House cleaning vs apartment cleaning

Where the time actually goes

A 1,600 square foot house and a 1,600 square foot apartment are not the same job. The house probably has three bathrooms, a staircase, a garage entry and a back door onto a yard. The apartment probably has two bathrooms, one entrance, and a balcony. The house takes longer, and almost all of the difference is bathrooms and stairs.

What apartments have that houses do not

• Building access. Gate codes, fobs, leasing office key release and visitor parking all have to be arranged before the first visit.
• Concentrated cooking residue. Limited ventilation means the wall above the range and the cabinet fronts near it need attention every visit.
• A stacked laundry closet. Small, awkward, and a genuine collector of lint and dust.
• Balcony grit. Wind-blown dust settles on the balcony and comes in through the slider track.
• Shared corridors. Whatever is on the corridor carpet arrives at the door.

What houses have that apartments do not

• Stairs. Treads, risers, handrails and spindles, all of which are slow.
• Yard traffic. Grass, soil and in Dallas a lot of seasonal pollen, arriving through the back door.
• Garage entry. A second doorway that takes every bag, bike and pair of shoes.
• More bathrooms per person. Guest bathrooms are the least used and often the dustiest rooms in the house.
• Ceiling fans in every room, which in Texas run most of the year.

Which is cheaper to clean

Apartments are usually cheaper, mostly because of the bathroom count. But a two-bathroom apartment in poor condition can easily cost more than a well-maintained three-bathroom house, because condition drives time more than layout does. Apartment cleaning cost and house cleaning cost both go through the variables.