Anonymous wrote:Normal is that you will find cleaning ladies who will do a good job the first couple of times and then they start to flake out on you.

I think everyone has a different take on what works and what does not work for them. My relationship with my cleaning lady did not follow a "norm" but I did everything to retain her because I found a gem after having gone through many cleaning ladies through the years. Was she the perfect worker? No. But she fitted well with what I wanted. I have had this lady for 17 years and I have been all shades of WOHM/WAHM/SAHM/PTWM in the meantime. She is no longer working for us since the pandemic but I have given her money, supplies and encouraged her to get other clients. She is working full time but she has called me and told me that whenever I want her back she will make time for me. Let's see.

She came twice a week. I got total of 6 manhours for $150 a week. 3000sqft home. 4 beds, 3.5 baths. No pets. Non-smokers. Family of 4. We are first owners. I obviously did not need her to clean my home so often - so we negotiated that she would do chores for me for $25 an hour. This meant that she was folding clothes, organizing, decluttering, chopping veggies, prepping for parties, putting up holiday decorations, recycling, cleaning pantry/fridge/freezer, taking care of my indoor plants, cleaning basement and garage, helping with yard work, vacuuming my cars, grocery shopping, picking and dropping my dry cleaning, warming and serving food and drinks during parties etc. I realized that this was the kind of help I needed to maintain my home, instead of just getting my house cleaned.

All of this was happening when I was home and I was supervising and at times training her. In 17 years she knew my house inside and out. And over the years a fondness and appreciation grew - I was giving her meals, doing her shopping using my warehouse membership, giving her generous gifts, being flexible with her days, tutoring her kid, loaning her money, connecting her with county services, going with her to court to get her child support, gifting her her child's back to school supplies and clothing every year, paying for her winter gear, paying for everyone in her family to get flu shots, letting her stay in my basement when she was between apartments, and giving her all the old clothes, shoes, household goods, tools, furniture that I would have donated otherwise. I was her easy, happy gig. She was my man friday. It was a win-win for us. She was efficient, creative, honest and had a ready smile and positive demeanor. She was also a fast learner and knew how I wanted things done. Obviously, she was also doing a lot of things to make life easier for me and pitching in when I needed more help. She could work and do projects for me during summer break because her kid could come to my house, hang around with my kids, eat meals, do homework etc...and she could save on childcare cost. As she was a working single mom, I made sure that I made life easier for her. Plus, I was paying her very well.

I miss her a lot but there was no way she could work for me because she is an essential worker at a local hospital. I am able to keep my house clean without her because everyone is pitching in, I am not entertaining at all and things have become simplified. My house was also pretty organized to begin with thanks to her.

Having a cleaning person at your home is a business transaction. Somehow, it is very rare to find a person who can do the work consistently, honestly and with a good attitude.You will go through a lot of people and if you are lucky you will find a good one. If you find a good worker, you must treat them with respect, pay them well and try and retain them for as long as you can.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have the same cleaning lady for the past 10 years - she is not the best at cleaning to tell the truth, but I have a messy house and so I see this is partly my fault. It is hard to clean with there is lots of clutter for instance.

But anyway, I don't cook for her but I have told her many many many times that she is welcome to eat/drink whatever. She never gets anything but if I cooked something different or baked something she will try (I offer of course). If I go out and stop by Starbucks or Dukin Donuts (examples) and buy myself a coffee or donut, I will bring her some as well (I rarely go out like this though...).

If I open a beer while she is here, I will share with her (it has happened maybe 2 or 3 times during these past 10 years).

I don't hover while she is here and get out of her way and make the kids get out of her way as well (ex.: if she is going to clean the living room, we all leave). Now that the kids are older, I make them clean up their bedroom before she comes.

I start the laundry before she gets here so there isn't much time wasted waiting for the machine to run its cycles - she does the kids laundry and put away the youngest. My oldest put away her own clothes (10y old).

We chit chat a bit and gossipy a bit - about my family and hers, even though I barely speak Spanish and she barely speaks English, we communicate very well.

I usually don't interfere about how she goes about cleaning, but sometimes I will say: "X, can you please start by the kitchen today?" or "X, I want you to give special attention to the basement today." On the days I want "special attention" to some specific area, I resign myself that some other part will have to give as she has to leave by 3:30pm at the latest.

I give her 2 weeks of wage for X-mas bonus every year. The year my MIL lived with us before dying, I have her 5k as a bonus because she was my salvation. She would go above and beyond while she was here helping me bath her a few times, or move her on the bed. Or just staying with her (and kids) while I ran a quick errand to the grocery shop. During those days I also had her come 3x/week.

When my kids were very young (baby/toddler/preschooler), I also left them with her while I also went to a quick errand - but I would pay a bit extra of course. She never asked and always said it wasn't needed, but I always insisted (of course!).

When I traveled to NYC for a weekend and forgot to leave food for the cats, I called her to go in and put food for them - I paid of course, but still.

So yes, she is not the best/amazing cleaner but she is the best for me.

Haha...just to add that she is on my list of people I would give $$ to when I win the lottery. LOL Most of my relatives are not btw.

Anonymous wrote:I have the same cleaning lady for the past 10 years - she is not the best at cleaning to tell the truth, but I have a messy house and so I see this is partly my fault. It is hard to clean with there is lots of clutter for instance.

But anyway, I don't cook for her but I have told her many many many times that she is welcome to eat/drink whatever. She never gets anything but if I cooked something different or baked something she will try (I offer of course). If I go out and stop by Starbucks or Dukin Donuts (examples) and buy myself a coffee or donut, I will bring her some as well (I rarely go out like this though...).

If I open a beer while she is here, I will share with her (it has happened maybe 2 or 3 times during these past 10 years).

I don't hover while she is here and get out of her way and make the kids get out of her way as well (ex.: if she is going to clean the living room, we all leave). Now that the kids are older, I make them clean up their bedroom before she comes.

I start the laundry before she gets here so there isn't much time wasted waiting for the machine to run its cycles - she does the kids laundry and put away the youngest. My oldest put away her own clothes (10y old).

We chit chat a bit and gossipy a bit - about my family and hers, even though I barely speak Spanish and she barely speaks English, we communicate very well.

I usually don't interfere about how she goes about cleaning, but sometimes I will say: "X, can you please start by the kitchen today?" or "X, I want you to give special attention to the basement today." On the days I want "special attention" to some specific area, I resign myself that some other part will have to give as she has to leave by 3:30pm at the latest.

I give her 2 weeks of wage for X-mas bonus every year. The year my MIL lived with us before dying, I have her 5k as a bonus because she was my salvation. She would go above and beyond while she was here helping me bath her a few times, or move her on the bed. Or just staying with her (and kids) while I ran a quick errand to the grocery shop. During those days I also had her come 3x/week.

When my kids were very young (baby/toddler/preschooler), I also left them with her while I also went to a quick errand - but I would pay a bit extra of course. She never asked and always said it wasn't needed, but I always insisted (of course!).

When I traveled to NYC for a weekend and forgot to leave food for the cats, I called her to go in and put food for them - I paid of course, but still.

So yes, she is not the best/amazing cleaner but she is the best for me.