By Zoya Gervis // SWNS
Nearly half of Americans would rather endure a grueling hour-long awkward conversation than having to thoroughly clean their house for the holidays, according to new research.
A new poll of 2,000 Americans found that 51% say cleaning their homes for the holidays stresses them out beyond belief.
The top stressors related to cleaning this holiday season was found to be caring about what others think about their home (29%), worrying about missing dirty spots (27%), having a high standard of cleanliness (23%) and having kids unwilling to keep a space clean for an extended period of time (23%).
While Americans enjoy having a clean home, 73% hate doing the actual cleaning part.
The study conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Eufy aimed to uncover the holiday stress associated with cleaning the homes for guests and found that cleaning up the house was the top holiday stressor among those studied.
When compared to getting the perfect holiday gift and preparing holiday meals, cleaning the house for the holidays reigned supreme as the task that brings with it the most stress.
However, people are still left with messy rooms that aren’t suitable for their guests’ eyes. In fact, 47% of those polled have rooms they don’t allow guests into because of how dirty they are.
From the attic (21%) and basement (21%) to the guest room (17%) and bathroom (15%), Americans haven’t cleaned parts of their home in years.
When asked what Americans would do if they were given extra free time during this festive time of year, nearly half (49%) said they would spend it with their family.
While relaxing is tough for over half of those surveyed, if given the time to do so, 43% would attempt to relax all day long.
Thirty-six percent of those polled would use the extra time that would be used for cleaning to prepare a delicious holiday meal, while a further 34% would use their much-needed time to buy and wrap all their holiday gifts.
Sadly, more than half of those studied are stuck cleaning up instead of enjoying time with their guests.
“The holidays are a stressful time for most. Instead of worrying about making the place super clean, prioritizing quality time with guests is easier than you may think” stated a spokesperson for Eufy.
When it comes to specific cleaning tasks, 22% dread cleaning the bathroom while a further 18% hate cleaning hard-to-reach areas.
And half of the respondents polled admit that they’re last-minute cleaners, putting off tidying up until they absolutely must.
Cleaning up after the holidays can be tricky. Nearly a quarter (23%) say a robotic vacuum will help them improve their holiday clean up.
“With the holidays approaching, spending time with family and friends becomes even more important. However, the house still needs to get clean. Having the right tools to make holiday clean-up easier can make all the difference” added a spokesperson for Eufy.
