When making the decision to rent by owner, the first thing that most vacation rental homeowners ask is: How do I handle housekeeping and maintenance from afar? The key to rent by owner success is finding a reliable housekeeper or cleaning service. When making the decision between the two, it's important to consider the pros and cons:

Individual Housekeeper

Pros:

· Flexibility: Can be very flexible with your rental schedule and vacillating needs.
· Consistency: Since you have the same person cleaning your cabin or condo between each renter, you know that the quality will be (close to) the same each time.
· Thoroughness: An individual housekeeper is more familiar with your property and knows which areas need special attention.
· Willingness to Multi-Task: Since your housekeeper is there already, they could perform basic maintenance tasks such as changing light bulbs and furnace filters as well.
· Communication: You'll constantly be in the know about what's going on with your vacation home and your renters.

Cons:

· Hard to Find: Harder to find since they're usually not listed in the yellow pages.
· Hard to Keep: Often individuals do housekeeping as an “extra” job. If he/she gets bored, or finds a better job, you could lose them without notice.
· Longer Cleaning Time: Could take longer to clean the same space since they're only one person.
· More Expensive: Since an individual will take longer to clean your property and will give attention to your special needs, they tend to cost a little bit more than a cleaning service.
· Less Reliable: Housekeepers are only human and could have personal issues come up that could interfere with cleaning your property on time, so you';ll have to have a backup housekeeper in case of emergencies.
· Less Flexibility in Scheduling: If you dont adhere to a strict Saturday-to-Saturday rental schedule, a cleaning service may not be able to fit you in.

Cleaning Service

Pros

· Easy to Find and Hire: Your local yellow pages probably hold the numbers for tens or hundreds of housekeeping/cleaning services.
· Fast and Efficient: Often come in with a crew of two or more people, so they can quickly and easily handle a turn around (someone checking out and checking in the same day).
· Less Expensive: A cleaning service is fast and efficient and therefore usually costs less than an individual.
· Multiple Crews: If your regular housekeeper gets sick, there's always a back-up. Also, if you're unhappy with your housekeeper, they can always send a new one the next time.

Cons

· Different Cleaning Crew Each Week: The crews won't necessarily have the chance to become familiar with your property.
· Less Attention to Special Needs: Since cleaning crews tend to clean a lot of properties each day, they have a set cleaning list and rarely deviate from it.
· Lack of Communication: Cleaning services may not communicate as often or as thoughtfully with individual property owners. You also have to stay on top of them for alerts you if there is a problem at your property.
· More Flexibility in Scheduling: Since the cleaning companies tend to employ their cleaners on a regular fill-time or part-time basis, they tends to be more flexible for any day of the weeks cleans, as opposed to individuals who may only clean as an extra job.

If you live more than a few hours away from your second home, it's vital that you have a housekeeper who will look out for your property in your absence. Typically, individual housekeepers are a better lifeline than cleaning services; however, it really depends on finding the right person or company for the job. The key to success with an individual housekeeper or a cleaning service is to provide your expectations (i.e. a checklist) in writing and leave a copy at your property.