It is no secret to anyone that cleanliness is a must everywhere. Even more so nowadays, while a pandemic is ongoing. If you are in the Hospitality sector, you already know that this is very serious on which guests will judge the level of. This is, among other things, one aspect that will make them want to come back, or not. Now, the question is: how to take care of this service, should the host or Property Manager do the cleaning themselves? Or should this service be entrusted to a professional? What are the advantages of doing so? Let us find out.

Disadvantages of taking up the task of cleaning yourself

First of all, if you have a few clients only or are hosting just a few houses as a Short-Term Rental (STR) property owner, cleaning the houses yourself after each guest’s departure will get quite tiring in the long term. Also, it might not always be up to professional standards. We have to keep in mind that guests expect nothing but the best. Doing everything on your own will be a lot of extra work.

If you are expecting back-to-back check-ins, another challenge will be the time constraint. You might not have enough time on your hands to go for a deep cleaning each time. It is also out of the question to skip any cleaning before other guests’ arrival. Your credibility and professional image are at stake. Not only will you be wasting all your energy on a task that could have easily been outsourced to a third party, but you might also be missing out on other important aspects of your job.

Why hire a professional cleaning service for the maintenance of your rental properties?

Indeed, if you outsource the cleaning services to a cleaning company or individual, you will have more time to focus on your communication strategy with your clients and potential new ones. You can focus on your staff and getting more clients. You can also concentrate on growing your business. Outsourcing this task to a professional would also mean that you will not have to lose time on buying cleaning supplies or investing in deep-cleaning technology.

How to look for a cleaning company?

These are the main points to consider before looking for a cleaning company or individual:

Depending on the size of your listings, you might want to look for either a cleaning company of an individual professional. Depending on your budget situation, you could start small, that is, look for a professional cleaner, and gradually move on to a cleaning company as the number of Short-Term Rental properties increases.

Analyzing the check-in and check-out times of your guests helps determine if a deep cleaning or a basic cleaning is needed. Also, you might want to keep in contact with both a cleaning company and an individual cleaner, depending on the time span available for the cleaning, the surface of the property, and the availability of one or not.

Whatever your choice, it might be helpful to think of a trial period, before making your final choice.

What type of cleaning can you expect from a cleaning company or individual?

What differentiates Short-Term Rental Property cleanings from any basic one is that there are specific rules to follow. For example, Airbnb guidelines are very specific. These are the essential services to be offered:

• The hosts and the guests should wear their masks during their meeting
• The hosts and the guests should respect the social distancing rule
• All furniture and surfaces should be dust-free and cleaned with appropriate chemical solutions
• The toilets, bathtubs, and showers should be hygienic
• All countertops, door handles, and light switches should be thoroughly wiped
• The kitchen should be clean and the dishes, toaster, kettle, stove, and other utensils should be stored away
• All the sheets and towels should be clean and the beds must be made
• Amenities like coffee, trash bags, paper towels, hand soap, shampoo, and dish soap should be restocked
• All floors must be swept, floors mopped and carpets and rugs vacuumed
• All trash should have been taken out
• Any left-behind items should be removed
• Finishing touches can be added after a final scan of the whole house
• Make sure to wash your hands between the different steps and before preparing any documents

As the cleaning guidelines keep getting updated, having this task outsourced ensures that the professional will know how to adapt to ever-changing cleaning regulations.

You should also instruct and train your team to swiftly notice any damage to the properties or any wear and tear and report them to you. After all, cleaning professionals take less time to do their job, as they are fully trained for this task.

If a guest notices a messy, dirty, and unhygienic rental, they will be more likely to request a refund, leave earlier than planned, and worst of all, give you the worst of reviews.

Happy guests, on the other hand, will keep coming over and over again. If you have rental properties in other countries, wherever they go, they will more likely contact you. Happy guests also give the best of reviews and will surely recommend you to their network of friends and family.

We shouldn’t forget that guests will not hesitate to pay high amounts. All they want value is for money.  Not to forget that a clean space instills peace of mind and contributes to a relaxing and enjoyable holiday or break from daily life.

This is where CoHostMarket comes into play, as this is the ideal platform to look for a cleaning and turnover services company or professional individual. CoHostMarket is a platform where you will easily find professional service providers, you can look for the “Verified-badge look” available for some cleaning and turnover services. With CoHostMarket, it’s a stress-free journey to look for any professional, you can easily post your offers on the platform.