Short-term rental hosts often consider doing laundry and cleaning themselves to save money. While the “do-it-yourself” (DIY) approach may seem cost-effective initially, it often leads to hidden expenses that reduce profitability, waste time, and cause operational headaches. This is especially true in fast-paced short-term rental environments like Airbnb, where quick turnovers and high-quality guest experiences are critical.

Here’s why DIY laundry and cleaning can cost you more than you think-and why partnering with professional services is usually the smarter path.

1. Time Is Money: The True Cost of Labor

Many hosts underestimate how much time laundry and cleaning take. For example, one host compared picking up dry cleaning and doing laundry as 35 minutes that could be spent on higher-value activities like booking management or customer calls. Doing laundry frequently-sometimes more than 50% of household chores for some-becomes a significant time sink that adds up rapidly in lost opportunity cost.

Why it matters: Time spent on laundry and cleaning is time you can't invest in growing bookings, guest communications, maintenance, or strategic planning. The "free" labor here has a real dollar value.

2. Equipment Expenses and Maintenance

Owning and maintaining washers, dryers, and cleaning equipment isn't free. Appliances break down, require servicing, and consume utilities (water, electricity, detergent). Many hosts don’t realize how much laundry equipment and supplies add up, especially under the strain of constant usage between back-to-back guests.

Why it matters: The upfront cost of appliances, plus ongoing repair, utility, and supply expenses, can surpass outsourcing costs when scaled over time.

3. Quality Risks Leading to Guest Dissatisfaction and Rework

DIY cleaning and laundry done in haste or with insufficient expertise often results in subpar cleanliness or stained linens, forcing hosts to redo tasks or replace items frequently. Dirty or low-quality linens can lead to negative guest reviews, lowering future booking potential.

Why it matters: The cost of re-cleaning, replacements, and lost revenue from bad reviews quickly adds up and potentially damages your rental’s reputation.

4. Hidden Stress and Burnout

Handling all cleaning and laundry chores personally contributes to stress and operational burnout, especially as your rental portfolio grows. Successful hosts and property managers emphasize “getting the right people” and delegating tasks instead of creating a personal job for themselves by micromanaging cleaning.

Why it matters: Burnout reduces service quality and your capacity to scale or manage multiple properties effectively.

5. Missed Opportunities from Lack of Integration and Professional Systems

Professional laundry and cleaning services often come with integrated scheduling, quality control, and business management systems such as CRM or ERP integrations. DIY approaches lack streamlined processes, leading to inefficiencies, errors, and ultimately higher costs hidden in mismanagement.

Why it matters: Without professional systems, managing turnovers becomes chaotic, increasing downtime and lowering rental income.

Conclusion: Outsource to Boost Efficiency and Profitability

DIY laundry and cleaning might look cheap on paper but hide significant costs in time, equipment, stress, and quality risks. For short-term rental hosts especially, outsourcing these functions to professional service providers:

• Saves valuable time

• Ensures quality and guest satisfaction

• Reduces equipment and maintenance costs

• Supports scaling with professional operations and integrations

  
  

Ultimately, investing in professional cleaning and laundry services frees you to focus on growing your rental business, improving guest experiences, and maximizing revenue.