An increase in home foreclosures can mean steady income to a foreclosure cleanup business. While some companies provide only basic housecleaning and debris removal, other foreclosure cleanup companies provide everything from lawn maintenance to keying and replacing door locks. Once you have decided which of these services you will offer, you can arrive at a price that will not only satisfy your client, but also provide you with a profitable monthly income.

Perform an inspection of the property. When possible, ask whether the real estate agent that is handling the property can meet with you to go over the specific details of the job that she wishes you to perform.

Estimate the amount of time it will take for you to perform the cleanup. Consider the size of the house and the amount of work that will need to be done. As an example, a three-bedroom house with one bath that is 1,900 square feet that requires junk removal and a full cleanup might take approximately eight hours to clean, whereas a five-bedroom house with two bathrooms that is 2,100 square feet, but needs only general housecleaning could take as little as six hours to complete.

Determine the direct costs for the cleanup. Direct costs include materials and labor that are needed to perform the cleanup. This can include renting a dumpster, cleaning supplies and the cost of labor if you require assistance for the cleanup.

Add up the indirect costs for operating your business. Indirect costs are the expenses that you have in relation to the business, such as your insurance, business license, advertising and phone service. Take the total amount of indirect costs for the year and divide this number by 12. Divide this number by the amount of jobs you estimate that you will have each month. This number is the amount that you will use as your indirect costs for pricing the job.

Add the amount of the direct and indirect costs together.

Choose a profit margin, or markup percentage, for the cleanup job. This is the amount of money that you will actually make above and beyond your direct and indirect cost.

Multiply the profit margin by the total amount of the direct and indirect costs. Add this number to the total amount of the indirect and direct costs. This number the amount that you will charge for the cleanup.