Save Your Money Cut the Cleaning Help

Sweeping, mopping, dishes, bathrooms, trash – and nonstop laundry. Cleaning is an essential but never-ending chore. As soon as all the tasks are done, the cycle begins again. Couples often begin married life doing the cleaning by themselves – and many continue to do so – but under the pressures of jobs and children, there comes a time when cleaning help seems necessary.

But before hiring help or adding more cleaning help hours, it’s worth asking: Is your help really cleaning, or is she spending most of the time tidying piles, picking up toys, and moving clutter from room to room?

If the answer to the latter is yes, you may be paying for organizing, not actual cleaning. The reason a home looks “always messy” often has less to do with dirt and more to do with too much stuff. Once clutter is out of the way and the home has a bit of structure, cleaning takes less time. And the cost of help can go down as well.

Two Ways to Start

Declutter first: Before you consider modifying your cleaning habits or increasing cleaning help hours, walk through your home with a critical eye. How much of the mess is simply extra stuff – outgrown clothing, broken toys, old papers, or things no one uses? Every item donated or thrown out is one less thing to pick up, dust, or move from place to place. A home with less clutter takes a fraction of the time to clean.

Redirect the work: If you have help, make sure those hours are used wisely. Instead of saying “just straighten up,” assign tasks that make a noticeable difference, such as scrubbing bathrooms, wiping down the inside of cabinets, deep cleaning the fridge, mopping floors, or cleaning under furniture. When your cleaning help spends time actually cleaning, not tidying, your home stays cleaner for longer and the hours you pay for go much further.

Build a Simple Home Schedule

Keeping a simple cleaning routine makes it easier to stay on top of the house without needing extra help.

Daily (10–15 minutes)

·         Wipe kitchen counters and tables

·         Sweep high-traffic areas

·         Quick bathroom sink, toilet, and mirror wipe-down

·         One load of laundry, start to finish

Weekly

·         Clean bathrooms

·         Mop and vacuum floors

·         Dust surfaces

·         Wipe kitchen appliances

Every Two Weeks

·         Change linens

·         Vacuum and mop lesser-used rooms

·         Wipe cabinet doors

·         Clean inside the microwave and toaster oven

·         Wash or replace bathroom mats

Monthly

·         Clean refrigerator shelves

·         Dust baseboards and wipe down light switches and doorknobs

·         Vacuum under beds and furniture

·         Wash windows or window tracks

Why This Saves You Serious Money

·         Fewer hours needed: A home that runs on a routine may only need cleaning help once a week instead of twice or three times.

·         Better-quality cleaning: Your help’s time goes toward actual cleaning, not basic pickup.

·         No extra organizing expenses: Less clutter means no buying bins or baskets, and no paying for a home organizer.

·         A home that stays neater: When rooms aren’t overflowing, everyone can tidy up quickly and things stay cleaner between visits.

Consider this: A family paying $70 a day for two days per week of cleaning help can often reduce it to just one day. That’s $3,640 saved in a year – money that can cover camp deposits, Yom Tov costs, or go straight into savings.  

Beyond the savings: Cutting hours doesn’t mean the house will fall apart. Once clutter is gone and routines are in place, day-to-day upkeep becomes quicker and easier. Each person in the family can have a job: younger children clean up toys and books each night, middle schoolers unload the dishwasher, and high schoolers take out the trash. When each person in the household knows what needs to be done, and how often, the home stays easier to maintain between cleanings, and your cleaning help can focus on the jobs that truly require it. A system like this keeps the home cleaner and lowers costs.

Two Real-Life Tricks

Before each cleaning visit, take two minutes to write a short priority list: bathrooms, floors, kitchen surfaces, and one deep-clean task (like cabinets or the fridge). Another tip: Schedule a 10- to15-minute family pickup before help arrives. Put toys in bins, gather laundry, and clear counters. This ensures your paid time goes toward actual cleaning, not basic tidying, and gives you far more value from the hours you’re already paying for.

The Bottom Line

Cleaning help is useful, but more hours aren’t always the answer. Often, the real issue is clutter, not dirt. With less stuff, a simple schedule, and clear priorities, many families can reduce their cleaning hours – or even do it themselves – without losing a clean, comfortable home. The savings add up quickly. A home with less clutter is simply easier to keep clean and brings you one step closer to saving money, stress, and time.

Rivka Resnik is the author of three financial literacy textbooks – one for middle school and two for high school – available at cost to any Jewish school across the United States through the OU and Living Smarter Jewish.