What do you pay for housecleaning (venting!!)

crissy11

O.G.
Jun 23, 2009
6,412
142
This is something that bothers me to no end. I work 2 jobs. My first main job pays well, but it's in a very quiet office - just myself and another man and it's a 4 day per week job. I'm off Fridays. So I took a second retail job which pays minimum wage for a number of reasons - I like the social aspect since my main job is not at all social - I like being around people, the girls I work with are really nice, etc.

So once I started working 2 jobs I decided to get in a cleaning lady since I don't want to spend what little spare time I have cleaning. It just blows me away what these women charge - like between $90 - $130 for about a 3 - 4 hour cleaning job.

I work equally as hard as they do at my retail job and get paid minimum wage, which is about $10/hr here (I'm in Canada so by the time you take taxes off that, it's about $6.00 per hour!!). Trust me, these women are not paying income tax on their cleaning jobs!! This isn't a bonded insured company or anything (they charge even more!!!!!!!!) this is just some woman doing housecleaning on her own to make a few bucks.

How is it that my retail job which includes being on my feet for 4 hours per shift, plus cleaning the store, etc. is worth $10.00 per hour, yet these women that clean my house think they are worth $25 - $30 per hour?

I can't figure this one out for the life of me. Right now I don't have anyone doing it because it just irks me that they charge so much.

I'm wondering what other people are paying for housecleaning??
 
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The average rate out here is around $25-30/hr/lady for a basic cleaning. Deep cleaning takes longer so the total just reflects that. After going through 4 ladies over the course of several years, I decided to do the cleaning myself. I do a better job and some of the things they do just blows my mind. For example, using same rag to wipe down kitchen counters and bathrooms or dusting instead of wiping down surfaces with a wet cloth. There are some great tips online to keep the house clean. Flylady.com is one of them. I like some of her suggestions but not really an avid follower.

ETA. With the kids in school, the house is not as dirty/messy so cleaning is not too bad.
 
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For the square footage of my home and hours my housekeepers are here I am getting a good deal.
Cleaning homes is more rigorous work than most retail jobs in all fairness. Mine use their own appliances and cleaners, etc. . .
 
For the square footage of my home and hours my housekeepers are here I am getting a good deal.
Cleaning homes is more rigorous work than most retail jobs in all fairness. Mine use their own appliances and cleaners, etc. . .

Where I live you have to provide your own supplies and appliances on top of the payment. Now that I've done both retail and cleaned my house, I can honestly say that I work equally as hard at both. As a matter of fact, my feet ACHE so much more after the retail job and I am so much more tired after coming home from that than after cleaning my house. I don't have kids, and generally speaking, my house is just not that dirty.

I totally agree that I do a better job myself, and didn't mind "touching up" the things they don't do a great job at, but when I'm forking over $100 every 2 weeks, I get resentful that they don't do as least as good a job as I do myself, which I guess is why I don't have anyone right now.

I think that a flat rate of $60 is more than enough to clean my house. I used to pay that to my first lady when I started having someone come in a couple of years ago, but she retired. She was by far the best I've had, and charged the least. It just seems like such a money grab.
 
I am also getting a good deal but several factors come into play. First, my cleaning lady has been with me forever and she's like a member of the family. Also I am a neatfreak so she doesn't have to do a whole lot of heavy lifting at my house. In addition, I supply all equipment and I've got every newfangled gadget known to man.

But seriously, don't hate on those ladies for trying to make money. Goods and services are only worth what customers are willing to pay for them. If you are not satisfied then find someone cheaper. Anyway, in my experience, the most expensive cleaner has not always been the most qualified. I would just keep looking until I found the right person if I were you. Good luck!

ETA - No one will EVER do as good a job as you do yourself but I have found that investing lots of time in the beginning to train a new cleaner goes a long way even if it is a pain in the butt.
 
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I am also getting a good deal but several factors come into play. First, my cleaning lady has been with me forever and she's like a member of the family. Also I am a neatfreak so she doesn't have to do a whole lot of heavy lifting at my house. In addition, I supply all equipment and I've got every newfangled gadget known to man.

But seriously, don't hate on those ladies for trying to make money. Goods and services are only worth what customers are willing to pay for them. If you are not satisfied then find someone cheaper. Anyway, in my experience, the most expensive cleaner has not always been the most qualified. I would just keep looking until I found the right person if I were you. Good luck!

Yeah I've got feelers out to everyone I know right now. It's funny - everyone I talk to thinks the prices these women charge are outrageous, but most working women are just too tired and bogged down to do it themselves, so they feel like they are stuck between a rock and a hard place. My DH is more than willing to help me and do all the hard stuff, but since I work on Sundays, I don't want our Saturdays to be tied up with housework. But considering I make probably $30 after tax for my 4 hour retail shift, paying $100 to a housecleaner really seems like I'm taking it up the you-know-what.

The bonded/insured companies don't charge that much more, maybe I should just go with one of them. At least then I know that they are bonded and insured and then I know that I'm covered for theft, damage, etc. At least that's something, and I know they have admin and overhead costs.
 
When I had one, I paid her $15.00/hour I think and she used my supplies. Mind you I live in BFE, Wyoming so that could have something to do with it.
 
When I had one, I paid her $15.00/hour I think and she used my supplies. Mind you I live in BFE, Wyoming so that could have something to do with it.

That sounds like a perfectly reasonable rate that I would happily pay - even if I did have to provide my own supplies. I wish I could find that!
 
I pay $120 for 5 hours, one woman. That is pretty much the going rate. I don't mind paying for cleaning, she works hard, supports her parents..
 
This is something that bothers me to no end. I work 2 jobs. My first main job pays well, but it's in a very quiet office - just myself and another man and it's a 4 day per week job. I'm off Fridays. So I took a second retail job which pays minimum wage for a number of reasons - I like the social aspect since my main job is not at all social - I like being around people, the girls I work with are really nice, etc.

So once I started working 2 jobs I decided to get in a cleaning lady since I don't want to spend what little spare time I have cleaning. It just blows me away what these women charge - like between $90 - $130 for about a 3 - 4 hour cleaning job.

I work equally as hard as they do at my retail job and get paid minimum wage, which is about $10/hr here (I'm in Canada so by the time you take taxes off that, it's about $6.00 per hour!!). Trust me, these women are not paying income tax on their cleaning jobs!! This isn't a bonded insured company or anything (they charge even more!!!!!!!!) this is just some woman doing housecleaning on her own to make a few bucks.

How is it that my retail job which includes being on my feet for 4 hours per shift, plus cleaning the store, etc. is worth $10.00 per hour, yet these women that clean my house think they are worth $25 - $30 per hour?

I can't figure this one out for the life of me. Right now I don't have anyone doing it because it just irks me that they charge so much.

I'm wondering what other people are paying for housecleaning??

Supply and demand. She can only charge what the market will bear. Clearly, some people think her performance is worth that much.
 
Supply and demand. She can only charge what the market will bear. Clearly, some people think her performance is worth that much.

Exactly. Frankly, I don't understand why you're complaining. If you think it'd not worth that much, the solution is simple...don't pay it. Cut down your retail hours and do it yourself. That way you'll be ahead in $ and time.
 
My old cleaning lady (Mrs Trimble) was brilliant! $150 per clean and she often stayed the whole day! She'd even bring over a massive bag of lemons/lime/herbs from her garden!

She retired last year and I've been having a hard tome coming to terms with the new pricing.. and the lack of reliable hard workers! Ave prices are about AUD$25/hr! And they don't do anywhere near as good as Mrs Trimble! I miss her :cry: