The In-Person Consultation
Imagine this:
You call up the most honest mechanic in town and say, “can you fix my car?”
And he says, “sure, bring it in and I will write you an estimate.”
And you’re shocked.
“Can’t you give me a price over the phone?” you ask.
It seems silly to ask mechanics, plumbers, electricians, and general contractors to give a quote over the phone, but we get asked this all the time. So many factors will affect the cost of cleaning your home: here are a few.
Size
Everyone guesses this factor. “It’s a four bedroom,” they might say, helpfully. Is that a four bedroom one bath? A four bedroom three bath? How many square feet is it? Here are two examples of houses available on the market right now. Both are four bedroom, three bath houses. Both are newer construction, and both are on the same side of town.
There is a huge difference in price and a huge difference in square footage. The price difference isn’t just in the square footage, though.
Features & Layout
Firethorn has a small but beautiful kitchen with standard wood cabinets, that is open to a small dining room; standard bathrooms with acrylic tubs; and flooring that is largely carpet and luxury vinyl plank, with one tile bathroom.
Loma Ridge has a sprawling kitchen with custom live-edge wood cabinets; a separate dining room; a split-level floor plan separating the kitchen and dining areas from the main living space; a spacious master suite with dual vanities, a tub, and a glass-front shower; with largely white-grouted tile and carpeted floors.
Which one do you think would take more care and attention to maintain?
Equipment Needs
Firethorn has standard ceilings while Loma Ridge’s vaulted ceiling brings the fan to a height of approximately 10 feet. This requires us to bring at least a six foot ladder. Our regular fleet vehicles (compact sedans) cannot carry a six-foot ladder. We have to assign a specific crew with a work van and ladder rack.
Condition
The condition of the home heavily affects how long it will take to ensure that the house is clean. Imagine that you have two houses that are exactly the same.
How the home is used: One is inhabited by a couple of empty nesters who only have the house full during the holidays and own one well-behaved cat. The other is home to a young couple with a 2 year old, a 5 year old, and a 9 year old; one Golden Retriever, one Pyrenees, a cat, and a gerbil. Even if the young couple is working hard to maintain the home, it will likely need more TLC per visit than the empty nesters’ home next door. Dogs and kids create smudges on windows, fur shedding, and dirtier floors.
Age of the home: A newer construction home may take more work than one built over 25 years ago. Have you ever heard your grandma say, “they don’t build them like they used to?” Well, you better believe she’s right. Newer appliances may not stand up to stronger chemicals like those old monster refrigerators do. Stone counters, which are common in new construction need to be handled delicately; meanwhile, as hideous as modern sensibilities deem them, tile counters are largely indestructible. Cast iron tubs, sheet vinyl, and other fixtures that were popular in older homes were low maintenance and easier to clean.
Pets: The number and type of pets you share your home with will also affect how long it will take to clean your home. Although they are both dogs, a small, non-shedding toy poodle will not cause as much work as a Boxer who sheds a lot, drools even more, and rolls in everything. Indoor/outdoor pets, as compared to indoor-only pets also create a different level of soil in your home.
How much stuff is in the house? If you are like me, you are a militant minimalist. You prefer the Spartan lack of anything personal. If you are like my husband, you save anything useful. Even assorted lengths of wire. Extra points if you got the Futurama reference. If you look at my house, it’s a mish mash of both of our styles. If you are like my mom, you are a bona fide hoarder: trail ways through boxes. If you are like my grandma, you have a lot of sentimental items covering most surfaces, but the house is clean and fresh. If you are like my Uncle, you don’t have a lot of stuff, and everything is arranged just so, with most sentimental things hanging on the walls for ease of use. If you are like my parents, while raising twin girls, you spoil them with toys and figure out the details later. The amount of straightening up and moving stuff around we need to do will affect the amount of time it takes to clean your home.
Client Preferences
Maybe you like your items moved when dusting. Maybe you like them left in place. Maybe you like your makeup brushes put back in a certain order. Maybe wiping the nose prints off the sliding door rocks your whole world. Maybe our standardized packages don’t quite fit what you’re looking for. One of the most important questions I ask during a consultation is, “what can I do to make you walk in the door and sigh happily?” Meeting in person is a great way for us to learn about your preferences so we can honor them.
The Consultation
Sure, we could ask you twelve thousand questions over the phone, or make you fill out a never-ending questionnaire. But you would hate us. Could you imagine? That sounds so boring.
That’s why we do a free in-person consultation for each and every one of our potential clients. No, you’re not wasting our time, even if you don’t choose us. No, we aren’t going to used-car-sales you into purchasing our services. We just want to have a conversation, see the house, talk about what you need and want, and agree on a specific flat rate price that makes sense for everyone. It’s part of our proven process.