Everyone is understandably afraid to manage property maintenance and cleaning remotely. It's impossible for you to personally  to clean your properties everytime people checkout, so you have to hire a cleaning company or an independent housekeeper. 

Don't believe the old cliche: good help is hard to find.  It is not as difficult as you might imagine.

Where should one begin?  Right outside the front door of your rental.  Visit your vacation rental on the weekends when renters are checking out.  I can almost guarantee that your neighbors will have cleaning services. Don't be afraid to mingle a little.  Ask around. Although many of the workers will be with management companies they are often open to side jobs. 

Another often overlooked resource for finding housekeepers is your local church.  The pastor may know of someone looking for extra work.  Doing a little leg work to find a reliable individual willing to work with your individual needs is worth investigating.  So, don't give up on finding good help.

Hiring a cleaning service or company is another good alternative.  Since many services can be located in a phonebook or other directory, they are very easy to find.  Cleaning services or companies are also very consistent, since they can replace any individual not available to do the job with multiple individuals in a crew.  Sometimes going with a service or company is less expensive than hiring one person, but a service may not provide the individual attention your property requires.  Cleaning services provide set duties, so that light bulb may not get replaced or fresh flowers may not be delivered. 

© Christine Karpinski, 2006

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