hiring a house cleaner

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I am continuing to improve my life... it is really an important part of life at goal to me. I now LOOK like the person I want to be, and I continue to improve my life on many dimensions.

anyway, I decided life is too short for me to spend it constantly cleaning. I have a little farm, animals, love my flower garden, love to go dancing, out with pals etc etc and I want help on the homefront!

So, I hired a lady and paid her $45 for her first visit. She cleaned two small bathrooms - granted DEEP clean - and she did a good job, but I actually thought in 2 1/4 hours she would have time to do something else besides the bathrooms. (one bath has a deep tub, the other has just a shower, they each have 1 sink and I had removed all stuff from surfaces so she could just clean)

I would really like to hear tips on how to best utilize a house cleaner. Due to vacation, she won't be back for 3 weeks, and then I plan to start either weekly or every other week and trying to decide if I should go to someone else or if this is reasonable... would like to hear experiences.

[Bufflehead 6,358]

I pay my housecleaner $120 for a half-day visit every other week. She does all the mopping and vacuuming, cleans surfaces (counters, tables, etc.), makes the bed, picks/up organizes anything I've left lying around, does any dishes I've left, does laundry of sheets/towels/rags stuff like that (not my personal clothes), cleans the coffee maker and other small appliances, cleans showers/tubs/toilets/mirrors. I also give her an extra $20 to change the kitty litter if I don't feel like doing it that week (I have 2 large litter boxes for my cats). Twice a year I have her come in for additional special work, such as shampooing carpets, cleaning the fridge and stove, washing windows, taking everything out of my kitchen cabinets and cleaning the cabinets and throwing away expired food, etc. We just work out a reasonable price for that.

I love having a housekeeper. I am a lousy housekeeper but I enjoy having a clean house. I make sacrifices in other areas so I can afford her. Plus I enjoy her as a person and she also helps out on as-needed basis with overnight pet sitting and things like that.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I sense your housekeeper is alot faster! This lady would be $80 for a half day, only due to her boyfriend/childcare schedule she seems to be only available for short increments. Maybe I should give it a few more visits and see if once we get a rythym going re-evaluate?

I like a clean house too, but I have so many other things to do! I have to hire some help, and truth is I love doing my outdoorsy work - at least when the weather is nice!

[catfish87 3,471]

I pay $115 every two weeks for the couple that clean my house....and I think thats reasonable. I used to pay $150 once per month. There are two cleaners that come for about 2-3 hours. They do floors, sinks, counters, dust everything, bathrooms, etc. They do not do dishes (there aren't ever any), laundry, outside of windows on a normal basis. Once a year they come and "deep clean"....that's $300. I've used a house cleaner for the last 3 years or so. I work 60+ hours per week and CHOOSE to utilize my time at home for other things besides cleaning.

[TealSister 296]

I had an experience like the OP. While on vacation a few weeks ago, I paid a family friend with a cleaning business for five hours of cleaning ($125). The entire house was decluttered and all surfaces clean, beds made, etc. #1)She cleaned the kitchen floor (except under a small movable cabinet) and dusted the chandelier. #2)The master bath was cleaned (except caulk and ceiling vent), and #3)the small first floor bathroom was cleaned (except for ceiling vent). I see she did some #6 on the list)dusting in the living room. That's it for five hours. I had prioritized that my son's small bathroom be the 4th on the list to clean and she never made it there. She texted me that I was probably super happy to come home to a "clean" house. I couldn't respond. So disappointed! GOOD LUCK! Obviously I'm not a good resource!

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

I had a cleaning lady. In the beginning they take a little time to get your house to the level of clean where they can just maintain it (I am not calling your house dirty). So the first few times it is either longer or slower, then it picks up.

$45 for 2 1/4 hours of work is ridiculous cheap. $45 an hour is more like it.

It seems like she is just trying to get your place to where she can maintain it easily. I would give her more time.

[Cheri_j 117]

Please! Can any of the women's husbands please email my husband about hiring a housekeeper? I have wanted a house keeper for years - my frugal husband says we can do it ourselves, but then because of our lifestyle, we are hardly ever home and when we are, we are trying to rest up for the next adventure.

We can afford to have a housekeeper. We are DINKS. I told my husband that I would make additional sacrifices to have a housekeeper. But a housekeeper would dip into our golf budget. Sigh.....

I need a good argument. Any suggestions???

[Miss Mac 6,261]

Maybe I can put this in perspective since I am a retired housekeeping manager for hospital, hotels, residential and industrial settings.

The first visit is absolutely going to take longer because the housekeeping has to become familiar with the surroundings, your furnishings, and your expectations and your standards. You could pay by the task instead of the hour....that would speed up the process.

Hospital housekeepers are expected to clean a bathroom, wash down a bed with the mattress, maybe even remake the bed, pull trash and soiled linen, dust horizontal surfaces, sweep and mop - all in about 30-45 minutes. However, these are rooms that are cleaned every day without accumulation of soil.

Same thing goes for hotel housekeepers. For a normal sized hotel room with two beds, they are expected to clean a bathroom, strip and remake the beds, remove soiled linen and trash, dust horizontal surfaces, and vacuum in about thirty minutes. A suite with a kitchenette would take about an hour. Again, this is a room that is cleaned every day without accumulation. These people are sorely underpaid for the job they do. Please tip your hotel housekeeper $2 a day for a budget hotel, maybe $5 a day for mid-range hotel. You will make their day.

Realistically, once a week in a residence that is moderately uncluttered, a bathroom might take 30 minutes. With a jacuzzi tub, double that.

In a kitchen, cleaning the stove, sink, outside surfaces of the fridge, sweep and mop, probably an hour. Allow more if you are asking for the oven to be cleaned, or windows, or inside the fridge.

If I asked someone to clean my bedroom, it would take them maybe 15-20 minutes to dust horizontal surface, dust the ceiling fan, and vacuum. If I wanted the housekeeper to change the bedsheets and refresh the bed linens, I would double that.

In our living room, we have stairs with wrought Iron rails that would need dusted, high vaulted ceilings that would need cobwebs removed with a special extended tool, dusting of horizontal surfaces, vacuum carpet, and sweep and mop entry tile. I seriously would allow a couple of hours for the living room because we have collections on display, which need special handling. Windows would take extra time.

If you ask for anything that requires ladder work, expect to pay more. Now you are asking for maintenance skills above housekeeping requirements. If you have an agreement and then add on this, that, and the other thing, expect to pay more.

It may take two or three attempts to get someone you are comfortable with. Expect to pay no less than $20 an hour for someone you are happy with. You will pay Merry Maids wayyyyy more than that. I hope this helps.

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

I need a good argument. Any suggestions???

Do you work and earn your own money? If so, why can't you just hire one with your own money?

Marriage is puzzling.

Edited August 28, 2015 by OutsideMatchInside

[NikkiDoc 312]

I agree the first visit with deep cleaning takes much more time. My housekeeper the first time wiped down the walls (you know that light tan line that is dog height), cleaned the moulding, in addition to the floors, sinks, counters, dusting. She does not do the walls and moulding all the time. She just spot cleans those areas as necessary.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

@@Miss Mac very helpful. This lady charges some people 15 hour; I pay 20/hour because it is a bit further drive for her. I am okay with the hourly rate, just trying to level set how long a task should take.

One of the bathrooms had a recent deep clean so wasn't too bad. The one with the shower needed a pretty deep scrub because the glass doors etc needed cleaning.

I will give her a few more tries and see if we can get a good rythym. I am doing some remodeling/updating in October so after that will want more help keeping new appliances etc deep clean from the get go!

[toasty 371]

We have a housekeeper who comes in once every other week. We pay her $100 for about 3 1/2 hours. She cleans a master bedroom, master bath, kid's bedroom, kid's bath, my office, vacuums and mops the hardwood floors, and wipes down the kitchen. She works pretty hard during that time. We really like her, and I love it when I get home and the whole house smells totally clean and everything is sparkling!

The hard part is trying to keep it all looking decent between her visits!

[McButterpants 2,846]

I pay $60 for two gals to come in for 2 hours each - I get it done every other week. They scrub all surfaces in the kitchen, microwave, appliances and counters. They clean all the floors (hardwood, so they use a Swiffer mopper) and clean up more dog hair than I care to admit is hanging around everywhere. They clean my son's disgusting room, although we make him straighten it up prior to them getting there. They clean the master bedroom. They clean two bathrooms fully - clean the tubs and scrub the floors and counters and wash the mirrors.

I try to do my part by putting stuff away and doing a little straightening up before they get here so they don't have to work around my clutter - it also helps me keep my clutter in check.

I do leave the house when they are here because they can get a little chatty. I work from home, so it's like having a visitor in your office. I go to the coffee shop and tell them to lock up when they are done (I've known one of the gals my whole life and she's a friend of the family - I don't feel weird leaving her here).

[pink dahlia 2,513]

Please! Can any of the women's husbands please email my husband about hiring a housekeeper? I have wanted a house keeper for years - my frugal husband says we can do it ourselves, but then because of our lifestyle, we are hardly ever home and when we are, we are trying to rest up for the next adventure.

We can afford to have a housekeeper. We are DINKS. I told my husband that I would make additional sacrifices to have a housekeeper. But a housekeeper would dip into our golf budget. Sigh.....

I need a good argument. Any suggestions???

[pink dahlia 2,513]

Please! Can any of the women's husbands please email my husband about hiring a housekeeper? I have wanted a house keeper for years - my frugal husband says we can do it ourselves, but then because of our lifestyle, we are hardly ever home and when we are, we are trying to rest up for the next adventure.

We can afford to have a housekeeper. We are DINKS. I told my husband that I would make additional sacrifices to have a housekeeper. But a housekeeper would dip into our golf budget. Sigh.....

I need a good argument. Any suggestions???