How much do clean out services cost?

The type of cleanup requested significantly affects the cost. Many professionals charge an hourly rate for standard lawn and garden cleanup, including general appearance sprucing. More intensive brush clearing and debris removal generally costs more. The price of junk removal varies depending on the weight and scale of items be removed and area to be cleaned up. Concrete and gravel cleanup usually has a much higher rate because it’s harder to move and haul, and also requires more labor and fuel. Because of all these variables, Thompson’s Demolition & Hauling in Sacramento, California, prefers to visually assess a cleanup situation before providing an estimate.

Some companies charge a flat rate for cleanup services after assessing all the variables in a property cleanup situation. Thompson’s Demolition & Hauling calculates how many work hours the job will likely require, the amount of fuel that will be used, dump fees, whether or not a Bobcat tractor is needed, and the intensity of the labor before drawing up a flat rate proposal for customers.

• Here are a couple examples of flat rate fees from Thompson’s Demolition & Hauling:

  • Cleanup and removal of 5–6 cubic yards of yard debris: $700—chainsawed through brush and trees, removed it all from the property and made two trips to the dump

    • 24 work hours—three people working one eight-hour day

  • Cleanup and removal of a 1,000-square-foot wood and tile floor: <$2,000—ripped all the tile and flooring out and hauled it away

    • 48 work hours—three people working two eight-hour days

Some property cleanup companies charge by the cubic yard. Prices per cubic yard may vary depending on the type of material to be cleaned up and its relative weight. J.N.J Home Works in Silver Springs, Nevada, charges the following for hauling away various dump truck loads:

• Lawn and tree waste: $18 per cubic yard

• Home goods, trash and general debris: $22 per cubic yard

• Concrete and heavy material: $95 per cubic yard

Some companies charge by the truckload. Companies may use a tractor trailer dump or box truck. Some smaller operations work with a standard-size pickup truck. For larger cleanup projects, a larger truck generally provides more value per volume because customers can pack more into one load. Smaller companies may be a better choice for small cleanup projects, on the other hand, because they have less overhead and lower costs for hauling small loads. Joe & A Truck in Vacaville, California, charges the following per load:

• Average price per load for standard size pickup truck: $200

  • $130, minimum service price for yard and green waste

  • $100, minimum service price regardless of what is being cleaned up

  • $30 per mattress

The accessibility of the cleanup site affects the cost of services. Thompson’s Demolition & Hauling charges more if debris or junk is in an inaccessible backyard and the team has to hand carry or wheelbarrow each load out. When they can use a tractor or load the material right into a truck, the same volume or type of material costs less.