Holiday Tipping 101! If you live in a building that is staffed with concierge, management, housekeeping, and maintenance staff, the holidays are a perfect time of year to give thanks for all they do to keep your home (whether it be a condominium or apartment building) in line and tip top shape!
Some may wonder when moving into a full-service building, what the standard is for tipping when staff members go above and beyond the call of duty. Many buildings have rules against tipping directly where others do not, but during this time of year nearly every building has some sort of policy established for saying Thank You.
I surveyed 25 condominium buildings in downtown Seattle and approximately 40% of management encouraged tipping staff members directly. The other 60% had structured policies for gifting one lump sum, which then is distributed to staff based on seniority, hours worked, role, etc. With this scenario, the buildings often give a recommended per household amount (between $200-$500) and checks are made out to the building Homeowners Association for the “Holiday Fund.”
For buildings where Holiday Funds are gathered from the HOA/residents, it is important to note that this distribution is often considered part of the overall compensation paid for having trustworthy, reliable, hardworking and happy (very important!) staff members manning the ship 24/7.
With those buildings who encourage individual tipping, cash is always welcome, but gifts like sport or entertainment tickets, gift cards/certificates or special interest memberships, are also good ideas. Heck- I have even gifted shoes!
If you have questions about your building policies, contact your building manager or management company. OR if you live in downtown Seattle, ping me – I might have that info handy! Happy Holidays!