Cleaning Fees – Part One

Founder/Managing Partner Lamar Hunt Jr. knows that some tenants are very clean yet other tenants can be very messy.  That’s why it’s important to have a lease agreement with clear terms about cleaning fees.  The terms should deal with the initial inspections, periodic inspections and the final inspection during move-out.  Let’s talk about the setting of the cleaning fees.  First, you can set a fee that you think will cover the entire cleaning.  Depending on the size of the property, the cleaning fee should reflect a shampooing of the carpets, a wipe down of all walls and doors and a solid cleaning of all glass surfaces.  If your property has special conditions or features, consider the cleaning fees for that.  And don’t forget the appliances.  Remember you can always charge below your set cleaning fee because the tenant certainly won’t complain about that.  Some real estate investors like to list an open-ended cleaning fee in their leases.  This can be a good idea because you are not limited in case you have a big cleaning problem.  However, an open-ended cleaning fee may cause more problems than it’s worth.  That’s because tenants may challenge the fees in court which takes your time and may require a lawyer to deal with.  So when setting cleaning fees in your lease, consider the property size, conditions and reasonableness of the fee to make sure you are covered.  This will avoid a disagreement down the road.  For more real estate tips on this subject or other subjects, see our blog at  https://lorettoproperties.com/.  You can also call us at 913-236-2902 if you have a property to sell.