Cleaning House: Don't Let Just Anyone Dust Your Valuables
by Karl Fendelander
Here's your dilemma: you love it when things are clean, but you'd rather volunteer for unnecessary dental surgeries than pick up a broom. Maybe it's not that severe, but housekeeping still takes a backseat to other activities when you aren't working. It's time to consider hiring a cleaning service. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Your Willingness: Different services and individuals offer to tackle different housekeeping tasks. If you just need someone to come in every other week to dust and vacuum, seek out that kind of help. Your own willingness to take on the serious cleaning, like identifying and eliminating whatever that smell in the fridge is, should be considered before looking for housecleaning help.
- Your Budget: Now that you've nailed down what you want, how much are you willing to pay? This is the time to reassess your needs and willingness to clean. Get a few quotes before deciding on any particular service.
- Your Friends: Does anyone you know use a cleaning service? Ask around. This is extremely important. You are about to invite someone into your home, possibly when you aren't there, and they will be going through a large portion of your things. If you come up empty-handed in your search, ask potential housecleaners to provide references. Quiz them about theft, property damage, and any other general satisfaction issues that come to mind.
- Your Stuff: Whoops! You didn't like that vase, did you? It got knocked off the shelf when someone from your new housecleaning service was dusting. This happens every once in a while no matter what you do, but you should still take the time to de-clutter potentially hazardous areas and put away anything that would make you cry if it broke. You can always put things back when they leave.
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