Palm Beach housekeepers are raking in $150,000 salaries as the rich flock to Florida, report says

rrommen@insider.com (Rebecca Rommen)
·2 min read
Aerial View of Luxury Homes in Palm Beach, Florida - stock photo.
Palm Beach, Florida.halbergman/ Getty Images

  • Some housekeepers in parts of Florida are earning $150,000 salaries, CNBC reported.

  • Real-estate prices in the Sunshine State have surged as millionaires flock to the area.

  • Demand is also increasing for other roles like butlers, nannies, and chefs.

Experienced housekeepers in parts of Florida are enjoying huge salaries of between $120,000 to $150,000, CNBC reported.

Demand for such positions has surged in areas like Palm Beach as the rich continue to flock to Florida from high-tax states such as New York.

With wealthy homeowners also battling big hotels and businesses for cleaners' services, the typical pay for housekeepers in the Sunshine State has soared from around $25 an hour in 2020 to $45 or $50 an hour in 2024, some agencies said, per CNBC.

Many are also getting health care, 401(k) plans, and benefits, the report said.

"I have been placing staff for 30 years, and I've never seen anything like this," April Berube, the founder of The Wellington Agency, a household staffing agency, told the outlet.

"We've seen such a boom from people relocating, especially Palm Beach and Miami," she said. "For housekeepers it's wonderful. For us it's extremely difficult. It's a severe shortage."

Demand has also surged for other roles, including butlers, drivers, and chefs, per CNBC.

The influx of wealthy homeowners has also seen house prices rocket in South Florida, with the average sale price of a home in Palm Beach exceeding $20 million in the third quarter of 2023.

Many are being lured to the state by the lack of income tax and year-round good weather, as Business Insider previously reported.

Some of the big names to have made the move include Oracle founder Larry Ellison, who purchased a $173 million estate in Manalapan, a town near Palm Beach, in 2022, and Jeff Bezos, Florida's richest billionaire, who owns three properties on South Florida's Indian Creek Island.

Donald Trump also has his infamous Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach.

The former president moved his primary residence from New York City to Florida in 2019.

Read the original article on Business Insider