10 Things Cleaning Services Won't Tell You

1. “We’re as good as our word. And that’s not very good.”

It used to be that hiring someone to clean your home was strictly for the super-wealthy. But over the years, as more women have entered the workplace, the practice has become commonplace even among middle-class households. Bill Griffin, president of Cleaning Consultant Services, a Seattle firm, also cites more recent trends for the growth of the industry, including increased concern over microbes and infectious diseases such as the swine flu. Today, there are an estimated 30,000 cleaning-service companies out there, ranging from self-employed housekeepers to nationally franchised chains. Unfortunately, there’s no way of knowing what you’ll get until it’s too late, since anyone “with a spray bottle, rag, and business card” can call himself a housecleaner, Griffin says.

How to vet prospective services before hiring someone to clean your home? Before pulling the trigger, ask for five references from customers who have used the service for at least six months.

2. “We’re more about a quick clean than a thorough job . . .”

In an effort to hit several houses in one day, many housekeepers move through homes like whirling dervishes. That can lead to inattention to detail, loss of property—or just substandard cleaningWhile service standards vary widely, all firms should promise a reasonably detailed checklist: That means wiping down every surface in the bathroom, for example, including scrubbing the tub, toilet, and sink, as well as cleaning the bathroom counters and mopping the floor with cleaners. Also, to ensure those standards are kept, ask for employees who have been with a company for at least six months. Because housecleaning is a transient business, staff turnover tends to be pretty high, according to Griffin.

3. “. . . that is, if our workers even know what they’re doing.”

As president of M-Squared Public Relations, a boutique public relations firm, Marsha Middleton works a 60-hour week. To reduce her hassles at home, Middleton has begun using a cleaning service. But in one year, she says she’s gone through five cleaners. One swore she could iron, Middleton says, but “when I said, ‘This is what needs to be ironed,’ she started shaking like a leaf.” The maid admitted to her that she lied to get the job and was planning to call over her brother as soon as Middleton left.

While it may seem like an obvious prerequisite, not everyone in housecleaning has real skills. Before you sign on with an agency, you should ask what kind of training it offers employees. At Ann Arbor, Mich. based international chain Molly Maid, for example, new employees go through a one-week training class, then an average of four days practicing in “test” homes before they start working with clients.

4.“The first time’s going to cost you.”

The average price range for a service to clean a four-bedroom, three-bath home every two weeks is $80 to $170, according to industry experts. However, if you’ve never used a service before, an agency may insist on an initial “deep-clean” of your house. That can mean wiping down the inside of a refrigerator instead of just the handle, or moving a couch to vacuum underneath it—all of which can jack up the price for the initial job by two to three times the typical fee.

For some companies, though, the initial fee is just a ploy. Such cleanings can run upwards of $300, says Griffin, if companies think that’s the only time you’ll be using their service. It’s perfectly fine to request to skip the preliminary deep-clean and go straight to the standard service. If an agency balks at that request, Griffin says, you’re better off eliminating it from your list of prospective cleaners. Plus, once you’re using the service, don’t shrug it off if you come home to find that a subpar job was done. The key here is to speak up fast—many agencies will revisit a home the same day but may excuse their sloppy cleaning as the dirt that’s accumulated in your house over the past 24 hours.

5. “You’re letting a bunch of strangers in your house, you know.”

Consumers typically leave their key—and their otherwise unoccupied home—in the hands of trusted housekeepers on the day of a scheduled cleaning. How can you feel comfortable about who’s entering your home? First, make sure the agency has cross-checked a worker’s documentation to verify his or her true identity. Then, at a minimum, confirm that the company runs background checks to look for felony and misdemeanor convictions for the past seven years. It also helps if an agency reviews each applicant’s credit history, as well as prior employment and previous judgments against him or her.

Contact your state’s attorney general to ask what kind of background checks are available in your state. Some have their own bureau of criminal identification, which can run checks for a small fee, but the subject of a check must consent first.