House Cleaning: Three Types of Hired Help

If you are looking for some added help in the house cleaning department, there are a few options for finding the help you need within your budget. Before soliciting services make a list of chores with which you need help. Think of things that you have trouble working into your schedule or have trouble finishing once you start, make a budget, and have your demands ready before you try to place someone in your home. Freelance housekeepers, maid service companies, and mother’s helpers are three ways gain the added help that you need to keep the fiasco of house cleaning at bay.

A freelancer is an individual, usually not licensed or insured, that takes on several private jobs. Most of us know someone in this business, and these individuals are usually found through a friend network. Most like to stick to a set schedule of weekly, biweekly, or monthly house cleanings, and their rates are usually cheaper than those of maid service companies. Often this is a rather open contract, and depending on the person, you can sometimes tweak your schedule or request certain tasks without huge additional charges. Individuals often prefer to complete their work when the homeowner is away.

The main advantage to using a maid service company is that they will be licensed and insured. The down side is that they will charge more to cover the overhead of being licensed and insured. In this scenario, a weekly, biweekly, or monthly contract is agreed upon and a flat rate is charged. These companies provide very thorough house cleanings; dishes and laundry are about the only things that are not completed with each visit. You can leave the premises, but it is not required.

An up and coming trend is to hire a mother’s helper. Sometimes called a house helper, in this situation, you hire someone, perhaps a friend or an acquaintance to come to your home, perhaps one to two days a week, and you tackle the chores together. Because you are helping with the work, you usually pay a feasible hourly rate, and even though you are doing a lot of the work yourself, the intent is to have a block of time set aside when you know that you will be dedicated to house work. The person can be used in several capacities. She can clean while you carry on with other business in the home, or you can use the time to run errands leaving an attainable to do list behind. If you have children at home, you may use a mother’s helper to entertain the kids so that you can focus on chores.
Depending on your budget, any of these suggestions will be helpful in getting the job done and moving on with the more important parts of life.