Mandatory Housekeeping Fees May Be Just Around the Corner

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There's a plan for paying for the housekeeper in the summer. Raising rates by $5/day doesn't cover it so a $10/night charge for housekeeping would. But, I'd still have to pay someone to be here for a certain number of hours.
 
Ridiculous, and again back to that LACK OF SERVICE mentality. If you want it PAY FOR IT. This is not good.
"[FONT= 'Times New Roman']The hotel industry will argue that housekeeping is an expense and strictly speaking, not part of the room you are renting from them. They'll probably take a page from the airline playbook, saying that you don't get a housekeeper when you buy a house -- why should it be any different at a hotel?"[/FONT]
[FONT= 'Times New Roman']
Read more: http://www.frommers.com/articles/7222.html#ixzz1GytO0Xje[/FONT]
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.)
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.).
I think it would confuse the guest. Maybe not worth the $2.
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.).
I think it would confuse the guest. Maybe not worth the $2.
.
True, but then again, it's also not my money, it's theirs. Of course, do they need to know how we break it down until they see the invoice?
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.).
Your not paying the tax... your customers are! Your just collecting them.
If I were presented an invoice like this I would be thinking that housekeeping was optional. What if repeat guests come in and say no to housekeeping or put out the do not disturb sign and then refuse to pay that part of the bill. Not worth your efforts to save your guests $2!
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.).
Your not paying the tax... your customers are! Your just collecting them.
If I were presented an invoice like this I would be thinking that housekeeping was optional. What if repeat guests come in and say no to housekeeping or put out the do not disturb sign and then refuse to pay that part of the bill. Not worth your efforts to save your guests $2!
.
Hence the "household services" which include breakfast, housekeeping, charming interactions, heat, cooling, electricity, water, bathrooms, amenities, towels, furniture, clean sheets etc. Everything but the four walls, floor and ceiling.
Which is exactly why I haven't changed a thing. Still, I hate paying extra tax for no reason.
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.).
Your not paying the tax... your customers are! Your just collecting them.
If I were presented an invoice like this I would be thinking that housekeeping was optional. What if repeat guests come in and say no to housekeeping or put out the do not disturb sign and then refuse to pay that part of the bill. Not worth your efforts to save your guests $2!
.
Hence the "household services" which include breakfast, housekeeping, charming interactions, heat, cooling, electricity, water, bathrooms, amenities, towels, furniture, clean sheets etc. Everything but the four walls, floor and ceiling.
Which is exactly why I haven't changed a thing. Still, I hate paying extra tax for no reason.
.
GBManor said:
Which is exactly why I haven't changed a thing. Still, I hate paying extra tax for no reason.
We have to charge our guests 7% state sales tax and 5% county innkeepers tax. Of that 5%, half of all the money collected goes to pay for a local facility where people play softball. The motels have to bid against each other to have out of town teams stay, with the understanding that a certain percentage of the revenues collected for rooms rented will be paid to the tournament organizers. I get really upset every month when I send the check to the county.
The actual economic impact of these tournaments is unknown, and even if there is one, the facility is only in use in the summer. And the softballers aren't ever going to visit my place, for sure.
 
I just stayed at a Sheraton Hotel, if you opted to NOT have housekeeping on any day of your stay (except of course check out date) they gave you bonus Sheraton points. Good idea. Saves on staff costs which are a lot more than the actual min wage by the time you have added in breaks, uniforms, vacation pay, benefits, not to mention the actually cleaning supplies
I know it may be a strange concept to some B&B owners but if any of you have been a housekeeping manager of a large hotel, or even a housekeeper, the cost savings are tremendous. And it's an "option" for the guest. Hotels thinking out of the box, good for them
Some hotels can barely find staff to clean rooms .... so tell me why we have so many people on unemployment and welfare... that's something else .. another story ..don't get me started.. cause they get paid more to sit on their butts and get food stamps than go out and work.
 
Its mad round here only eastern europeans will do chamber maid jobs UK people would rather be unemployed. Trouble is too many hotel jobs are seen as steps on the way to something else not a career which they are trying to change but it is a slow process.
 
When I worked for a major 5 star hotel co, (1) doing housekeeping was a mandatory step towards any front of house management position and (2) Housekeeping managers were paid pretty well with the Exec Housekeeper doing VERY well. I hated every minute of it but I did it and it really taught me a lot. I feel for housekeeping managers now that have to deal with even worse staffing issues than I had to. Good lord last week my backup housekeeper just decided not to show up for 2 days, hangs up on me and has never called to say why she decided not to come in. And she does NOT have another job. 4th time in 5 years she has done this so SHE is written off!!
 
Its mad round here only eastern europeans will do chamber maid jobs UK people would rather be unemployed. Trouble is too many hotel jobs are seen as steps on the way to something else not a career which they are trying to change but it is a slow process..
It's the time of year now that I start hearing from all those kids with J1 visas wanting summer jobs. Yes, all from Eastern Europe.
 
Its mad round here only eastern europeans will do chamber maid jobs UK people would rather be unemployed. Trouble is too many hotel jobs are seen as steps on the way to something else not a career which they are trying to change but it is a slow process..
It's the time of year now that I start hearing from all those kids with J1 visas wanting summer jobs. Yes, all from Eastern Europe.
.
Hey! I started off here 20 years ago with a J1 visa, we're not ALL bad .... but most of those "letters" you get don't actually have J1 visas or they would have a job, they have the potential to GET one if you offer them one but they figure SOMEONE will fall for it
 
Im sorry but people generally baffle me we get people non stop looking for jobs but I guarantee if you said housekeeping (ie scrubbing toilets) they would be off i am sorry but any job in a recession is a good one until you maybe can get something better.Trouble is here a lot of people come from eastern europe and take anything to get started so you can guarantee you get them trained and then they are off so you have to start all over again. Also they struggle for transport as most arrive with nothing so for them to work and or live anywhere but the town center is difficult. They tend to hit the big hotels as some have live in accommodation which is only $60 a week and that provides a good launch pad.
 
I have always asked my guests if they need maid service, explaining that we consider their room their "home" while they are here and we would never enter their home without permission. They rarely ask for maid service. Most like the fact they will not have someone in the room. there are always PLENTY of towels in the bathrooms. Works for me - BUT remember, I am very small.
Edited to add: I am small enough I can do it myself. If I have to hire help, I will close.
 
When we advertised our housekeeping jobs last year - and it was very clear they were part-time housekeeping - we had hundreds of phone calls and I had my choice of a half dozen well-qualified, reliable candidates. The two that I hired have been great. I would rather employ local folks than students on visas.
Maybe we're lucky, but I have not had the housekeeping horror stories that other innkeepers have had. In my previous life, I specialized in interviewing and recruiting; I have been told I'm better than average at sizing up potential employees.
 
Im sorry but people generally baffle me we get people non stop looking for jobs but I guarantee if you said housekeeping (ie scrubbing toilets) they would be off i am sorry but any job in a recession is a good one until you maybe can get something better.Trouble is here a lot of people come from eastern europe and take anything to get started so you can guarantee you get them trained and then they are off so you have to start all over again. Also they struggle for transport as most arrive with nothing so for them to work and or live anywhere but the town center is difficult. They tend to hit the big hotels as some have live in accommodation which is only $60 a week and that provides a good launch pad..
That's the problem with the visa kids- they need accommodations. I had 4 of them show up here one summer and they wanted to share a room. They were going to 'hot bed' as in someone is always sleeping in the bed and the others are working. Can you imagine the strain on that one room if someone was always in there for 3 months straight!
 
When we advertised our housekeeping jobs last year - and it was very clear they were part-time housekeeping - we had hundreds of phone calls and I had my choice of a half dozen well-qualified, reliable candidates. The two that I hired have been great. I would rather employ local folks than students on visas.
Maybe we're lucky, but I have not had the housekeeping horror stories that other innkeepers have had. In my previous life, I specialized in interviewing and recruiting; I have been told I'm better than average at sizing up potential employees..
I wish we had a list to choose from. We generally get 2-3 responses to our ad. Either they don't have transportation or they don't know what 'housekeeping' means. Lots of front desk and flower arranging concierges out there. Not too many toilet scrubbing bed makers, tho.
 
I've actually considered breaking some of this out, but not for the same reason.... more of a tax dodge. I have to collect a 3.5% room tax, it's only collectable on rooms (and it's taxable.) So if the room is $100 then I have to collect:
$100 + $3.50 room tax (3.5%) + $5.18 GST (5%) + $9.24 QST (8.5%) = $117.92
But if I have a household services charge of $50 and a room charge of $50...
$50 + $1.75 room tax + $50 = $101.75 + $5.09 GST (5%) + $9.08 QST (8.5%) = $115.92
Which means that the guest saves $2, none of which costs me a single penny and since the local tourism department does nothing for me (they don't even list me on their website, they want me to pay them even more money to do that), I don't see the point of giving them more money. (And yes, I checked, it is only collectable on the room, not my parking, not my meals, etc. But I would have to seperate the charges to do this.).
Your not paying the tax... your customers are! Your just collecting them.
If I were presented an invoice like this I would be thinking that housekeeping was optional. What if repeat guests come in and say no to housekeeping or put out the do not disturb sign and then refuse to pay that part of the bill. Not worth your efforts to save your guests $2!
.
Hence the "household services" which include breakfast, housekeeping, charming interactions, heat, cooling, electricity, water, bathrooms, amenities, towels, furniture, clean sheets etc. Everything but the four walls, floor and ceiling.
Which is exactly why I haven't changed a thing. Still, I hate paying extra tax for no reason.
.
GBManor said:
Which is exactly why I haven't changed a thing. Still, I hate paying extra tax for no reason.
We have to charge our guests 7% state sales tax and 5% county innkeepers tax. Of that 5%, half of all the money collected goes to pay for a local facility where people play softball. The motels have to bid against each other to have out of town teams stay, with the understanding that a certain percentage of the revenues collected for rooms rented will be paid to the tournament organizers. I get really upset every month when I send the check to the county.
The actual economic impact of these tournaments is unknown, and even if there is one, the facility is only in use in the summer. And the softballers aren't ever going to visit my place, for sure.
.
Innkeep, this is really interesting. Our raised the hotel/motel tax by 1% and those monies from that extra percent would go to support the sports council. The C&VB made an argument for this that all the people coming for tournaments would stay in our hotels and the circle would be complete. What type of hotels do you think these teams stayed in?
 
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