To get a cleaner and ask how much you pay for yours?

[DreamsOfDownUnder]

I'm a single mum of one, working part time whilst family have her. I also like to do things with my baby and by the end of it I'm shattered. I know it needs to be done, but I detest housework and have zero motivation.

How much do you pay and how often do you have them?

Seriously thinking about getting one, I binned Sky so I have a bit of extra money each month now (£120).

Mine is £12 per hour, two hours a week is enough for our 3 bed terrace (she doesn't venture in the third bedroom though as we use it as the playroom and it's chaos so we deal with that).

She does all the stuff I have no interest in doing - general clean but then skirting boards, ceilings (we get a lot of cobwebs!), or she will do the kitchen cupboards or inside of windows.

@babysharkah that's quite good. I live in a 2 bed flat so I'm hoping 1 or 1.5hrs a week is enough.

Does your cleaner have a key or are you in when she cleans?

Be aware OP that many won’t do just one hour a week as it’s not worth the travel time (at least that’s my experience in London).

When we had a 2 bed flat and were mad busy we had someone for 3 hours a fortnight instead.

I pay 25 for 2 hours, she comes fortnightly so doesn't get the whole house done, so blasts upstairs one time and downstairs the next. She has a key.
I just do toilets and the odd bit of mopping in between, and obviously the kitchen after using it.
My standards are pretty low, so this is enough for me

Key. I hate being there when she's there! She cleans for a whole load of people I know though so have 100% trust.

@Dollywilde I live in a small town so would hope I could get someone within walking distance. But 2 or 3hrs per fortnight might be best.

@babysharkah I'm renting so not sure I'd be allowed to give a key x

Around here it's £12 to £14 per house minimum 2 hours but you can do every other week.

@Babysharkdododont that sounds ideal. Not sure as a renter I'd be allowed to give a key, might just let her in and go out. When she shuts the doors behind her they lock so no need for keys to lock doors.

I pay 25 for two hours. I'm in the south but not London and she's very good. I think she originally said 11 pounds per hour but i just pay 25 now as it's easier and she's great.

@UserName31456789 I'm in the south too. Was thinking that would be the price.

£33. 3 hours every other week.

In reality it costs me more because I have to leave the house
Working class guilt

3 hours per week, £13 an hour, 3 bed terrace (although she only does 2 bedrooms).

She’s rubbish but we find even a bad cleaner is better than no cleaner at all.

If you find a good one never let him/her go!

@Trooperslaneagain same, although I think I'll be here for the first few times to build a bit if trust.

2hrs fortnightly. £24 but I pay £30 as she's my sister and I'm out of her area so I cover fuel.

@Buddytheelf85 hopefully I get a good one and can keep hold of him/her when I upsize and give them more work :)

£14ph once a week for a 1 hour clean in a 2 bed flat in the SE

I have one every Friday for 2 hours £10 per hour. It makes my life a bit easier and I have a clean house for the weekend.

@KellyMarieTunstall2 not sure about every week, do you think once a fortnight would suit you?

£25 for up to two hours a week but often less if house not specially dirty. Sometimes I’m in, sometimes I’m out. She once drove across the city with a spare key when we were locked out on in the rain on Christmas Eve so frankly she can do what she wants and I’d still pay her. She’s great and I will give her a pay rise as soon as I get one!

£10 per hour, 3 hours per week. Each week she spends about an hour doing a different ‘big job’ like taking everything out of the fridge and cleaning it, or cleaning the oven. If she always only has time to clean superficially it’s counterproductive as you’ll end up with dust from e.g. behind the fridge makings the house dusty before the week is up. You could also consider having him or her do laundry, fold and put away clothes etc.
The other great thing is having everything clean at the same time — I don’t have time to clean like that any more.

We pay £10 ph and our cleaner does 1 hour one week and 1.5 hours the next. We rent and she has a key. She cleans the bathroom and downstairs loo, hoovers / mops all floors, empties bins and cleans surfaces. We make sure that surfaces are clear and no cables left lying around. She uses her own hoover and cleaning supplies, although we provide the bin bags. This is in a 3 bed semi-detached, although 2 of the bedrooms are spare so don't need much cleaning. If we want anything different doing, we text or leave her a note asking her to substitute one area for another, for example if the inside of the windows need cleaning but the spare rooms don't. We are in West Yorkshire.
PS She has two hoovers, one for households with pets, and one for households without pets - great as I'm allergic to pet dander!
PPS When we moved house last year, one of our (half-joking) considerations was that we move within her working radius as we didn't want to lose her!

Ooh I'm also contemplating the same! We cant really afford to have the whole house done but is 3 bathrooms, the kitchen and the living room do-able in 2 hours?

I have 3 kids and 2 dogs and my house is always on the wrong side of grubby so weekly is best. My friend has the same cleaner for 2 hours every fortnight and that works well for them. Just try one out and see how it goes, fortnightly to start with.

£10p/h - 3 hrs a week.

When we were in rented our cleaner had a key without issue.