Talk to me... do you have a cleaner or are you a cleaner

[Studyinghell]

I'm thinking of starting cleaning self employed part time. What do I need to know?
Have you got a cleaner, how much pay and what services do you expect?
Are you a cleaner? Do I need specialist insurances? Any info would be appreciated

I have a cleaner for 3 hours per week and pay £10 ph. I found her via personal recommendation.
Before she started she visited the house to look around, ask what I wanted her to do each week and we chatted about what supplies she likes to use.

I have a quick run around before she comes to tidy up - I wouldn't want her to spend her time tidying up after us. In three hours she cleans the bathroom, 2 loos, hall stairs and landing, 1 bedroom, sitting room, dining room and mops kitchen and utility.
We're both flexible on days/timings if we need to swap - I don't mind at all as long as she comes each week!

I value her enormously and trust her implicitly. She works really hard and will often do little extras if she notices they need doing (window cleaning).
If I could afford to have her for a couple more hours a week I definitely would; just to have the other bedrooms cleaned and the kitchen surfaces/hob etc done as well.

I'm a self-employed domestic cleaner. I agree that you should charge at least £12 per hour for all of the above reasons plus sometimes the more you charge the better people think the service will be.
It is actually a privilege, in a way, to be allowed into someone's home and in their more intimate places - never ever snoop.

Be completely trustworthy, loose change stays where it is, keys get looked after, you genuinely work the hours you have agreed.
Once you have a few regulars advertise along that street/ask client to recommend you to neighbours.
Be prepared to be asked to take on different roles, 3 of my clients have turned into a more carer/companion role in addition to cleaning. But be prepared to say no if you don't want to.
Also be prepared for clients to share their personal stories with you, absolute discretion is needed. Oh and for possibly entering homes that are tense where it's no surprise when they tell you they are splitting up.
I'm sure there is more but this is long already. Just work hard and be fair basically.

I am a cleaner, I used to do domestic but now I do a company building every day for 3 hrs. When I did domestic cleaning I charged £11- £12 ph
I didn't have insurance, but I do think it's a good idea to get some. I am looking do some extra cleaning work during school hrs, so if anyone is in Reading and are looking for a good, reliable, trustworthy cleaner feel free to pm me .
chitofftheshovel has given good advice and it's the rules I follow when doing house cleaning.

I have a cleaner and she charges ten Euro an hour, and does two hours each Saturday morning. She does kitchen (hobs, surfaces, sinks), two small bathrooms and mops floors. As she goes along she cleans surfaces like lounge coffee table etc. I have a toddler Dd and always make sure I leave everywhere clear of toys/ clothes/ no plates to wash etc as I already regret paying for jobs I could do myself but at 31 weeks pregnant the day the cleaner comes is my favourite day of the week 😍 once a month she does an extra hour to do windows and a quite clean of our outdoor terrace xx

My advice is (as an employer) is to clearly ask them what are their priorities, cleaning or also tidying/doing the dishes/ironing.
Our previous cleaner spent a lot of time over-tidying (aligning the magnets on the fridge for ex!) and it didn't work out because I wabted her to focus on the cleaning (and I did tidy up beforehand, no toys on the floor so it was clear to vacuum, no dirty dishes or clothes lyong around etc).
We pay £11/h in SW London and have a cleaner 4h per week for a 3 bed house - and we don't do any cleaning ourselves on top. 3h for cleaning the house + 1 extra task like ironing + changing all bedsheets or cleaning inside the fridge and oven or sililar.

No because I want a cleaner who will clean skirting and do deep cleaning without me having to move stuff. That kind of service isn't available where I am

I have a self employed cleaner through maid2clean. They introduced us and I pay them a quarterly dd for her insurance and a holiday cover service. I pay her £9/hr cash direct.

We employ a cleaner, have in the past, and now employ another for my mum. We are in Yorkshire in relatively poor city. We pay £14 an hour.

Our cleaner does a great job, she hoovers, sweeps, dusts, cleans surfaces and bathrooms and kitchen. She's not supposed to, but she cleans our grill-pan and will often fold washing.

Make sure you factor in travel time when deciding your hourly rate as you will not get 8 paid hours in a day. Clarify what you will and won't do and their expectations and it might be best to have it in writing. For example my eldest went through a period of having a really messy bedroom and I told our cleaner only to clean it when it was tidy enough to clean without tidying away a load of crap, however this is the kind of thing that could be contentious. When my DSD went through the same phase a few years later and our cleaner ignored her room because it was a shithole, DH threw a fit, the twat, even though he'd totally agreed she shouldn't when it was DD1! - Fortunately he heard it from me and got a gobfull from me and never brought it up with the cleaner who was totally in the right IMO.

If you do a good job you will be really valued, what you do really enhances and helps the lives of your customers. I love it when I come home forgetting the cleaner has been, and walk into a freshly cleaned house.

Hi, I'm a cleaner in Sussex. I've been doing it for nearly 3 years now. I'm self employed. When I first started I was wary of charging to much but have come to realise that I'm worth it ! I go the extra mile, try to accommodate people if they want me to come on a different day etc.
I put my rate up when the new tax year started, to £12 @ hour.

Any new clients will be charged £13.
If they're not willing to pay you a decent rate then they don't deserve to have you and don't value you.
My clients are happy with my work and appreciate me. I get lovely gifts and or money for Christmas. One client bought me an Easter egg!

I love all my clients. I've learnt to ditch the ones that are a pain in the arse.
I'm now having to turn people down as I'm fully booked.
My advice, OP, is don't under value yourself. Discuss the clients expectations and manage them. Eg. If they expect a huge house cleaned in 2 hours tell them it's not doable, or you'll be running around like a headless chicken!
It takes a couple of visits to get into a routine, find plug points etc.
If it's been neglected I usually suggest a spring clean to start with then it's easier to maintain. Hope this helps and good luck

We have cleaners who come once a fortnight. They charge £15 per hour and they do a lovely job however I'm wondering if I'm paying too much, as I pay for two cleaners for two hours so effectively £60 each fortnight for a three bed house. What does everyone think?

I'm in the South East by the way

darling I don't think you are paying too much.

darling we charge that but with VAT on top therefore £18 per hour and cannot meet the demand for service. There is always a high demand for a well-run cleaning service even though it cost more.

We wouldn't be able to charge less and stay afloat. It's tricky enough as it is with all the costs associated with running and growing a business.

If I didn't love my job as the business owner i sure wouldn't be doing it just for the money. It''s blooming lot of work and not easy money even at the stage where you clean yourself and everything is 'relatively' straight forward, it's still costs a lot of stress to run the business well let alone the wear and tear on your body over time.

If cleaners are serious about their business and staying around and growing it as a career rather than a job then the £15 per hour is necessary. But these same cleaners are serious about running a successful business and will be making sure they are doing everything correctly with everyone's best interests at heart.

The cheap brigade have to either cut corners and leave clients exposed to all sorts or liability and other issues to save costs or they have to get wise and charge a decent rate for their business. They all go one of two ways, either shape up their pricing or ship out cos it aint worth it.

Would a cleaner charge more per hour for say a 2 hour cleaning session, then a 4 hour cleaning session, to take account of travel time?

Not necessarily but I may do a reduction if a customer wanted extra hours in one go I've seen leaflets through the door where the bigger companies reduce the hourly rate for 3 hours etc.
The thing about travel time is that if I were charging 8.50 per hour is that you arrive at your first clean at 9 , work for 2 hours. Arrive at the next say 11.30 do another 2 hours, get to next at 2 do another 2 hours. Finish at 4pm. You are out of the house 7 hours charging for 6.
If I have done the maths correctly on hours alone you are now down to £7.21 per hour.

I would expect to pay £10p/h minimum. Currently paying £13 through a cleaning business, we're not in London. Cleaner does what I ask her to. Cleans all bathrooms. Mops the floors vacuums the house throughout, dusts and makes the beds if I want. She also empties the bins if she has time and wipes marks off the windows. I had a brilliant cleaner who charged £10 p/h but didn't appear to like the fact my house actually needed cleaning and commented on other houses she cleaned for stating she didn't know how people lived like that, so I was quite pleased that mat leave meant I had to say goodbye to her. I now have a lovely cleaner who isn't so thorough but is more discrete which makes me feel more at ease. She also doesn't seem to mind if the house is a bit of a tip although obviously if she's shifting things about she can't get as much done in the time. We try to have a tidy up first, so she can clean efficiently.

Oven cleaning I could ask her to do and fridge too but that would mean paying for extra time as it would take too long. I have her once a fortnight for 2.5 hours (four bed house) which helps us to just about keep on top of things and doesn't break the bank.

I also give my cleaner a tip at Christmas, normally about £20 as they don't work then and I'm assuming, don't get paid otherwise.

DarlingCoffee where in the SE are you? I am looking for cleaning work, do a good job and would charge between £12-£15 ph depending on location and if cleaning materials are supplied.

Just making use of this thread if I can; those using an agency do u know how much the cleaner gets? Looking at a local agency, not an agency per say as they don't employ the cleaners or manage the money or anything much rly but they vet the cleaners and can provide replacement if needed and provide insurance. They charge just under 4pounds per hour which to me sounds too much. The cleaners typically get 8pounds per hour on a self employed basis which sounds too low to me... Thoughts?

(Just to clarify: they don't pay the cleaners, the clients pay the cleaners direct and the agency recommends a rate of 8 pounds per hour. They then charge the client, on a quarterly basis, fees which are 4pounds per hour in effect)

The cleaner we have for my father is more of a housekeeper in that she does the cleaning plus brings him cooked food. We have her 3 times a week for 2 hours (mon/weds/fri). We pay her £15/hr and we provide all products. In return she does a fab job. She has built her own rota of what needs doing. As an example, every other Monday the rugs are taken outside and shaken and the floor underneath cleaned. Every 12 weeks she does the oven.

She is worth every penny and we give her £100 at Christmas and for her birthday. If you are cleaning someone's home don't think charging less is a good way to establish yourself. Get insured and go for the upper end of the market.

Thanks again every1, it's so helpful to read lots of different experiences. I've decided to go in at 10ph (they provide products) as I'm looking to work locally I think this should be ok. I've always ducted mileage and fuel on self assessment rather than bill the client in my my current job, so fingers crossed :) Got some insurance quotes starting from about £15 a month so that's a lot less than I expected

As a client I prefer to have a cleaner who comes in every day for a couple of hours. Many cleaners, however, prefer to do a whole day once a week.

The biggest issue IMO is compability of standards. I have also had issues with cleaners who cherry pick and leave me the jobs they don't like. It doesn't work that way... ;)

I pay £10 per hour for 4 hours a week (Southwest) & supply all products & equipment myself.

Happy to get what my cleaner likes (although i prefer eco-friendly stuff)

We pay our cleaner €13p/h, and she comes every other week for three hours. We provide all the products.

When she started we had a chat to agree what we needed doing every visit, and then we have a notebook that she checks in case we have any special requests, we write them down there (she comes when we're at work) though we rarely do. She uses the same notebook to let us know if any products are running out and need replacing.