Do you have a housekeeper/cleaner?

[saluki9]

We have ours come every third week. When we got married my wife informed me she doesn't do bathrooms, and that it is non-negotiable. It didn't take me long to figure out that I'm not spending my weekends doing them either.

Two women come for about an hour and a half. Costs us $75.00

 

[FreqFlyer]

Two people come about once a month and spend 2 hours ($65). We live in a very old drafty house which gets dusty and I hate cleaning the shower.

I got in the habit of using a cleaning service in right after college. I was renting a house with 2 other friends. You can imagine how dirty a place like this gets (with all the friends coming-and-going). It seems like an extravagance but when you split the cost 3 ways it was WORTH IT. We didn't fight over who did more or less of the mess/chores.

 

[Westernskies]

Twice a month (we're both still w*rking) It's really nice to come home to a clean house, and worth the $$.
No security or privacy concerns, the lady that owns the company has had a key to our house for 7 years now, mostly the same crew, no turnover...y, si son legales.

 

[Sarah in SC]

My house looks somewhere between Aaron's and Khan's. Apparently no one cleans.

And there is no way I could convince someone that it would be reasonable, at any price, to clean a house where 5 dogs, 3 cats, and 2 hopelessly messy people live.

I feel bad for DH, as he at least grew up in a clean house with no pets. I've always been a slob.

Squalor is not too bad, once you get used to it. Spray some pine cleaner every once in a while and it helps keep down the visiting times from houseguests.

 

[W2R]

My house looks somewhere between Aaron's and Khan's. Apparently no one cleans.

And there is no way I could convince someone that it would be reasonable, at any price, to clean a house where 5 dogs, 3 cats, and 2 hopelessly messy people live.

I feel bad for DH, as he at least grew up in a clean house with no pets. I've always been a slob.

Squalor is not too bad, once you get used to it. Spray some pine cleaner every once in a while and it helps keep down the visiting times from houseguests.

Another helpful hint: Don't turn on very many lights, or bright lights. Not only will you save on your electricity bill, but also you are less likely to see the dust and dirt.

When I had my house on the market, I had to turn on all the lights for showings and use higher wattage bulbs because apparently most buyers want a house to be light and airy. This entailed a lot of preliminary cleaning of what I had thought was a reasonably clean house. I had NO IDEA....

Squalor is best when you can't see it. You'd never know it was there.

 

[Sarah in SC]

W2R, my mom used to swear by lowing the wattage on bulbs before parties, because she figured why clean before the party when you were definitely going to have to clean all over again afterward? Candles are also a good choice for making it seem more dim.

Now you know why we will never sell our house as long as we are a) alive or b) actually living in it.

 

[Nords]

When we were new parents (and dual active-duty military) we were too sleep-deprived to keep up with [-]more than the bare basics of[/-] cleaning. A housecleaner was well worth the price.

We kept that habit up until our kid was nine years old and I ER'd. At that point we resented the intrusion (especially when spouse was working Navy Reserve midwatches) and it dawned upon us that our latest housecleaner was a drama queen. We gently (and generously) paid her off and then changed the locks.

We put a lot of effort into not getting things dirty in the first place. A whole-house water conditioner avoids lime/mineral deposits. Most of spouse's tchotchkes are behind glass. We squeegee the shower walls after every use. We dust with a Swiffer to pick it up instead of redistributing it. We don't have a lot of rugs in the house.

The best housecleaner we've ever had has been our Scooba. Every tile in the house gets a pass at least once a month, and the kitchen gets his attention weekly.

 

[walkinwood]

We had a house cleaning service when we were both working, but gave it up when we ER'd.

It is a wonderful luxury if you can afford it.