What a turnover should cost, and why

Cleaning is priced on time, and time is driven by three things: how many bedrooms there are, how the place is laid out, and what has to be done that is not cleaning.

Bedrooms are the spine of it. A one-bed turnover is one bed to strip, one bathroom to reset, one kitchen to clear. Each extra bedroom adds beds, linen, surfaces and floor. The rate per bedroom falls as the place gets bigger — setting up and packing down happen once whatever the size.

Layout matters more than square metres. A standalone house takes longer than a flat of the same size: stairs, more floor types, outdoor areas, and usually further to carry everything.

The extras are real work. A pool deck, a braai area, a cinema room, a wine cellar, a garden — each is a place that has to be checked and reset. They are priced up front, in the quote, so nobody is surprised afterwards.

Why the cheapest quote is rarely cheapest

A cleaner who has quoted too low has to make the time back somewhere, and it is always the same somewhere: under the bed, behind the toilet, the inside of the microwave. You find out when a guest does.

A fair price buys a person who can afford to do it properly and will still be there next month. Turnover in cleaners is the single most expensive thing that can happen to a hosting operation, because every new person has to learn your place from scratch.

What to expect

Thuso quotes from the property itself — its type, its bedrooms, its extras, and the going rate in its area. If something about a place makes it harder than it looks, tell your cleaner before the first clean rather than after.