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Cindy Bissessar hasn't had a pay rise in five years, her Christmas bonuses have been halved, some paycheques are bouncing, and her workload is getting bigger by the day.

As a house cleaner in the Beaches, Danforth and downtown, the impact of a souring economy has been less of a trickle-down than a sudden, icy deluge.

Ms. Bissessar estimates her income has dropped 25 per cent in the past year, and her monthly schedule has become a murky day-to-day concern.

"I thought it was just talk," the Scarborough resident said of the downturn. "I didn't expect it to be like this. Lately, it's really, really difficult."

A growing number of people are scaling back the frequency of visits, or cancelling altogether, as Torontonians start cleaning up their finances by reclaiming their own dirty laundry.

The drop-off hasn't been debilitating but it has been steady, leading large companies like Merry Maids and Sears Home Central to stuff mail boxes with limited time, introductory offers.

Small businesses, like Lakeshore-Islington-based Bubbles and Squeak, are following their lead. Owners Joe and Suzanne Lyon have lost 10 of their 100 customers in the past eight weeks, while others have gone from biweekly to monthly

To fend off further losses, the business launched a blitz of local advertising offering a special introductory rate, and its seven employees are avidly dropping leaflets into mailboxes.

The push has brought in three new clients.

"It has affected us," Mr. Lyon said. "We're a little bit more concerned about trying to get new clients. We're putting more effort into that than we did six months ago."

But overall, he said the industry is proving more resilient than he'd expected. "You'd think it was something that, when the recession comes, people can do without it. But generally, we find if people haven't lost their job ... usually we don't lose the clients."

For Shannon Edgar, a hard-hit Toronto is still more lucrative than her home town of St. Catharines. She moved to Hogtown three weeks ago, and now splits her working week between the two cities.

In St. Catharines, her clients are mostly families requesting a couple of hours work a fortnight. In Toronto, they are professional couples booking her for up to 12 hours a week.

"Some people just hate [cleaning] so much. You come home, you're tired after a long day at work, and that's the first thing you're not going to do. You'd rather play with the kids or watch some TV or something," Ms. Edgar said.

"If I was making a lot of money and I didn't have much time, I'd pay someone to do it, too."

For Ms. Bissessar, a waiting list of clients has her feeling relatively safe for now, but she said the rising demands and falling earnings from some clients have her worried about the coming year.

"I am a middle-aged person, and people want to pay you $10 an hour," she said.

"It is hard to deal with, but [if] I sit here and cry all day, my bills are not going to be paid."

The personal economy is a series that looks at people in the Toronto region coping with the economic downturn. To share your story, write Tenille Bonoguore at tbonoguore@globeandmail.com

tbonoguore@globeandmail.com