Experienced housekeepers in parts of Florida are enjoying huge salaries of between $120,000 to $150,000, CNBC reported.
With wealthy homeowners also battling big hotels and businesses for cleaners’ services, the typical pay for housekeepers in the Sunshine State has soared from around $25 an hour in 2020 to $45 or $50 an hour in 2024, some agencies said, per CNBC.
Many are also getting health care, 401(k) plans, and benefits, the report said.
“I have been placing staff for 30 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” April Berube, the founder of The Wellington Agency, a household staffing agency, told the outlet.
“We’ve seen such a boom from people relocating, especially Palm Beach and Miami,” she said. “For housekeepers it’s wonderful. For us it’s extremely difficult. It’s a severe shortage.”
Demand has also surged for other roles, including butlers, drivers, and chefs, per CNBC.
The influx of wealthy homeowners has also seen house prices rocket in South Florida, with the average sale price of a home in Palm Beach exceeding $20 million in the third quarter of 2023.
Many are being lured to the state by the lack of income tax and year-round good weather, as Business Insider previously reported.
Some of the big names to have made the move include Oracle founder Larry Ellison, who purchased a $173 million estate in Manalapan, a town near Palm Beach, in 2022, and Jeff Bezos, Florida’s richest billionaire, who owns three properties on South Florida’s Indian Creek Island.
Donald Trump also has his infamous Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach.
The former president moved his primary residence from New York City to Florida in 2019.
