Maintenance and cleaning

You may wish to take on the services of a local cleaner who may also serve as a key holder in case of emergencies. Neighbours or other property owners in the area are the best source of recommendations for this sort of service. In rural areas you could also ask in local shops or bars to see if anyone in the vicinity is taking on this sort of work. If you are prepared to post keys to visitors and have good contacts for maintenance and utilities, then cleaning may be the only sort of service you need to take on in the short term.

If you have a larger property, multiple units to rent, or simply have less time on your hands for regular contact with a cleaner, you might consider a company who can handle cleaning or full property management for you. These services will typically be a lot more expensive, but you are offloading the bulk of the work and responsibility to another, which may better suit your situation. The obvious disadvantages are that the service is less personal and the employees will stick to the cleaning contract as laid out, giving little room for you to ask “please do an additional hoover of all carpets as the last guests had a dog with them or “can you defrost and unplug the freezer this time because there’s no-one coming for another 6 weeks”. Search in the Holiday Lettings Property Services Directory to look for local cleaners and property maintenance companies recommended by some of the holiday home owners who use the site.

Standards of cleaning and expectations will vary greatly, so the best thing to do is to prepare the property to the standard that you expect for your guests and then demonstrate to the cleaner or company that this is how you wish every visitor to find your home on arrival. Do specify the tasks that you expect to be covered, and how often you want them doing. The advice below is mostly common sense, but should help you to make sure that your property will be in good hands and well set-up for guests all year round.

• Each time your property is cleaned and the inventory taken, ask your cleaner to keep an eye open for dripping taps and any areas of damp or mould so these can be dealt with quickly. Regularly check your air-conditioning or heating is in good working order. Avoid drainage problems by removing hair from plugholes. Solve those little problems and you’ll prevent them becoming anything more serious.
• Wash all linen like blankets regularly and schedule in a deep clean for all carpets and curtains once a year. Also make sure that your garden will be maintained on a regular basis.
• Keep some maintenance supplies in the property for guests to use – items like plungers, brushes and mops are useful. Also supply them with spare batteries for remote controls and extra light bulbs. Leaving these items to hand means you won’t have to arrange for someone to go over just to change a light bulb.
• Get warranties on major items like washing machines, and make a note for yourself of all the serial numbers and models of your big appliances. This will be handy should you need to get repairs done.
• Leave a number for guests to call 24 hours a day in case something breaks. Whilst you might be happier to deal with this yourself, it’s also a good idea to have someone in the area to help if needed.
• Ask local owners and get the numbers for handymen, plumbers and electricians who they trust. Keep these numbers in your guest manual, and make sure you also have a list of these in case anything goes wrong during someone’s stay. Keep a local phonebook in the property as a back up for these services.