How long to clean house -- considering MAID service

[Ranger111]

Nope, not rich (I wish). In-laws have reached the point that it is teetering on moving them out of their home, or let them hang-on a few more years and get a maid service, since my wife and I really are becoming worn-out doing it ourselves.

They live in a 1970's single-level ranch-style house, 1035 square feet. Three bedrooms, one bath, a living room, kitchen and dining area (not a formal dining room). Kitchen, dining area and bath have vinyl floors.

Bedrooms and living room are carpet and hallway is hardwood.

So, I have two mature high school girls I have hired to clean my office. I pay them $50 a week ($25 each). I really don't know how it takes them, but not long, I suppose -- they do it in the evenings.

Thought about hiring them to do the in-laws rather than hire a maid service. But, it would involve a 20-minute each-way drive, as well as having to be sociable with the old folks.

When I do the in-laws house, cleaning takes me about 45 minutes to an hour --- depending on how social I have to be. My wife says it takes two hours, but I think that's because she is a lot more social than me.

Anyway, any thoughts on how much the 17-year-olds should get for this service, or should I just forget it and get a maid service -- and any thoughts on how much that will cost ME (yes, I'll be paying).

 

[wilkeliza]

A maid service is going to take longer than 45 minutes. I have a service come for my 1 bedroom apartment and they are there for 2-3 hours sometimes longer. Of course for what I pay they dust, change the sheets, do a load of laundry, was the dishes, mop, etc. They are a flat fee though based on square footage not on time spent.

 

[ajwolfe]

I would guess it would take about 1 1/2 to 2 hours to truly clean a house of that size. I'm amazed that you are doing it all in 45 minutes - are you including the bathroom, floors, dusting, etc in that time frame? What would you expect the girls to do while they were there? Would they be changing bed sheets, doing any laundry, etc?

 

[RitaE]

Well, if you hire the High School girls - they'll want to schedule around school and activities and your in-laws may not be crazy about having two high school girls in to clean during the evening hours. Maybe they'd be willing to work weekends?

The few times I've needed a house cleaner I've had good luck with Moms of toddlers and babies. I've told them to bring the kids, park them at the table or in front of my tv and clean away. To me one of the big advantages of hiring individuals is you have better control over the job. You can tell them not to worry about the dishes in the sink but you'd rather have them spend the time working on organizing the laundry room or whatever. But the other consideration with hiring an individual is addressing whether or not you'll pay the employment taxes. We've always paid because my husband's job kind of demands no iffy tax situations.

The advantage of a professional service is that you don't have to worry about employment verification or taxes which does negate the cost difference a bit. But they're also much less flexible. They have lists of things they will and won't clean and you pretty much get that list of jobs.

 

[Ranger111]

OP AGAIN:

When I get there, I grab the vacuum cleaner and vacuum all rooms, bath, included. I then mop all the vinyl and hardwood (damp mop with an 0-Cedar pad). I don't do laundry and I don't do dishes, they are still able to do those chores. I swamp out the tub/shower combo, I look at windows and I clean if needed -- but maybe only once every three weeks, if that. I do a deep clean of all countertops, sinks, and then a real clean of the toilet -- it needs it -- and could probably use it three times per week....

My wife fusses more with dusting and will do the occassional dish or load of laundry, but she does not concentrate on that.

Basically, as I understand it -- and I may have it wrong >>>that is often wifey's complaint<<<<the cleaning would be just what I do. Wife and I could handle dusting etc. every few weeks, etc. Honestly, my house is lucky if it gets dusted twice a month and I am a VIRGO, ex-firefighter, a combo that just cries for being obsessive/complusive about cleaning chores....

 

[davper]

Get a maid service and pay the fee. Less headache. If you hire an individual, you have to deal with filing employment taxes and record keeping.

My understanding is the penalties are substantial for failing to file on top of the employment taxes you would owe as well.

 

[NinaBella]

I suggest calling a company to get an estimate. If it is reasonable go with the company. If it is outside your budget, perhaps ask the high school girls and then lower the pay rate. A company is license, bonded, insured, provides all supplies, etc. So I think it's okay to pay the high school girls less as they are not incurring business expense or supply expenses. But you will not know what the going rate is in your area for a cleaning service unless you ask for the estimate.

 

[SC Minnie]

I would probably go with a service. If you hire the girls and they get other regular jobs or start activities then you are back at the same place. A service is bonded and if your person is on vacation that week they'll send someone else. If you don't really want to do a service ask around to friends and neighbors of individuals who do this kind of work for a living.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Or if you could , just have the girls come in and do some of it. Like the harder things and you and wife could come in and dust and vacuum and do a few windows..

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

I'd price out a service. I think this will be easier for you in the long run. As PPs have mentioned, you won't have to worry about the HS girls being busy or finding another job or having school conflicts. The service will always send somebody. Plus the services are bonded and insured so that if something were to be broken or be presumed missing then the service has a process to deal with it along with any other complaints. With the HS girls you may become more of a go-between for any issues or scheduling.

 

[chris31997]

My mom has a house about the size you are talking about. She paid one person( I think a company) who she was not happy with came in for about2-3hrs for about $150. This lady did not really clean like my mom asked her to do. My mom even asked her to take some things off the list because mom would do it herself. A second lady(owned her own business) does it for $60 comes in for 3hrs and cleans like you won't believe. It is amazing.

All that: to tell you to interview the people AT your in-law's house and see what they would charge. Make is several businesses. It might be someone running a business out of their home. And follow up on their work.

 

[Eeyore's-tail-tack]

It depends on your location. I live in the Cincinnati area. I recently quit a job working for a worldwide known cleaning company. The fee for a cleaning is based on 2 persons at $80 an hour. I agree no way could that be done in 45 minutes.You should definitely hire a company that is bonded and insured.

 

[LJSquishy]

I'm not sure on what it would cost, but I think you'd be better off and happier hiring a service for your in-laws. Professional cleaning services do all sorts of tasks you may not think about such as wiping baseboards monthly, as well as cleaning out the oven and microwave periodically, dusting blinds, etc. Different companies usually have websites where they lay out the order of the tasks they do and the frequency. With a service, you will know exactly when they'll be coming each week (or however often you want them to come) whereas even responsible high schoolers can be unpredictable during the school year due to activities, schoolwork, illness, etc.

 

[happymommy]

I have a girl that cleans my house once a week, and have had her for years. She has her sister and helpers (my home is large), but I know and trust them all.
Years ago, I used a service for a while at my old house. Then hired on the side the one girl that they always sent.
A service will charge much more, and they pay the individual workers less than they would make if you hire someone directly (of course, they have to make money for the company).
I feel better knowing who is cleaning, and being able to text her if we need to make a change or skip a week. I've had her come when I'm out of town even. I would pay twice as much for a service.
I'd say hire the teenagers if they want and need the job! Maybe your folks would enjoy seeing young faces around. It gives the teenagers work experience and responsibility!
PS: I pay my girl cash. Not checks (unless I'm somehow forgetful to get to the bank!). Her taxes are her business.
Years ago we lived on a military base, and our house was smaller - about 1,000 square feet. I had someone come clean every two weeks for a short while when my son was a toddler. I paid her $45, and she spent about 3 hours cleaning, so $15/hour. That was 17 years ago, but she was a mom herself.

 

[Ress76]

Dealing with seniors, potentially with medications around the house, I'd go with hiring a company. Anyone can steal, but hiring a company would probably (hopefully) vet those types of folks out. If your parents have or end up on some sort of controlled medication, I'd much rather have an insured adult with employment to maintain stumble upon it than a 17 year old.

That said, either way, I would strongly advise that your parents make sure anything like that is secured before any "stranger" comes into the house.

Ress

 

[ariel71]

Her taxes are her business.

Not necessarily. They may be your business too according to IRS Publication 926. I doubt most people pay attention for providers like this, but OP shouldn't discount it when making a decision.

 

[Narnia_girl]

You might check your Chamber of Commerce about a local business that specializes in senior home care. As that huge population ages there are more niche markets and cleaning senior homes is one of them.

People above have mentioned the risk of theft, which could happen, but I've also seen several elderly people assume someone is stealing from them when they weren't. So in that case a bonded company protects the employee also.

 

[Bree]

I have a 2800 sq ft home and pay $120 every two weeks. She is here 3.5-4 hours. This is what she normally does:


Kitchen:
Dust ceiling fans
Clean inside and out of the refrigerator
Clean inside and out of the toaster
Clean inside and out of the microwave
Clean the stove
Wipe down the outside of the cabinets
Scrub the countertops and sink
Empty and disinfect trash can
Vacuum and mop the floors

Bathrooms:
Disinfect toilets
Wash sinks and polish faucets
Dust light fixtures
Clean the mirrors and countertops
Wipe down cabinet doors
Vacuum and mop the floors
Empty and disinfect trash can

Living Areas:
Dust ceiling fans
Wipe down the plantation shutters and closet doors
Wipe down the window sills
Dust all knickknacks
Dust the furniture
Vacuum the upholstery
Vacuum the carpet and rugs
Vacuum and mop the floors
Wash sliding glass doors inside and out
Wash sliding glass door’s tracks

Bedrooms:
Dust ceiling fans
Wipe down the plantation shutters
Wipe down the window sills
Dust all knickknacks
Dust the furniture
Change sheets
Vacuum and mop the floors