10 Tips for Hiring a House Cleaner
You're swamped. You work insane hours at the office and yet everyday you come home to a filthy house. The obvious solution is to hire a house cleaner. Not only will you clear up your schedule for more important work, your house will glow like it never did before under professional care. But how do you go about hiring a professional house cleaner? Take a look at these 10 tips before hiring a house cleaner to get the best value for your money:
There are a lot of house cleaners out there that you can hire, especially if you live in a major city. So, there is no reason why you should settle on a house cleaner immediately. Shop around a bit. Meet different cleaners, get estimates and do some online research to see if their businesses are licensed and credible. Only once you're sure that you've got a good deal should you settle on a cleaning company.
Hiring house cleaners is a lot like hiring any other professional. Personal recommendations work best. Ask around with your friends and family and see if they know someone who does a good job. Chances are, if the cleaner does a good job for them, they'll do a good job for you. You can also general idea about how the cleaners work and the average charges in the area through your friends and family.
Professional cleaning costs money and the pricing is a major factor in choosing a cleaner. Cleaners often charge between $15 to $50 depending on their service and your needs. You shouldn't always go for the cheapest option as quality should be your main consideration. Your location, lifestyle and the presence of pets and kids are also major factors that could increase or decrease the cost. Get the cleaner to walkthrough your home and give a detailed estimate before you hire them.
A major choice you'll have to make while choosing a reliable house cleaner is whether to get an independent cleaner or hire a corporate cleaning company. If you go with a corporate cleaner, you'll have to pay more for their services and you might not get the same cleaner every time. But, corporate cleaners are licensed, bonded and insured so you'll be covered if something gets broken or goes missing. On the other hand, if you hire an independent cleaner, you'll pay less and will likely have a more personal relationship with your cleaner. If you choose an independent cleaner, make sure they have been in business for more than a year and come well recommended.
Before you hire a cleaner, make a list of chores that you need the cleaner to do. Most of the chores will come under their regular services, but a few of your chores might cost extra. You will need to take the extra cost into consideration. It would also be helpful to leave a list of chores to be done when the cleaner arrives to do their job. This way, you can be assured that the cleaner won't forget any task everything you need will get done.
While getting estimates from your cleaner, always have them come see to your house, discuss your cleaning needs and give you a detailed estimate. This way the cleaner will have a clear idea of what needs to be done and how much time it will take so that they'll be able to give you a correct estimate. Most companies will do this for free. It will also help you avoid the "bait and switch" trick that some dishonest cleaners use where they give you a lower estimate over the phone and later charge higher fees for the additional work that you did not anticipate.
There are some cleaning chores that any regular house cleaner can do and then there are some other chores that need specialists to take care of. If you have a mold problem or fleas or bedbugs, you will need to get a specialist to get rid of it. Also, if you need someone who uses eco-friendly cleaning products and methods, get an eco friendly cleaner for your house.
As far as possible, provide all the cleaning equipments and products at your home. Not only will it be easier for you house cleaner not to have to haul their cleaning products to your house, it is safer for your house as well. If your cleaner uses the same tools while different houses, they might contaminate your house with fleas, bedbugs or other pests that they picked up from other clients. But if you provide your own cleaning products, you'll avoid contamination and they will also be using cleaning products that you prefer.
Cleaning up before your house cleaner arrives might sound a bit counterproductive, but it is something that you need to do. So, pick up your dirty clothes and magazines off the floor and set everything back in its proper place. This way, when your cleaner arrives, they can focus their attention on deep cleaning the areas that you hate to clean yourself. Also, doing the light cleaning yourself will allow our cleaner to finish their work in less time, thus costing you less money.
Compare the cost vs. benefit of hiring a cleaner to see it's worth your money. Does hiring a cleaner clear your to-do list for more important work? Does it make you more productive in other areas of your life? If yes, then you should definitely hire a cleaner.
Always keep these 10 tips in mind while hiring a house cleaner.
Have you hired a professional house cleaner? Share your cleaning and hiring tips with us in the comments below.
Shop around
There are a lot of house cleaners out there that you can hire, especially if you live in a major city. So, there is no reason why you should settle on a house cleaner immediately. Shop around a bit. Meet different cleaners, get estimates and do some online research to see if their businesses are licensed and credible. Only once you're sure that you've got a good deal should you settle on a cleaning company.
Get recommendations
Hiring house cleaners is a lot like hiring any other professional. Personal recommendations work best. Ask around with your friends and family and see if they know someone who does a good job. Chances are, if the cleaner does a good job for them, they'll do a good job for you. You can also general idea about how the cleaners work and the average charges in the area through your friends and family.
Calculate the cost
Professional cleaning costs money and the pricing is a major factor in choosing a cleaner. Cleaners often charge between $15 to $50 depending on their service and your needs. You shouldn't always go for the cheapest option as quality should be your main consideration. Your location, lifestyle and the presence of pets and kids are also major factors that could increase or decrease the cost. Get the cleaner to walkthrough your home and give a detailed estimate before you hire them.
Corporate vs. independent
A major choice you'll have to make while choosing a reliable house cleaner is whether to get an independent cleaner or hire a corporate cleaning company. If you go with a corporate cleaner, you'll have to pay more for their services and you might not get the same cleaner every time. But, corporate cleaners are licensed, bonded and insured so you'll be covered if something gets broken or goes missing. On the other hand, if you hire an independent cleaner, you'll pay less and will likely have a more personal relationship with your cleaner. If you choose an independent cleaner, make sure they have been in business for more than a year and come well recommended.
Make a list of chores
Before you hire a cleaner, make a list of chores that you need the cleaner to do. Most of the chores will come under their regular services, but a few of your chores might cost extra. You will need to take the extra cost into consideration. It would also be helpful to leave a list of chores to be done when the cleaner arrives to do their job. This way, you can be assured that the cleaner won't forget any task everything you need will get done.
Get a walk through and in home quote
While getting estimates from your cleaner, always have them come see to your house, discuss your cleaning needs and give you a detailed estimate. This way the cleaner will have a clear idea of what needs to be done and how much time it will take so that they'll be able to give you a correct estimate. Most companies will do this for free. It will also help you avoid the "bait and switch" trick that some dishonest cleaners use where they give you a lower estimate over the phone and later charge higher fees for the additional work that you did not anticipate.
Get a specialist if needed
There are some cleaning chores that any regular house cleaner can do and then there are some other chores that need specialists to take care of. If you have a mold problem or fleas or bedbugs, you will need to get a specialist to get rid of it. Also, if you need someone who uses eco-friendly cleaning products and methods, get an eco friendly cleaner for your house.
Provide cleaning supplies
As far as possible, provide all the cleaning equipments and products at your home. Not only will it be easier for you house cleaner not to have to haul their cleaning products to your house, it is safer for your house as well. If your cleaner uses the same tools while different houses, they might contaminate your house with fleas, bedbugs or other pests that they picked up from other clients. But if you provide your own cleaning products, you'll avoid contamination and they will also be using cleaning products that you prefer.
Clean before they come
Cleaning up before your house cleaner arrives might sound a bit counterproductive, but it is something that you need to do. So, pick up your dirty clothes and magazines off the floor and set everything back in its proper place. This way, when your cleaner arrives, they can focus their attention on deep cleaning the areas that you hate to clean yourself. Also, doing the light cleaning yourself will allow our cleaner to finish their work in less time, thus costing you less money.
Is hiring a cleaner worth your money?
Compare the cost vs. benefit of hiring a cleaner to see it's worth your money. Does hiring a cleaner clear your to-do list for more important work? Does it make you more productive in other areas of your life? If yes, then you should definitely hire a cleaner.
Always keep these 10 tips in mind while hiring a house cleaner.
Have you hired a professional house cleaner? Share your cleaning and hiring tips with us in the comments below.
