It used to be so simple: when you needed some help around the house you’d ask around and hire a friend of a friend, someone from church, or your aunt, and bingo, it’s handled! Well, those days are over. In this day and age you have to consider, what if the person you hire to clean your house has an undisclosed criminal record? What if your new gardener asks to be paid in cash and doesn’t report the income? What if the roofer falls off a ladder and breaks an arm (or worse)? What if the caregiver steals the silver? What if you fire any one of these workers and they file for unemployment? What if, what if, what if . . . ?

Here is a list of questions to consider while choosing a house cleaner (or other service providers):

1. Do I want to be an employer or do I want to hire a service that will be the employer?
In the state of CA, someone must be legally considered the employer, you can no longer just pay a friend cash! At Leslie’s Cleaning Services we are the legal employer and follow the plethora of laws and regulations so you don’t have to.

2. Is the service or individual I am considering licensed in the county I am in?
Many counties in CA require licensing (Placer does, Nevada doesn’t). Leslie’s Cleaning Services is licensed in Placer County.

3. What insurances are necessary to protect me and my property?
Liability is for damage to property, bonding is for theft (upon conviction), and worker’s compensation is for injury to the technician. Your new service should be able to produce proof of insurance. Leslie’s Cleaning Services is fully insured and bonded.

4. Who will provide the cleaning solutions and tools?
At Leslie’s Cleaning Services, we provide all the professional cleaning supplies and tools to effectively, safely, and efficiently clean your home/office. We also carry the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for each cleaning solution (an OSHA requirement). If you choose to be the employer you will need to have SDS sheets on the premises for each cleaning solution the employee will be using.

5. What supplies will be used and is non-toxic cleaning available?
Supplies and solutions are very important. Having the right professional solutions will get the job done quicker, better, safer and without damaging the surfaces in your home or office. At Leslie’s Cleaning Services we locally manufacture our own ONE All-Purpose Solution, a pH-neutral, citrus-based, non-toxic, biodegradable all-purpose cleaner. Every solution we use is state of the art and top of the line!

6. How do I know my house or office is actually clean?
Just because the blankets are folded and the pillows are fluffed does not mean your space is actually clean (free of unwanted matter, including pathogens). We have several ways of verifying that we have done our job. We use two different scientific methods to confirm your space is healthy when we are done.

7. How do you determine your pricing?
We base our pricing on our operating costs to run a legitimate business. While you can readily find others who charge less, that is likely because they are not paying the full costs of running a business properly and legally (which at the end of the day is for your protection).

8. Should I pay by the hour or by the job?
When it comes to cleaning it is in your best interest to pay by the hour. At Leslie’s Cleaning Services, after your Initial Top To Bottom clean, we recommend a cleaning duration based on your budget, your lifestyle, the surfaces in your home, pets, children, etc., so you will know the fee for each cleaning in advance. Charging by the job often encourages shortcuts and cutting corners. Our employees are paid by the hour so they have no motivation to rush to leave early.

9. How long have you been in business?
This question is important because you want to work with a service that has a tried and true track record. Also, experience usually means there are well thought out systems, policies, and practices in place to make sure that things run smoothly for you. Leslie’s Cleaning Services has been in business for nearly two decades and therefore has both the experience and reputation you can trust!