How much would you pay to avoid holiday cleaning? Nearly half of Americans would shell out $5,000!

NEW YORK — What’s a sparkling clean house worth to you? During the holiday season, it’s a pretty penny for many Americans. After all the meals, gift wrapping tossed on the floor, and toys littered throughout the house, there’s lots of work to do for families near and far. To that end, a new survey finds nearly half of Americans would shell out about four months worth of rent for an instantly clean home.

Forty-six percent of Americans are willing to pay $5,000 to have their home magically cleaned from top-to-bottom after the holidays end. That’s according to a OnePoll survey of 2,000 Americans, which took a look at all the work that goes into the holidays and this year it’s bound to be a bigger deal than ever. More than half the poll (54%) confess that after such a chaotic 2020, the last thing they want to do is a big post-holiday clean-up. Respondents add that’s still the case even if gatherings are smaller in number this year.

Holiday Dinner
(Credit: SWNS)

The post-festive clean-up isn’t the only part of the season respondents are dreading. The overwhelming number of dishes that need to be washed (47%) top the list. Forty-four percent complain of having to do the top-to-bottom clean of their home while a third can’t stand the amount of prep work they have to do before cooking the big meal.

The survey, commissioned by LG Electronics USA, also explores how Americans will spend their time when it comes to making this holiday dinner one to remember. The results show a third of respondents will spend six hours or more cooking and prepping in the kitchen.

Despite all that hard work, it will only take an average of 35 minutes to scarf all of it down.

Who’s in charge of the holiday cleanup?

After dinner comes, the most important question of all is who’s going to clean it up? The debate rages on as two in five respondents think those that didn’t help prepare dinner should be in charge of the cleanup. Three in 10 people say cleaning is still the host’s responsibility.

Finding helpers to clean can prove to be quite tricky. Nearly three in five (59%) report having family members who promise year after year to help with the dishes even though they never do. Fifty-eight percent have mysterious guests who “happen” to arrive just as clean up is ending who say they would have helped if they had known it was happening. Children (38%) are the most common culprits to escape clean-up duty, while spouses and partners also score high (30%).

“It’s not surprising that so many people conveniently disappear when it’s time to clean up after a meal. In the past, dishwashers weren’t particularly intuitive, and the process required pre-rinsing, spot-drying and other time-consuming tasks that take away from time spent with family and friends,” Gail Conroy, head of home appliance marketing for LG Electronics USA, says in a statement.

Holiday ChoresLuckily, appliances can come to our aid when our families leave us high and dry. Of those who own a dishwasher, half say they have it run it three times or more to handle all the dirty dishes that come with cooking and eating a holiday meal.

While the dishwasher will still be running on repeat this year, the holidays will look a lot different in other ways. Of those who’ve hosted holiday dinners in the past, 70 percent will forgo guests this year and opt to invite only their immediate family in 2020. Another 77 percent expect to make much less food than they normally would.

“Many of us will be celebrating the holidays differently this year – from smaller gatherings to virtual experiences – but that’s all the more reason to make them special. We hope people will still set a beautiful table with all their favorites – and take advantage of the great technology out there to make it easier and more fun,” Conroy adds.

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