Being a busy working mother often means most of our time is spent in the office than taking care of our home. Cleaning, for instance, is one chore that we often neglect because we just don’t have the time for it. Luckily, these days it’s easier for us to find reliable and professional house cleaning services to help us in that aspect.
If it’s your first time to hire one though, there are several factors that you should consider.
License and Insurance
For safety and security purposes, you don't want just anyone cleaning your house. Anybody can just post an ad offering cleaning services. Choose those who took the time to license their business because that shows commitment and gives you assurance that they will not just suddenly disappear.
A business with a general liability insurance policy is also preferable because it assures you that in case something gets broken in your house by the cleaner, the coverage can replace it. Also check if the business' cleaners are covered by workers' compensation. If they're not, you will be legally responsible in case they get injured inside your home.
Cost
House cleaning services are usually priced differently depending on who you ask. Some will give you an hourly rate per person or per team, while others will give you a price per job. Prices will also vary depending on whether it's a one-time job or a recurring one. Get a quotation in writing to make sure that the pricing is explicit and that there are no hidden charges.
Cleaning Time
Find out exactly how long they expect to get the job done so that you can figure out which one is the best option for you. Hiring just one cleaner can get the job done but it might take longer to finish. If you don’t want someone in your house cleaning the whole day, it might make more sense to hire a team instead so that the job can be finished faster.
Scope of Work
Discuss with your provider the list of chores that you want their cleaners to perform. A task is only worth hiring out if doing so will make you more productive in other areas of your life, such as your business. If not, then you might as well do it yourself. It is also advisable to discuss things that are off limits. Each cleaning services has a list of things they don't allow their cleaners to touch such as biohazards, blood, urine and the like.
Cleaning Supplies
Discuss who will provide the cleaning supplies. Different suppliers use different cleaning supplies. There are green companies who only use environmentally safe products and there are some who use certain products that you don’t want used in certain parts of your house. If you’re very particular about the types of products used in your house, it would make more sense if you could provide them instead.
Now that you know what to consider in hiring a cleaning service, get several quotes and compare them with each other. Choose the one that will provide you with the most value so that you can spend more time growing your business without worrying about the cleanliness of your home.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
HomeHello, a site that makes it really easy to book home cleaning services online for every Australian. Since the launch in 2014, HomeHello has already provided professional cleaning services to hundreds of Sydney and Melbourne homes.