for washing linens, vacuuming (hoovering to you Brits), deep cleaning the guest room, etc. I charge $15.00. Personally, when I had a housekeeper I did my own dishes and laundry. I preferred that she focus on dusting, scrubbing and mopping. I know people who don’t wipe up spills, don’t wash dishes and don’t do laundry because they view that as the job of the housekeepers. To clarify, I’m not talking about live in housekeepers.
I think that at the very least, when renting a whole house/apartment guests should rinse their dishes and put all food waste in the trash. To not do so in a warm environment such as the south of France in summer is to invite insects and rodents. I also don’t think that hosts should have to spell out how to not attract pests, even though my last guest was oblivious to the issue.
And many! I book anyway because of the price . I have one bad review from a young German guy who said I left toilet in disgusting condition. First of I think he mixed me up with someone else. I would never leave anything disgusting unless I did not notice . And second: he charges me 35 Euro cleaning fees for a tiny match box appartment which was not that clean to begin with. I asked in answer to this review if he remembers that I paid him for cleaning and for 35Eur he should be cleaning 10 toilets without a word .
Regarding the cleaning fee, I think there are two camps. Those who don’t charge and those who do. Since the beginning of time, those who do get all sorts of criticisms.
I prefer it be called the prep or turnover fee. I have a full apartment. If I pay someone to do it, I charge what the guest pays. Never, never in all my years of hosting, has a guest ever said they are leaving a mess because they paid a cleaning fee. But for that money i make sure it is spotless.
I’ve always charged a fee, I always will and if they don’t like it, they can book the next place. They still book. They don’t ask me to eliminate it and if They do I decline them.
It doesn’t seem to be at all an indicator of how guests will behave or act upon check out. In my humble experience.
In my case he deserves to hear about 10 toilets . 35 Euros is quite a bit of money to pay for cleaning in that area . My sister in law who lives there pays the same to clean 3 bedroom house . That was a tiny studio
So do those who don’t! I’m only going to repeat what I said on another thread: in my opinion, it should be a basic expectation that the property is cleaned and prepared on arrival for guests. There should be no question that they need to pay extra for this “service”. Therefore, imo, the idea that it’s a preparation/turnover fee is illogical. /Dr Spock
But if it were TOO illogical Air would not include it on the list of options we can charge for… I mean, they give us a field for that and not one for taxes… And we all can agree about how logical taxes are!
For those renting out vacation homes for many many years prior to Air, charging for the cleaning prep is standard practice. I’m thinking of both @CanadianHost and @SandyToes.
I have rented holiday homes in Ireland, Italy and France, there were no cleaning fees and we always cleaned up and left the home in the same situation we found it.
When in hotels, I always make sure the room is tidy and rubbish is bagged up.
I don’t get the attitude of leaving dirty dishes in the sink, that’s pretty gross. I am not surprised you got a bad review
It could be a cultural thing…, Euro versus US. Holiday home rentals (talking about entire homes here, not home shares) here in the US almost universally have the prep fee. Just standard.
Just got this email from Airbnb wonder if they practice what they preach
Airbnb
Airbnb supports a living wage for cleaners
Hi
In March, we announced the Airbnb Economic Empowerment Agenda, a series of steps we’re taking to support our community and generate new economic opportunities for families. One such step is the Living Wage Pledge to support fair pay for cleaners.
While many hosts clean their listings themselves, many others rely on cleaning professionals to get their listings ready for guests. We want to help ensure the women and men who provide these services are paid the living wage they deserve. That’s why we’re launching the Living Wage Pledge, so you can let guests know that the valuable members of our community receive the living wage they deserve. Guests will see this on your listing page, and soon, we’ll launch a feature that will make it easy for guests to search for listings from hosts that have taken this pledge.
Update Listing
We know that many hosts have questions about this issue, and that’s why we have provided resources on what it means to pay a living wage, and ways to make your home a fair place for someone else to work. Learn more.
We hope you’ll support the Living Wage Pledge and appreciate all that you do for the Airbnb community.
Thanks,
The Airbnb Team
Sent with from
Airbnb, Inc.
888 Brannan Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
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