Filthy Rich Cleaners: The Cleaning Business Podcast

Hosted by ZenMaid

BusinessInterviews guests

Website RSS feed

Episodes

187

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

About the show

<p><span>Filthy Rich Cleaners is the free cleaning business coach you never knew you needed. Hosted by Stephanie Pipkin, founder of Serene Clean, every episode delivers real, tactical advice you'd normally pay for in a consulting call. Honest stories, proven strategies, and tips from people who've built successful cleaning companies, whether you're just starting out or ready to scale. We're here to make you Filthy Rich 💸</span></p>

Listen to episodes

60 recent

November 5, 2026Episode 18944 min

#189: Why Stephanie Finally Bought a Building for Her Cleaning Business

Serene Clean has rented every office it had for 7.5 years. Then a listing went up with no sign out front yet, and less than two months later, Stephanie was closing on a commercial building. In this solo episode, Stephanie explains why she resisted buying for years and what changed to make now the right time. She shares details about the $140K accepted offer and an appraisal around $185K to a local bank that matched a competitor’s rate. 📌 What You’ll Learn — Why renting can be the smarter, lower-risk move for a growing cleaning business — How owning assets during a divorce or partner buyout can put a business at risk — What lenders ask for on a commercial property loan (tax returns, P&Ls, balance sheets) — Why clean books, paying yourself through payroll, and running above board make you loan-ready — How to negotiate a better rate by getting a quote from a second lender — The non-negotiables to look for in a cleaning business office (parking, laundry hookups, private meeting space) — Why owning a building means building a bigger emergency fund Resources Mentioned — Profit First (Book): https://www.amazon.com/dp/073521414X?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback — Best Damn Bookkeeping (Dan) — previous Filthy Rich Cleaners episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htS6eY6luMg&vl=en — ZenMaid Mastermind (free Facebook group): https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie’s Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid’s Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

November 3, 2026Episode 1881 hr 3 min

#188: Leah Izadi on Mental Health and Why Your Worth Isn’t Your Workload

What happens when your whole sense of worth comes from how hard you work, and then your body stops letting you work? In this mental health episode, Stephanie sits down with her consulting client Leah Izadi of Bless This Mess, who took over her mother-in-law’s cleaning business with a newborn and cleaned for 23 years. Leah talks openly about chronic nerve pain, a financially controlling first marriage, infertility, and the belief that she was only worthy if she was doing physical work. She also explains how she let go of her residential clients, rediscovered her strengths, and is relaunching as Innate Cleaning Co., a cleaning company serving medical and wellness offices. 📌 What You’ll Learn — How to let go of residential clients with honesty and care (and why most of them will understand) — Why tying your self-worth to physical work keeps cleaning business owners stuck in the field — How strength assessments like CliftonStrengths can help you see what you’re good at beyond cleaning — Why financial literacy and control over your own money matter so much, especially for women business owners — How Leah used summer pool and event-space cleaning to keep income coming in during her pivot — What changes when you move from residential to commercial cleaning: speed, checklists, and not over-detailing — How a feedback survey with commercial clients helped Leah tighten communication and earn referrals — Why talking to people about your business everywhere you go creates opportunities (including your next hire) — Mental health tools that helped Leah: therapy, an ADD coach, breathwork, healthy eating, strength training, kind self-talk, and boundaries Resources Mentioned — CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder): https://www.gallup.com/cliftonstrengths/en/252137/home.aspx — The Happiness Lab podcast: https://www.drlauriesantos.com/happiness-lab-with-dr-laurie-santos-podcast — ZenMaid: https://get.zenmaid.com/ 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie’s Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid’s Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 29, 2026Episode 18758 min

#187: The Sh*t Stephanie Didn’t Expect Owning a Cleaning Business

Stephanie dressed up as a poop emoji for Halloween 💩 It fits, because this episode is all about the sh*t she didn’t expect when she opened her cleaning business. 7.5 years after opening Serene Clean, Stephanie goes through the surprises that hit hardest as she grew the business from zero to $1.4–$1.5 million a year. She sorts them into employees, clients, costs, and her own mindset. The list runs from a first hire who ghosted on training day and turnover that never ends, to a $30,000 workers’ comp audit bill, turning down whole categories of work, and more. 📌 What You’ll Learn — Why initial cleans take longer than you think, and how production rate auditing keeps your time estimates honest — How to keep hiring from making you cynical when it’s a permanent part of owning a cleaning business — The one question to ask yourself before giving an employee a gift: “If they leave tomorrow, will I still feel good about this?” — Why clear boundaries and direct conversations help your team as much as they help you — How granular checklists close the gap between what a client thinks “deep clean” means and what you deliver — The real cost of insurance and workers’ comp audits, and why shopping your policy every year can save you thousands — Why you should target $50–$60 per labor hour and raise your prices as your costs go up — How to keep fear and self-doubt from making your business decisions Resources Mentioned — ZenMaid (scheduling software): https://get.zenmaid.com/ — ClickUp (task management software): https://clickup.com/ — ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind — Filthy Rich Cleaners episode: Stephanie’s first 10 employees: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q44G2knlyEM — Filthy Rich Cleaners episode: Top five craziest staff member stories: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idwEDKueAKU 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie’s Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid’s Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 27, 2026Episode 1861 hr 23 min

#186: Going From Solo Cleaner to First Hire, with Ashley O'Keeffe

Ashley O’Keeffe’s cleaning business is growing so fast she’s about to start turning down work. She’s never hired a W-2 employee who stayed, yet she has to quote the biggest house she’s ever cleaned. In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Ashley, owner of A.O’K Pristine Clean in Hanover, Virginia, for a hands-on coaching session. Ashley built her client base almost entirely through word of mouth and Facebook tags, and she's now at the point where she needs to hire, but her first W-2 hire lasted a day and a half. Stephanie walks her through hiring, getting out of the field, pricing a 4,000 sq ft home, staying out of side services, setting up client guidelines and checklists, and more! 📌 What You’ll Learn — How to price a large home using square-footage production rates and your target hourly rate — Why big houses often expect a “quantity discount,” and why you shouldn’t give one — How to quote a first-time clean and then lock in a maintenance price after the first few visits — Why you should never give a price during an in-person walkthrough — The discovery questions to ask a lead, including “Why today?” and “Have you had a cleaner before?” — Why saying no to window washing and other side services protects your business — How client guidelines and a physical checklist protect you and help you close sales — Why owner-operators should clear their own schedule before they start hiring — How weekly group interviews keep a hiring pipeline full so one resignation doesn’t sink you — How to use clock-in data and AI to build your own pricing calculator Resources Mentioned — Serene Clean Client Guidelines (available on Serene Clean’s website): https://serene-clean.com/wp-content/uploads/2025-Client-Guidelines-112025.pdf — Rescue My Maid Service Cleaning Tech Boot Camp: https://rescuemymaidservice.com/cleaning-tech-bootcamp/ — Sharon Tinberg’s video training modules: https://www.cleansmartacademy.com/#training — Cleaning for a Reason: https://cleaningforareason.org/ — ZenMaid digital checklists, service ratings, and clock-in/out: https://get.zenmaid.com/ 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 22, 2026Episode 1851 hr 3 min

#185: Was CleanCon Worth It? My Biggest Takeaways From Austin

Stephanie just got back from CleanCon Austin 2026, and Serene Clean is already running differently because of it. In this solo episode, Stephanie breaks down her biggest takeaways from the conference, including Kristen Hadeed's keynote on leadership, Drew Larison's "why today" approach to sales, and Molly Moran's Shine Protocol. She shares what Serene Clean has already put in place, from AI agents that log into ZenMaid and send daily reports to plans for a dedicated salesperson and weekly check-ins with new hires. She also explains what she's choosing not to change and whether CleanCon is worth attending next year. 📌 What You'll Learn — How the FBI feedback framework (feeling, behavior, impact) replaces the compliment sandwich — How the One Three One framework teaches your team to solve problems without running everything by you — Why giving managers a spending threshold lets them fix problems on their own — Why asking "why today?" closes more sales than talking about your company — How Molly Moran's Shine Protocol helps owners treat their health as part of the job — Why Stephanie is separating sales from customer support at Serene Clean — How Serene Clean uses Claude to log into ZenMaid, pull reports, and automate lead follow up — How weekly one on one check-ins with new hires can cut early turnover — What Stephanie is not changing, including how she pays her team Resources Mentioned — CleanCon (next event is in the fall of 2027, plus their online mastermind group): https://mycleancon.com — Live Bright, Molly Moran's coaching program: https://mollymoran.com — Permission to Screw Up by Kristen Hadeed: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34437136 — The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin: https://www.readbrightly.com/books/9781524760915/the-four-tendencies-by-gretchen-rubin — Claude (the AI behind Serene Clean's automations) — ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 20, 2026Episode 1841 hr 49 min

#184: Inside Crime Scene & Hoarding Cleanup, with Alex Philbrick

⚠️ Content advisory: This episode includes discussion of suicide, death, violent crime, and blood cleanup. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US). Outside the US, visit findahelpline.com. Blood cleanup, unattended deaths, violent crime scenes, houses packed floor to ceiling, and more. This is the part of the industry that most of us never see. In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Alex Philbrick, owner and operator of T.A.C.T. Central Arkansas, a franchise that does biohazard remediation and hoarding cleanouts, to talk about what it takes to run a business built on the jobs nobody else wants. Alex shares how he went from buying and selling sports cards to taking over the franchise in 2023. He covers how he prices hoarding and bio jobs, how he staffs one-time jobs with independent contractors, how insurance billing works for trauma cleanup, and more! 📌 What You'll Learn - How hoarding cleanouts are priced, and why dumpsters are the highest cost - Why a $2,200 to $2,700 day rate is a useful starting point for estimating hoarding jobs - How homeowner's insurance billing works for biohazard cleanup, and what documentation to send - How to pay independent contractors fairly when a job's value doesn't match the hours worked - Why the franchise route makes sense for a niche like trauma cleanup - How residential cleaning companies can partner with biohazard and hoarding specialists on deep cleans after a cleanout - How to run a hoarding cleanout like an assembly line, and why a good relationship with a local dumpster company matters so much - The heat exhaustion lesson that changed how Alex handles safety in hazmat suits - How asking "what range were you looking to be in?" helps you win jobs and fine tune your pricing - Why being local and answering your own phone wins bids over bigger companies Resources Mentioned - T.A.C.T. Central Arkansas: tactcentralarkansas.com - T.A.C.T. Central Arkansas on Facebook: facebook.com/TACT-247-Emergency-Biohazard-Decontamination-Service-103126401915515 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 15, 2026Episode 1831 hr 22 min

#183: Rebecca Emberson on Vacation Rentals, Party Houses, & Saying No

What happens when your ex-husband opens a competing cleaning company with almost the same name as yours? Rebecca Emberson went through just that, but she kept her business and her brand, and she's building a better name than ever. Stephanie recorded this episode in person with longtime listener and cleaning business neighbor Rebecca Emberson of Dells-Maid Cleaning Solutions. Rebecca shares how she started in 2018 with five vacation rentals, rebuilt after a messy divorce, and now runs teams that handle same-day turnovers around the Wisconsin Dells. They talk about flat-rate pricing, turning down property manager requests, party house surprises, caring for elderly clients, and more. 📌 What You'll Learn — How to protect your business if your marriage goes south — Why you shouldn't panic when a former employee starts a competing cleaning company — How to let go of a client without burning the bridge — How Rebecca handles linens, flat-rate pricing, and teams for high-volume vacation rental turnovers — How to respond when owners ask you to haul firewood, run the pool vacuum, or treat the hot tub — Why you need to check every drawer, closet, and shower in a party house — How to run walkthroughs that build trust instead of making the client feel ashamed — How Stephanie's team used AI to find a close-rate gap on estimates between $400 and $700 — Why elderly clients should have a second contact on file Resources Mentioned — ZenMaid (job photos, service ratings feedback): https://get.zenmaid.com/ — Cleaning for a Reason: https://cleaningforareason.org/ — Mark Limeberry's Filthy Rich Cleaners episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWVD2CXG3Ks — Dells-Maid Cleaning Solutions: https://dellsmaidcleaningsolutions.com/ 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 13, 2026Episode 1821 hr 25 min

#182: How Allison Diamond Built a Cleaning Business on Systems from Day One

Everyone says cleaning is a "low-cost of entry" business, but Allison Diamond found out the hard way that's only true when you're the one doing the cleaning. In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Allison, owner and founder of The Clean Collective in Atlanta, Georgia. After a career in corporate marketing (plus a body movement studio and a commercial greenhouse along the way), Allison launched her cleaning business without ever working in the field, which meant funding payroll, software, and marketing from day one. She and Stephanie get into the systems she built to make it work. 📌 What You'll Learn — Why "low cost of entry" is a myth when you're not subsidizing the business with your own labor — How a Canva onboarding packet plus automated welcome texts got clients to actually read the policies — The weekly team meeting structure Allison has run since day one (core values, recognition, games, and monthly outings) — How to turn a Facebook giveaway into a lead-gen funnel with a secondary offer for everyone who enters — Why the same question coming up twice means there's a hole in your training, policy, or communication — How switching to subscription billing on the first of the month nearly eliminated cancellations Resources Mentioned — ZenMaid (scheduling): https://get.zenmaid.com/ — Go High Level (CRM, funnels, and automations): https://www.gohighlevel.com/ — The Clean Collective: https://atlcleanco.com/ — The Clean Collective (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/thecleancollectiveatl/ — The Clean Collective (Facebook): https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61576887479073&ref=PROFILE_EDIT_xav_ig_profile_page_web# 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 8, 2026Episode 18138 min

#181: Should You Buy a Cleaning Company? Do Your Due Diligence

A cleaning company can look profitable on paper and still lose money on nearly every job. Before you spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a business, you need to know what's behind the P&L. In this solo episode, Stephanie explains why she would almost never buy a cleaning business (yet why she seriously considered buying one anyway), and talks about a consulting client's rough experience after buying a mostly residential company. 📌 What You'll Learn — Why commercial accounts are a safer purchase than a residential client list — How to check production rates and profit per hour on every client before you buy — The red flags hiding behind a profitable-looking P&L, like owner labor, low pay, and staff turnover — Why missing client notes create a mess for a new owner — What to learn about a company's team and culture before making an offer — Why Stephanie would rather put money into marketing than buy a client list — How messy bookkeeping can stop you from getting the loan you need to grow Resources Mentioned — ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind — ZenMaid Newsletter: https://zenmaid.com/newsletter — Filthy Rich Cleaners episode with Marco (Chicago) on buying a long-standing cleaning business: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7fC5SLJQGo&vl=en — Stephanie's YouTube video on managing your money as a cleaning business owner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVZbZWbhKoA 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application

October 6, 2026Episode 1801 hr 7 min

#180: How to Hand Off Clients Without Losing Them, with Meghan Caicedo

Meghan Caicedo went from crying after shifts at a senior home to running her own cleaning company with her husband — and getting booked solid just four months after making it official. Now, she's hit the wall every owner-operator knows: she can't let go. In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Meghan, owner of Caicedo Cleaning in Alberta, Canada, to work through the fears that keep new owners stuck in the field. Stephanie lays out the systems that make handing off clients' work, plus a live teardown of Meghan's website and marketing. 📌 What You'll Learn — Why standardized checklists are the foundation of getting out of the field (if surgeons need them, so do cleaners) — How to transition long-time clients to a new cleaner without losing them — Why client notes in your scheduling software stop customers from having to repeat themselves — Why a card on file matters most on move-out cleans — How Google My Business beats Facebook groups for finding clients who are ready to buy — The pie analogy: what happens to your income when you hire your first non-family cleaner — Why your website has to answer "why you?" instead of listing generic services Resources Mentioned — ZenMaid (scheduling software and client notes): https://get.zenmaid.com/ — Serene Clean's client guidelines: https://serene-clean.com — Caicedo Cleaning: https://caicedocleaning.ca — Caicedo Cleaning (Facebook): https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61589992966246 👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com 📞 Stephanie's Consulting & Resources for Purchase: https://serene-clean.com/resources/ ✉️ Subscribe to ZenMaid's Weekly Newsletter: https://www.zenmaid.com/newsletter/ 📋 Apply to be a guest on Filthy Rich Cleaners: https://get.zenmaid.com/guest-application