What do you pay for your cleaning help?

17 years ago

I live in a rural area north of Dallas. I pay my help $10.00 per hour. There is an abundance of illegal aliens in the area so labor is cheaper than other areas of the U.S. We lived in Vermont a few years ago and paid local lady (who was not very good) $20.00 per hour as that was the going rate in that area.

I am very happy with my cleaning help. She takes pride in her work and will do baseboards, ceiling fans, blinds, when I ask her to. My dilemma is that when she first started working for me 2 years ago she had a helper with her. They would spend 4 hours on my 3500 sq house. They talked alot but seemed to work diligently the whole time. I paid them $80.00 for the job. About a year ago her helper took another job so she has been on her own since.

I then paid her $60.00 for the job that took her 4.5 to 5 hours because I was so happy with her work. In the past few months I have noticed my house doesn't smell as "cleaned" as it used to and I find areas she missed. In the past month she has been leaving after 3.5 hours. I noticed my bathroom floor not mopped and the jacuzzi tub still dirty. When I asked her about it the next time she came out she was apoligetic, but said she had cleaned what I said she missed.

I also told her that she's leaving a lot earlier than she used to and I can tell the house isn't clean like it used to be. Since that conversation a week ago, she came yesterday and had her teenage daughter with her. I kept her pay at $60.00. They stayed 3 hours and did a good job. She thumbed through the money to count the 20's and gave me a look like I should pay her more, but I'm still a bit miffed about the times she only stayed 3.5 hours and got $60.00 working on her own.

I've told her in the past to let me know if and when her hourly rate increases. She told me several times to pay her what I can. Any advice on how to handle this situation?

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Comments (8)

lindac
17 years ago
Be tolerant and grateful for honest help....I discovered a few months back that I was missing a lot of jewelry....and the only place it could have gone was my cleaning lady.....fired her....no proof....easily 50 items and perhaps more missing....
So if she's really not a thief....be grateful and pay her what she asks!
Linda C....just a little bitter!
oakleif
17 years ago
I pay mine $25 a week for abt 2hrs work. Live in the Ozarks and she lives not far away. She's not perfect and i have to tell her nicely sometimes what was'nt done last time. She also cuts corners sometimes. She is super honest and has a wonderful personality.The house is definately cleaner than if i did'nt have her.So she stays. I've heard some horror stories about housekeepers so consider yourself lucky. Keep letting her know on a one to one basis what you want. Thats all i know to do.
oakleif
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acts10
17 years ago
Hi, I clean homes in North Carolina, near Charlotte, I charge by the job and not by the hour. from what I hear you are getting off very cheap for the size home you have. I just contracted a home today under 2000 sq. ft. for $100 per clean. I will be going on a bi weekly basis. Homes that are about 3000-3500 sq.ft. usually go for about 175 to 225.
it depends alot on how a home is managed. i make a lot of determinations when I go for the estimate.
It also depends on the type of clean they want. A top to bottom verses general. A weekly clean differs from a bi-wkly.
I don't do monthly. I provide all cleaning supplies and vacs.I am at a house your size about 3 or 4 hours by myself.You have to keep in mind also that if there are 2 or more people working you have to multiply the time by the number of people. If there are 2 people working and they are there 2 hrs. then they did 4 hrs of work. nevr let them tell you to pay what ever. have an agreed amount for an agreed set of duties. always be up front with all the details. it saves you the frustrations you are having now.
i love what I do!
imscattered
17 years ago
I live in a small midwestern town. Just moved to this house this summer and I found a group of 3 girls who come every other week. They ask $65 for the job. It takes about 3 hrs. The house is large 4 bedrooms (multi-use), 3 baths, full basement but 1/2 is storage area they don't go in. They are willing to do extras like wipe out fridge, put dishes away from dishwasher. Always do microwave, sometimes toaster. They helped me unpack some boxes of Christmas dishes, etc. to help me get ready for a party. I am very pleased and would pay more. I gave them $30 each Christmas bonus because I appreciate them so much. Am I lucky or what???
been_there
17 years ago
I'm in the Chicago area, so everything's expensive. I have a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom, 1800 to 2000 sf house and pay $80. It's not hourly; it's for however long it takes my wonderful cleaning help to finish.

But I keep a tidy house and it's relatively easy to clean. I also leave lunch and cold drinks and think that anyone who will clean my bathrooms and my son's room deserves pretty much what she asks for.
been_there
17 years ago
One more thing: Try the term "undocumented workers." Illegal aliens sounds like criminal Martians.
mandy_g
17 years ago
I live in NE Mississippi, and also pay my help by the job, not the hour. My home is a little over 2500 sq ft and she charges $55.00 for every other week. It's just my hubby and myself (and 2 pugs that shed like buffalo) and she doesn't clean upstairs (everything we need is on the main floor, so we don't go up there much). I also am a neat person and pick up after hubby a lot!
ddeardorff
17 years ago
I live in the middle of North Carolina and have a three level townhouse, two bedrooms, three and 1/2 baths, approximately 2800 sq feet and pay my bi-weekly house cleaner $60.00.

What do you pay for your cleaning help?

Comments (8)

lindac

oakleif

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