Foreclosure Cleanup: Why/How Many Small Biz Owners are Raking in $5,000 to $10,000 Per Month

One of the most common questions many who want to start a foreclosure cleaning business ask is, “How much can I really make doing this type of work?” As with any small business, the answer is as individual as the business and the owner themselves.

However, in foreclosure cleanup, the answer can be boiled down to two specifics: (i) how good and persistent you are at marketing; and (ii) how hard you’re willing to work. It really is this simple.

Foreclosure Cleaning: Does Your Desire to Work Equal Your Desire to Make Money

Everyone who wants to start a business wants to make a lot of money, but, most people’s desire is not aligned with their willingness to put in the work. Tthat’s the plain and simple truth.

BUT, let’s just say that you’re one of the gifted few whose desire is in line with their willingness to work hard. You can easily make $5,000 to $10,000 per month cleaning foreclosed properties. Following is why.

Foreclosure Cleaning: Why Earning Four to Five Figures a Month is So Feasible

One of the beautiful things about starting foreclosure clean up business is that there are in-built profit centers. What exactly do I mean by this? To put it simply, this type of business makes it easy to earn money in several different ways. The revenue streams are a natural part of this business --- you don’t have to look for ways to make more money with this business. It’s there for the taking!

To explain by way of example, let’s look at a concrete scenario. Let’s say you get a call from an REO realtor about a simple trashout. They want you to put in a bid.

So you go and do your initial walkthrough. When you do, you notice that the house is definitely going to need a paint job. Also, there are quite a few minor repairs that you notice, eg, eg, broken windows that will have to be replaced and/or boarded up; missing doors replaced; several holes in the wall that need to be fixed; carpet so filthy that it needs to be ripped out and replaced; etc.).

And, this is just the interior.

On the outside you see that tree limbs are dangerously hang over the roof of the house. They need to be trimmed back before they fall and cause roof damage.

You also notice that the gutters are overflowing with leaves, tree limbs and other debris. If they’re not cleaned, this can cause water damage.

In the front, one can barely see the front of the house clearly because overgrown shrubs are blocking it.

As a foreclosure cleaning business owner, you can handle all of these jobs. So, when you write up your estimate, you will also note all of these things, bringing them to the attention of the agent handling the property and letting them know that your company can “take care of all of this for you.”

Many will say yes because they don’t’ want to deal with separate contractors. The more they can get done in “one fell swoop”; the better. This means more money for you as a foreclosure cleaning company.

And, just how much can you earn on a typical job? Following are some numbers pulled from actual jobs that one foreclosure cleaning company owner shared for this article:

Foreclosure Cleaning: Real Numbers from Real Jobs

Tree Trimming: $250

Gutter Cleaning: $175

Lawn Cut: $85 (large yard, but with very little grass (most of the yard was rocky terrain with not very much grass; time to cut – less than half an hour)

Interior Painting: $2,250 (1,500 sq ft home)

Trashout: $3,000 (1 bedroom, 750 sq ft apt with a lot of garbage; this person bordered on being a hoarder)

While these figures are from separate jobs, they could very well have been from property. If this job was for cleaning one foreclosed property, you would earn close to $6,000 ($5,760 to be exact). And, this is just from one job. Imagine doing two to four or five like this a month. It’s so feasible, especially right now.

Now, do you see how easy it can be to earn $5,000 to $10,000 per month cleaning foreclosed properties? But, in order to bring in the work; you have to market – consistently.

Foreclosure Cleaning: The Ideal Evergreen Biz for Those Willing to Work Hard

Foreclosure clean up is an evergreen business. Why? Because in a good real estate market, or a bad one, properties will always, always, always need to be maintained. This [foreclosure cleaning] is a need that will never go away.

So while it’s a good idea to start this type of business now while foreclosures are such a dominant topic in the news, it’s a sustainable business you can grow no matter what the market is doing – if you learn how to market it right.

Have more questions about foreclosure cleaning as a business? Read Foreclosure Clean Up: 3 FAQs about Cleaning Foreclosures a Living.

Need more motivation? Learn how one property preservation/foreclosure cleaning company earns up to $40,000 per week -- really!

Learn more in the NBC news video below.