7 Questions To Ask A Potential House Cleaning Service (Before Hiring)!

The process of hiring a house cleaner can be quite daunting. From making sure they’re capable and understand the work to trusting their service, you want to leave no stone unturned.

While there are other ways to know the perfect fit for your cleaning demands, the most effective approach is to ask relevant questions. Most people can go on and on talking about themselves and all the wonderful things they’ve done without addressing what matters.

Questions To Ask A Potential House Cleaner

You want to make sure your questions are crafted to address essential aspects of the job and convince you at the end of the day. Besides generic questions like name and business location, you might be wondering what questions to ask a potential house cleaner. Based on what’s relevant, here are our suggestions.

1. How long have you been running the business?

Knowing how long your potential cleaner has been in the business will give you a hint about her experience and trustworthiness. Statistically, around twenty percent of businesses fail in the first year. About half of them are out of operation within five years, and only 33 percent survive beyond ten years.

While the idea of starting a new business appeals to most people, they often can’t keep up with its demands and challenges. Well-established companies are more likely to provide satisfactory services and usually wouldn’t make any costly mistakes. On the other hand, startups and entrepreneurs have minimal experience, so they may not offer what their counterparts provide.

Although this doesn’t mean all new businesses are the same, you want to have realistic expectations to avoid disappointments. Some startups and entrepreneurs are just as efficient as older businesses and have a strong passion for customer satisfaction. Plus, startups are likely to offer lower prices and discounts.

If you’d be using the service of a new business, ask for references, if any. Whether it’s testimonials from families, friends, or neighbors, you want to be sure that your job isn’t their first-ever. Testimonials will give you an idea about the quality of their service and whether or not they’re a good match.

2. How do you charge?

As obvious as this sounds, some people forget to ask. Although your cleaner will likely hand you an invoice, you want to make sure you ask other relevant questions around the payment plan. Questions like, “how do you prefer to get paid? Will you accept payment through platforms like Venmo or PayPal? Do you take all the payments after completing the job, or do you require a down payment?”

Asking these questions will help to foster a smooth and seamless work experience. Especially if you want them to clean your home every week or every month, you’re less likely to have any complications once you get things straight from the onset.

3. Are you insured?

The question of insurance is critical if you stay in a luxury home or your home contains lots of luxury items. You want to hire an adequately insured business that can foot the bill should anything go wrong, even though it’s unlikely that something goes wrong.

Most people avoid insured companies because they tend to offer higher prices for the same service. However, if you’ve ever recorded damaged furniture or a broken mirror from hiring a house cleaner, you’d probably understand how important being insured is.

One essential part of insurance is the workers compensation insurance. Small businesses often do not have this insurance, so you want to know the risks involved. When you hire a company that doesn’t have workers comp insurance, you could be responsible for any injuries they sustain while working in your home.

While this may not be a big deal, it’s essential to be aware in order to weigh the pros and cons.

4. What’s the concept of a clean home to you?

Different cleaners have different ideas for a clean home. Some cleaners include menial tasks like cleaning the dishes, doing laundry, vacuuming pet hairs off the couch, and taking out the trash, while others don’t. Some cleaners also charge differently to do specific jobs like cleaning the bathroom, while others don’t do them at all.

Understanding the scope of the cleaning will significantly help when comparing cleaners and their services. You want to have a clear view of what to expect to avoid misunderstandings and disappointments. Effective communication can also help get the best out of your cleaner as they often will be willing to go the extra mile if they’re happy working for you.

5. What products do you use?

If you or your family are allergic to some chemicals, you might need to know what kind of products your cleaner will use beforehand. Doing this will help you avoid irritations and any other side effects after cleaning.

Cleaners will usually have room for other products, even though there may be additional charges. So if you want environmentally friendly, natural, and gentle products, you should be prepared to pay extra.

6. Are there any pre-cleaning activities?

Cleaning services are usually billed per hour. The lesser the time it takes to complete the job, the lower the charges. If you leave it all to your cleaner, they would need to do all pre-cleaning activities themselves. This includes clearing all surfaces, putting all items on the floor, and so on. And as a result, they will need more hours to complete the job, leading to more charges.

On the contrary, if you do the pre-cleaning activities, they only need to come in and clean. Besides helping you cut costs, doing this will help them see that you value their service and want to make it easier for them.

7. How will you access the home?

Security should be among the top priorities when it comes to selecting cleaners. You don’t want to put your safety at risk just to see your home clean. Since the cleaner will have access to your home– even when you’re unavailable– it would help to know the home safety procedure of the cleaning company you want to use before going ahead.

You should have strict answers to questions like, “who will be in charge of the key? Who is responsible for opening and closing the door?” If the company or cleaner doesn’t have a safety procedure or guideline, it’s better to avoid them.

Finally, Over To You

Although you can go on and on to ask other questions, the ones listed above will be the most crucial. Once you’re convinced with the responses and feel you can trust their service, it’s time to improve the health of your home through professional cleaning.