Cleaning fees seem very polarizing, some people hate them, others love the option to pay and not have to clean.
Would love to have a checkbox similar to Smoking or Pets, as to whether cleaning fee is charged, not charged, or optional. Then have filters where people can search by their preference.
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For now the policy of HE is to enable cleaning fees where really required ( often second homes which the owners can’t go to between exchanges), but for these fees to remain exceptional and not to become the norm. Having a filter could make members, particularly new ones, think that it was common practise to ask for fees, whereas many members are against them.
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I would happily pay to have a cleaning person come in after my stay even in a primary home. Easier to catch early flight, not have the stress of cleaning to someone else’s standards, etc.
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I have no problem people chaging cleaning fees, albeit, we do not. Equally, we also tend to avoid those listings that do. I do not think they should regarded as profit even though some seem to be excessive.
Cleaning fees also appear for primary residences so filtering out just secondary homes (as somebody suggested) is not really a solution. Besides, you would also filter many homes that do not charge a cleaning fee.
We tend to go away in the summer in our motorhome. This is the time we do most of our hosting. We may pay someone to cut the grass but we request to our hosts to prepare the house for any incoming guests. This is why we prefer longer exchanges so as to reduce the number of changeovers. So far, it appears to have worked. We would not wish to charge cleaning fees but I have no problem with those people that do. I can see good reason to do so.
However, I firmly believe there should be a check box filter. In the past (pror to this forum) I even wrote to h/e suggesting this very thing. I did not receive a reply. To me, I see no reason that having this filter would lead to a more transparent and all round better experience.
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In my opinion, it would be very difficult to filter by cleaning fee because it is not so cut and dry. Some have a fee for GP exchanges, but not for reciprocal ones, so it can be quite subtle and variable according to circumstances.
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I think it would screen out a lot of people because a cleaning fee may depend on circumstance. I add the option for a cleaning fee because I would rather have it in some circumstances. For example, if there are 8 people for 4 days and they say no I can’t do anything then I may accept them if they are willing to pay a cleaning fee. However if you are determined that you will not pay it ever well I guess it works for those people. HE will not do it because it brings money into the equation and in many countries they need to stay away from that or it will get re-classified to be a taxed and licensed situation.
In my opinion, there should be a filter for cleaning fees. It could be a separate filter for GP exchanges and a separate filter for reciprocal exchanges, easy.
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I’d absolutely love if these options were available! I always ask for a cleaning service myself, as I live with chronic pain – and we travel with a young child (which is a full-time job in itself 
). I’m more than happy to pay for cleaning after a stay – it saves me from pain and makes leaving so much easier. Of course, we always tidy up and make sure the home is neat and presentable before we head out – we’re messy in spirit, but polite in practice 
A filter is the best way to go! I have had too many people not take the time to read my listing and be surprised it says that. Even though it’s at the top! I prefer to stay at homes WITH a reasonable cleaning fee so I am sure I’m leaving the home as the owner would want. It makes it a vacation.
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Hello Denis_et_Andre
A cleaning fee filter would help a lot to search a suitable place.
For those who have a “subtle” policy, the best is to check the box and continue to write in their listing that cleaning fees may not be applied for reciprocical exchanges.
The side effect of not having a cleaning fee check box may be that more people actually read listings. Over a check box I might welcome a section titled about cleaning which would include cleaning fees, when they are charged and how people generally expect the house left.
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I agree that there is no point to remind new exchangers of the cleaning fee in order to avoid normalizing this practice. I also agree that this shall be allowed in the description area in the case of seldom access second house, personally I don’t like it, never put a penny in my place. However, I have noticed some owners have already taken this cleaning fee action to earn additional money, especially those who admit it’s their current living resident, how can we decline it without the fear of them declaring the deposit after the exchange? Will HX listen to the reasons and evident, perhaps support the decline?
I would support a box that people specifically fill in on how to leave the property. That could be a place where things like cleaning fees must be listed if applicable. However if a fee is listed you should pass on the exchange if you do not want to pay it. Declining after your stay is not right UNLESS it was not disclosed in advance. If it was not disclosed that is different.
I support the idea of some kind of cleaning fee filter to facilitate searches, so one could find listings that do NOT charge a cleaning fee. I totally agree with and support SusanJbrn’s statement “the policy of HE is… for these fees to remain exceptional and not to become the norm.“ I believe the spirit of HomeExchange is to have a community of like-minded friends who share each other’s houses. Any fees charged by hosts start to erode this and take us down a more transactional path, where HE starts to seem less like community and more like commerce. I’m afraid the fact is, regardless of whether there is a check box or filter, cleaning fees are already proliferating and may soon become more the norm. Guests are encountering them more and more often, and it’s natural to begin asking yourself, “should I just start charging too?”
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My wife and I were recently surprised to be asked for cleaning fees. We have had many exchanges in many countries both as guests and as hosts and have never charged any fee or been charged any fee. When we are the guests we respectfully clean up after us and when we are hosts our guests always leave our apartment as clean as when they arrived. Washing the sheets is always done by the host. The spirit of HomeExchange as we have perceived it is that you welcome your guests as you would welcome your friends. Would you charge your friends for cleaning? Would your friends leave your apartment in a mess?
We think the cleaning fees are a very bad idea as it green-lights bad behavior. Normalizing hosts having to pick up the mess left by the guests will degrade the spirit of HomeExchange. We understand that a cleaning fee check-box would be useful but we believe the fees to be banned. There are plenty other sites for people wanting to make money.
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Would my friends leave my place a mess? Yes. Would people I don’t know? Possibly. Do I clean before friends come over to stay? No, I hate cleaning which is why I hire a cleaner. Do I want to clean while I’m on vacation? No, see point above about hating cleaning, doubly so when I’m on vacation and want to get out the door. Do we make money charging for cleaning? No, it all goes to the cleaner, plus a supplement from me.
If you want to clean and not pay, great! If I don’t want to clean and I want to pay, great! That’s why there should be a filter, so both of us are happy and you aren’t surprised with cleaning fees.
+10000!
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Kindsquirrel, my wife and I don’t have a cleaner. We do our own cleaning and would’t touch yours for any payment. The concept of Home Exchange relies on respect and leaving your mess for others to clean up is not respectful. There are so many paying options out there where cleaning is integrated, HomeExchange should stick to Guest Points only.
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The issue is not the cleaning fee itself, but the fact that it is mandatory. I believe optional cleaning fees can be very helpful for families with young children, people with physical limitations, or even those who are not used to cleaning even in their own homes, as well as travellers who take very early flights on their departure day, among others.
However, there is a big difference between that and allowing, as HomeExchange currently does, cleaning fees to be mandatory. From my perspective, this does not fit at all with the spirit of home exchange, where guests are essentially welcomed into your home, to require them to pay compulsory for cleaning in that same home.
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I think saying it must be optional will make it worse. Hosts who say a fee is mandatory are honest now. If you say it must be optional but there is no condition under which it will be optional then what is the point of a change? Also hosts can say ok no cleaning fee if you leave it as you found it and the guest doesn’t do what is asked then you have unhappy hosts which is why some people go to a cleaning fee. They want to be in the spirit of HE but that expectation is different, do you make the beds, not make the beds? wash, not wash? Now people say you don’t make your guests make your beds but in truth if I loan my house I receive it back differently than if I host a friend while I am home. Also people have different standards I would love to have a description section dedicated to cleaning. I know that doesn’t satisfy the checkbox screening tool alot of people want but I honestly don’t think we will see that tool because of how governments might view a fee checkbox.