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Residential, solo or agency
House Cleaner
The margins are excellent once you stop working for an agency.
Typical pay
$30k-$70k independent
How you get in
None required; insurance and bonding matter
Outlook
Steady demand, low barrier, high turnover
House cleaners clean residential properties, either as agency employees or independently. Independent cleaners charge two to three times the agency wage for the same work, which makes going solo the whole financial story.
A day in the life
- 8:00aFirst house — a standard two-hour clean
- 10:30aSecond house, deep clean of a kitchen
- 1:00pLunch and restock supplies in the car
- 2:00pThird house, a regular weekly client
- 4:30pQuote a move-out clean
- 6:00pInvoice and schedule next week
How to get in
Agency first, then independent
Duration
6-18 months
Cost
$0
Credential
None to start
- Get hired by a cleaning agency and learn the systems and pace
- Understand what a house should look like when you leave
- Save for supplies, insurance and a reliable vehicle
- Go independent and charge two to three times what the agency paid you
Start independent immediately
Duration
2-6 weeks
Cost
$500-$3,000 for supplies, insurance and bonding
Credential
Business license plus liability insurance and bonding
- Register the business and get insured and bonded — clients ask
- Set rates by the job, not the hour
- Get your first clients through neighborhood groups and referrals
- Build to a full week of recurring clients, then raise prices
Build a crew
Duration
1-3 years
Cost
$3,000-$20,000
Credential
Business license, insurance, payroll setup
- Fill your own schedule first and start turning work away
- Hire and train your first cleaner
- Move from cleaning to scheduling, quoting and quality control
- This is where it stops being a job and becomes a business
What people love
- · Start this week with almost no capital
- · Independent rates are two to three times agency pay
- · Regular clients mean predictable income
- · Full schedule control
What wears people down
- · Physically hard on knees, back and hands
- · No benefits or paid time off
- · Cancellations hit income immediately
- · Chemical exposure without proper products