nytraveler

Tandoorigirl -

Not sure abut in your area - but here they have Merry Maids - who are generally reliablefor basic stuff - but I'm sure there's no way they would clean a whole condo for $50.

(My housekeeper is absolutely super - but she is a real treasure - and I had to go through 5 to find her - and she charges us $150 for a 5 room apartment - but it's way cleaner than I would ever get it!)

lcuy

Professional cleaners are people who do cleaning as a business. Like any profession, there are good ones, bad ones, and all types in between.

If you are an owner renting out your own condo, you are also running a business and part of doing your "job" is to find good cleaners- whether they are professional or youself.

That said, many owners and some professional property managers figure they can get by with less effort, and try to pass it off on the tenants.

You should check your rental contract and see what it says. In no event would you be liable for cleaning beyond the level at which you received the unit.

emd

Tandoori Girl: Have you ever heard of The Cleaning Authority? It's a franchised service and they have standards for the franchises. I have never been happy w/my house cleaning services til I found them. They clean your house on a "rotating basis", meaning each time they come they clean the whole house but emphasize one area which gets super cleaned, like kitchen, baths, bedrooms, or living areas (and I mean super cleaned- like they vacuum behind furniture and around the perimeter of the rm., wipe down baseboards, wipe down each mini or wood blind, wipe down outside of cabinets, clean ceiling fans, scrub the tile grout in the bathrm., wipe down doors for fingerprints, etc.) I have yet to find anything wrong w/their cleaning and the house is immaculate when they leave. They cost a bit more than most services. And they are very careful not to mess up my good high-end furniture and wallpaper, etc. They might be enough even for you (and like you, I also like the house really clean and organized).
I do expect a rental to be very clean- not immaculate but very clean, no visible dirt or yuk. I have called owners or management companies when we check in if it isn't, and if they don't do something about it, I don't rent from them again and tell everyone I know not to either.
Ususally the owners leave a notebook of info that tells us what we are responsible for doing when we leave, which most often includes stripping beds (and sometimes starting the first load), perhaps sweeping hard floors, and getting the food out of the fridge and freezer. And take trash out. That's about it in my experience. But they should tell you.

wliwl

What I love is when you rent a house on the Outer Banks (NC). In some of the "contracts" they specify that it should be totally cleaned by you upon check out. Now, these houses run 3000-10,000 sq feet, with anywhere from 3 to 10 bathrooms. Here's the kicker -check out time is 10:00AM. So, somehow, you are supposed to clean this whole house and pack yourselves and your car to leave. It's ridiculus - especially at the rates they charge, and given the fact that a professional cleaning service does come in. We basically tidy up, make sure the kitchen is clean, and leave.

buttercup

We've stayed in several condos. Usually, all they ask is that you empty the trash and put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher. At one, we were asked to put all dirty towels in the laundry basket provided. One owner told us they asked for this because the cleaners may not come in for a few days, and they don't want trash, dirty dishes, and wet towels laying around that long. Sounds reasonable to me.

We've also passed on places that ask that you bring your own towels and linens. That's more than we want to pack, even if we're driving.

GoTravel

We have professionals clean our rentals. No how, no way would I be cleaning up someone elses mess.

What does drive me insane is when people complain that the windows are dirty and a sometimes musty smell.

Well duh. It's an oceanfront house and the salt air leaves a film on the windows. You couldn't keep the windows clean if you washed them all day constantly.

Musty smell? Ever tried to keep a house cooled off in July with 20 people opening doors, running in and out of the house, ocean spray, and near 100% humidity and the air temp is 95 degrees?

The best complaint is the rotten smell. Hmmn, the house backs up to a tidal creek. Wonder what is in marsh mud? Rotting fish, oysters, crabs, fish, rotting vegitation.

Palmetto bugs. They aren't roaches, they are Palmetto bugs. We have regular and constant pest control and even the cleanest and newest homes have Palmetto bugs. Welcome to the south.

Okay, over my vent.

Tandoori_Girl

emd, wow. The Cleaning Authority sounds impressive. I will check them out.

I don't mind cleaning my place myself, it's a cottage, only 1000 sf. And it's only been available twice in the last 18 months so it's not something I do regularly. In fact, it's one of the few times I can get in there to see what's going on. Sometimes I've had my cleaning person go over there but it's a 30-minute drive for her. Lucily, she loves the beach so is often happy to do it.

But she won't clean like "the Authority". Impressive.

pyork

Many thanks, all. What I meant by not using the pro cleaning service is that I didn't want to use it -during- our six week stay. I hate the loss of privacy. It was supposed to be professionally cleaned before we arrived. We did make a careful list of the problems for the owners who thanked us for it. They seem like sincere people and the condo was darling, so I hate to do less than what is expected. On the other hand, I don't want to spend more of my vacation cleaning than I already have!

Funny thing. We didn't have a contract. Only an email with an agreement as to price and dates. Later we got a packet full of Savannah info. with instructions for payment.

Very interesting point on not leaving food behind. I deliberately brought spices to leave behind. Should I take them home with me?

Again, many thanks!! I know what to do now!

beentheretwice

Palmetto bugs ARE flying roaches. I've lived in Georgia. They are hideous, they hurt when you step on them, and

they are unavoidable.

Now, let's talk about ticks!

emd

pyork: I would never rent without a contract. Ever. Recently an executive w/VRBO posted on here w/his tips for renting a vacation home and even he said do NOT rent without a contract. And if they won't give you one, move on to someone else. Right after his post, I went online to VRBO to rent a house in Tahoe for my husband and daughter to go to in March. The one I really wanted was great but she wanted a $500 security deposit caho now w/full payment (this is for a 3 days stay, long weekend) and she refused to give me a contract. She acted indignant that I asked for it, saying her reputation was her contract, blah blah blah. I said nicely, look I don't know you and you don't know me and for a grand in cash for 3 days (including the deposit) I want a written agreement. She whined, and I moved on and found another place. And yo uknow what- I forwarde dher the post from the VRBO exec on here. You may not be able to recover from a contract gone bad (quite frankly, it can cost more than it is worth to go after them), but at least it spells out what the responsibilites are and shows good faith from both parties. Without it you have nothing.

kmpordagee

We always rent condos or private homes (with 5 of us there's really no other choice) and we only rent a place with a contract, and that is cleaned prior to our arrival and subsequent to our departure. Obviously we pay for the cleaning. It is always spelled out in the contract, separate from the security deposit.

We have only had one problem, with a house in Kona that had dirty linen, trash in the kitchen along with old food, and uncleaned bathrooms. We called the property manager and we were told that the cleaning crew couldn't be there until the next day. I wasn't happy, because at a minimum, I would have to do laundry before we went to bed. I was willing to do that since the place was beautiful and right on the water, but the last straw was the "toys" we found in the bedroom. Since we had three girls under the age of 15, I didn't feel that I had the time to scout the rest of the place out to see what other treasures I would find. I called the managers again and requested to be moved, which they were able to do.Apparently there was a mix up between the owner and the manager on who was doing the cleaning. We wound up staying the rest of the week in a beautiful, clean condo. We have now gone back there three times.

Cleaning a vacation rental should just be part of the price, and it shouldn't have to be done by tenants who are leaving. They don't have the proper incentive to leave it as clean as the next tenants expect it to be.