Starting a business often requires a lot of money to get started. However – service related startups can often be started with less money than most people expect. House cleaning business is one of those businesses. With just a few hundred dollars, you can be well on your way to entrepreneurial success.
supplies
In order to be able to clean houses, you will need some supplies. Wal-Mart, Costco, and Sam’s Club (or any other club membership warehouse) are great places to buy your supplies for less money. A good business rule to follow is that most clients will expect you to bring your own tools and supplies. They don’t want to go to the store and stock up on cleaning supplies before you come. What will you need? Step Ladder or Mini Ladder (2 Step Ladder or 4 Step Ladder), Industrial Grade Bathroom Cleaner and Toilet Cleaner, All-Purpose Cleaner, High Quality Window Cleaner, Soft Scrub Cleaner, Carpet Cleaner, Furniture Polish, Wood Floor Cleaner, Bucket Set, Cleaning Stand and Bag of Cleaning Cloths and its ready to go. An initial set of supplies will probably set you back about $100.00 to $200.00. Try to buy bulk sizes as it will save you money in the long run. Avoid being the cheapest stuff because you often get what you pay for – cheap stuff. You want quality to be able to do a quality cleaning job. Good work will impress your customers and keep them coming back.
Some customers prefer to use certain brands in their homes. This may have several reasons. Talk to each customer if they have any concerns or preferences. Some people have health concerns and prefer to use Brand X as an example only. Ask them to have enough supplies on hand if they want you to use theirs. An important marketing tip: One of your sales pitches could be to advertise that your service options include environmentally friendly cleaning materials.
In most cases, you’ll be able to use your customer’s vacuum cleaner. Find out in the pre-screening process if this will work for each particular client or if they expect you to bring a vacuum cleaner. To keep your start-up cost low, you can make it according to customer requirements to provide a vacuum cleaner.
Important: Do not use the same cleaning tools on different surfaces. As an example – it is highly recommended to use one mop for tile floors and a second mop for wood floors. Different cleaners used on the same mop can have severe effects on surfaces for which they were not developed.
Fees and rates
The prices and fees that you will be able to charge have many dependencies. The most important dependency is your geographical location. An area with high incomes among a significant part of the population will allow you to ask for higher prices. You’ll also find more clients in areas such as low-income families that aren’t really your preferred target group.
Important: Cleaning jobs must be priced by project/job and not by the hour. There is a bit of psychology going on when looking at it from the customer’s point of view. The customer knows they have to pay $75.00 to clean the house, they don’t really care if it takes 3 hours or 5 hours. If the same job were to be priced by the hour, the customer might look more detailed at how long it takes you to clean the house and eventually wonder why you took an hour alone in the two bathrooms in their house. Your client will know as well as you will know in advance the price of house cleaning. Customers will love the fact that they don’t have to expect any surprises if it takes an extra couple of hours to do the job.
Pricing Strategies: Housecleaning isn’t always the same. It should vary between the initial cleaning of the premises and the maintenance cleaning. Imagine a rundown house – it will take more time to clean a really messy place compared to a place cleaned on a normal basis. If clients want to hire you on a recurring basis, the job should start with “initial cleaning.” The initial cleaning should come at around 50% more than the regular price for the same job. If you charge $75.00 for 1500 square feet. 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom home, initial cleaning should cost client between $100.00 and $125.00. An initial cleanup protects both sides from disappointments and also assures that you are in a position to deliver a good job.
To find out the prevailing rate of house cleaning in your area, you should check your competitors. Get pricing information from established companies such as “Molly Maid” as well as from sole proprietors operating alone or with only a small crew. You also have to put a fair value on your own time and keep that in mind. Prepare your price list for homes of different sizes. Set your starting prices on a standard home with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and approx. 1500 sq. ft. from space. 4 bedroom / 3 bathroom house with approx. 2,200 sq. ft. You must raise your price by $15.00 to $25.00. As a general rule, you can add $10.00 or $20.00 per 1,000 square feet. The area of the house to cover your time and expenses (rather than working with the number of bedrooms/bathrooms).
Exceptions: Window cleaning, oven cleaning, and refrigerator cleaning are not included in standard home cleaning jobs. They should charge between $15.00 and $25.00 for ovens and refrigerators and about $5.00 for each interior window (regular size/easy access).
Important: do not operate in the market at extremely low prices. It will be difficult to raise prices later when they are more established. Getting customers isn’t just a matter of pricing. Consider how much it would cost you to hire someone to do the same job and still make some money from the job for yourself after having to pay your employee a salary. Put a fair value on your own work. House cleaning is hard work.
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