Hiring House Cleaners In America

Discussion in 'General Discussions' started by Rihana, Mar 29, 2018.

  1. nuss

    nuss Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,551
    Likes Received:
    2,970
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    Entire house in 2-3 hours? It takes our cleaning lady all day (8hrs) to clean the house but she does a thorough job. We don’t pick up much...kids put away their toys in the bins every night and I have habit of putting things in their place in the kitchen. She empties the dishwasher and moves things around if there is clutter on the counter.
    With two little kids and full time work, I am more than happy to not worry about cleaning bathrooms and toilets on the weekend.
    Our cleaning lady used to come on weekend but I never felt like we needed to be there. Now she comes on a weekday before we leave for work and by the time we get back, the house is clean.
    It is a splurge worth every penny.
     
    sindmani, Nylaa and Sunburst like this.
  2. Gauri03

    Gauri03 Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

    Messages:
    6,211
    Likes Received:
    13,034
    Trophy Points:
    445
    Gender:
    Female
    We used to do the whole pick up before the cleaners', gardeners' visit thing until we realized that they are quite accustomed to working around the clutter. Also stopped the weekend visits and switched to a weekday schedule. We have an electronic door lock and everyone has their own entry code which I change occasionally. I try to pick up every night but when I can't they pick up what they can or move stuff out of the way if it interferes with their work. Same with my gardeners. They pile up my kids' toys, scooters etc in one corner of the yard. They don't bother with my kitchen garden, soil, tools anything that is left lying around. They work around the mess. Recently hired a dog-sitter plus part-time house keeper. She picks up the visible clutter, empties the dishwasher, does the laundry, changes the sheets once a week aside from feeding and letting the doggy out once a day. Coming back home on a Friday evening to a clean house, no laundry and a pristine yard is like taking a happy pill. The expenses do add up but I am thankful for every bit of help I can afford at home. It keeps me sane.

    One suggestion for folks looking for help is to post on your neighborhood forums on Nextdoor. You get references from your neighbors which are far more reliable and trustworthy than searching on Yelp etc. You might even find neighbors willing to help out. My dog-sitter is a young girl who was recommended by her own mom. She lives in my neighborhood which makes it easier for me to trust my home to her. Just last night I asked for references for dog trainers and I had a bunch of responses in no time.
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2018
    Dvya and Archanaanchan like this.
  3. Sunburst

    Sunburst Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    499
    Likes Received:
    2,128
    Trophy Points:
    270
    Gender:
    Female
    Further adding to my post , I have had the same house cleaner for years now . We have moved houses over the years but I refused to hire anyone else because of the relationship I have with her.

    We do basic cleaning on weekdays like wiping cooktops and countertops , putting toys away and sometimes basic cleaning floors if kids have a made a mess with play dough or paint but we don’t go out of the way to prep things up when she comes . If there is clutter around , she takes care of it . She is quite trustworthy and we are generally out when she is home . I also call her for help when I am expecting huge crowd at home . She helps with chopping veggies , dishes , cleaning . She is happy to make some extra income.
     
    Archanaanchan and Nylaa like this.
  4. Nylaa

    Nylaa Silver IL'ite

    Messages:
    88
    Likes Received:
    200
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Gender:
    Female
    Yes! We've had the same house keeper for about two and a half years. Personally, I don't think we'll hire anyone else. She's very trustworthy and does a great job. We were away for the past 2 and a half months and during that time, she was willing to go to our house for a quick clean and make sure everything was alright while we were away. She's also willing to help with functions as you mentioned too.
     
    Sunburst and Archanaanchan like this.
  5. anupamag

    anupamag Gold IL'ite

    Messages:
    275
    Likes Received:
    336
    Trophy Points:
    125
    Gender:
    Female
    I live in Germany and I have a maid who comes in weekly and does the home cleaning. We are a small family, hubby, me and teenage daughter, both of us working full time and we maintain the house in decent level through the week, so Friday evenings, the cleaner does the deep cleaning and it's so nice to have a clean and good smelling home for the weekend. Thank god we can afford the help.
     
    Sunburst likes this.
  6. SteelMagnolia

    SteelMagnolia New IL'ite

    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Gender:
    Female
    I used to have a cleaning lady once or twice a month. She used to come alone and was friendly, did not expect tips each time. After we moved to West Orange NJ, it is become very expensive, they charge you by the hour, they come as group of more then half a dozen. they are like machines, done all in an hour and gone. Expect tips each time. You can't say anything to them else they will not turn up next time.
     
  7. Amica

    Amica IL Hall of Fame

    Messages:
    3,037
    Likes Received:
    8,379
    Trophy Points:
    460
    Gender:
    Female
    shravs3 likes this.
  8. shravs3

    shravs3 IL Hall of Fame

    Messages:
    3,207
    Likes Received:
    5,845
    Trophy Points:
    425
    Gender:
    Female
    Amica likes this.

Share This Page