Filthy Rich Cleaners: The Cleaning Business Podcast

Getting fired and divorced at 24 led Mila Thee Hostkeyper on an unexpected journey from teaching English in Korea to building a thriving vacation rental cleaning business across Houston, Dallas, and Austin. Her secret? An unshakeable belief that she could "figure it out."

Mila shares how she went from cleaning her first Thumbtack gigs to landing 68 units from a single client, why she hires exclusively Spanish-speaking cleaners, and how she handles the unique challenges of vacation rental turnovers. Plus, learn her pricing strategy that eliminates last-minute booking headaches and why she believes being "cutthroat" is essential for success.

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Your website should be doing two things: getting you more leads and helping pre-sell your services to those leads. But if you're making one of these 8 mistakes, it might be doing neither.

In this tactical solo episode, Stephanie walks through the biggest website errors she sees on consulting calls — and the exact fixes you can make to turn your site into a lead-generating machine.

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Rather read than listen? Check out the full episode write-up on our blog. [LINK]

Ashley spent 14 years in the healthcare industry — until burnout, COVID, and caregiving for her dad pushed her to look for something more flexible. She applied for a cleaning job. Serene Clean said no. Then she applied again. And again. Four years later, she’s one of the company’s most beloved cleaning techs.

In this heartfelt episode, Stephanie sits down with Ashley to reflect on her journey from job applicant to core team member — and what Serene Clean’s culture, flexibility, and purpose-driven work have meant to her life. If you want to know what makes employees stay (and thrive), this one’s for you.

Key Takeaways:

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Rather read than listen? Check out the full episode write-up on our blog.

What do you do when four cleaners quit or get fired in a single week — including one who worked with you for years?

In this raw and emotional solo episode, Stephanie opens up about one of the hardest weeks in Serene Clean’s history. From betrayal and burnout to tough conversations and short-staffed chaos, she breaks down what really happened, what she learned, and how she found the strength to lead anyway. If you’ve ever questioned whether you’re cut out for this, this episode is for you.

Key Takeaways:

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Rather read than listen? Check out the full episode write-up on our blog.

What drives someone to launch a cleaning business as a teenager — and grow it into a thriving, booked-out service while pregnant and raising a family?

In this episode, Stephanie interviews Zaila Filler, a young cleaning business owner from Indiana who started out scrubbing Airbnbs to escape a tough home life. They cover the wild reality of starting from scratch, training staff while dilated in the hospital, and why pricing and policies can make or break your early growth.

Expect honest talk, hilarious stories, and some hard-won lessons on staffing, systems, and scaling.

Key Takeaways:

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Rather read than listen? Check out the full episode write-up on our blog.

Stephanie takes you behind the scenes of Serene Clean’s growth — from charging $30/hour and paying $12/hour, all the way to $55/hour and six figures in monthly revenue.

You’ll hear exactly what the business was charging, paying, and earning at every stage — plus when benefits were added, how price increases impacted hiring, and what finally pushed Stephanie to offer health insurance. It’s an honest, detailed timeline packed with practical insights for every cleaning business owner.

Key Takeaways:

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Rather read than listen? Check out the full episode write-up on our blog.

Stephanie sits down with Crystal Davidson — Serene Clean’s very first employee — to talk about what it was really like in the early days. From working out of Stephanie’s apartment to helping build a million-dollar company, Crystal has seen (and survived) it all.

They cover what made her leave a stable healthcare career for a part-time cleaning job, how her role evolved over time, and what it actually takes to build a loyal leadership team in an industry known for high turnover. It’s an honest, behind-the-scenes look at how trust, flexibility, and shared values can shape a workplace that people never want to leave.

Key Takeaways:

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In this solo episode, Stephanie shares one of the top three strategies that helped Serene Clean grow to 30+ employees across three locations: group interviews. After years of trial and error (and far too many no-shows), she walks you through exactly how—and why—to set up a group interview system that saves time, filters out bad fits, and keeps your cleaning business hiring-ready at all times.

Whether you’re a solo cleaner doing it all or managing a full team, this is the hiring framework Stephanie swears by—and you’ll get her full step-by-step breakdown.

Key Takeaways:

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In this episode, Stephanie sits down with ZenMaid's CEO, Amar Ghose, to talk about everything from his days running a maid service to building a software company that’s now 11 years strong.

They cover the early chaos, what Amar would do differently if he ran a cleaning business again, and how he stayed calm and led his team through a recent health scare. It's an honest, insightful, and sometimes hilarious look at the real behind-the-scenes of ZenMaid.

Key Takeaways:

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Rather read than listen? Check out the full episode write-up on our blog.

Anastasia, owner of Essence of Clean, turned a part-time side gig into a six-figure cleaning business with her husband—despite moving states and starting over more than once. Now based in Washington and working just four days a week, they’ve built a business that gives them freedom, stability, and time with their family.

In this coaching session, Anastasia opens up about battling self-doubt, navigating others’ judgment, and preparing to hire her first employees after a previous bad experience. If you're on the fence about hiring or want to hear what it really takes to scale your cleaning business, you’ll want to tune in.

Key Takeaways:

Mentioned in this Episode:

💻 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days

Rather read than listen? Visit the full transcript [https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/live-coaching-call-shes-ready-to-grow-but-hiring-is-holding-her-back/]