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If you are thinking about renting out your home as a vacation rental, you should consider hiring a maid service to clean it between guests. This can increase your guests' positive experiences and reduce the amount of work you have to do. 

Let Your Guests Know Your Place Is Professionally Cleaned 

When travelers book a vacation rental, the two most basic things they look for are safety and cleanliness. It does not matter how many extra amenities your place offers, if it is not considered clean by your guests, you will get negative reviews that will hurt your future business. However, there are subtle ways you can let potential guests know that you take hygiene seriously before they decide to book your place. 

First, you should decide on a cleaning fee. This can be a very small fee, and it can even be included in the nightly cost of your rental. Even if you do not actually raise your prices, this lets your guests know that part of the money they are spending goes to keeping the apartment clean. 

Second, you should state what day of the week and during which hours guests can expect cleaners to show up. This is especially important if you have guests staying for a few weeks as it lets them schedule whether they want to be in the rental or not while it is being cleaned. 

Don't Ask Your Guests to Clean After Themselves 

It is common practice at many vacation rentals to leave a short list of cleaning activities or chores that the guests are expected to do before they leave the home. This usually includes stripping the bed, running the dishwasher, or other basic chores. While this may be the standard, there are plenty of guests who are offended when they pay for a rental and are given a list of chores to do. 

Once you have hired a professional cleaning service, and set your price at an amount that will cover regular cleaning, you can forego the chore list. This will make your place seem more inviting. However, many travelers will still do these basic chores out of habit. 

Schedule a Monthly Intensive Cleaning 

An intensive cleaning involves dusting and sanitizing all surfaces in your rental. This includes floors, windows, blinds, bathrooms, kitchen appliances and furniture. Depending on how many renters you have in a month, you may need to schedule two intensive cleanings each month. However, if you usually rent your place out for a week at a time, one intensive cleaning should be enough. 

Book at Least One Week Ahead 

To make sure a cleaner will be available on the day and hours you need them, you should try to book at least one week in advance. Once you build a relationship with a cleaning service, it will be more likely that they will be able to accommodate you when you have emergencies. When looking for a cleaning service, you can either schedule a weekly cleaning or schedule a cleaning for each time a guest checks out of your rental. 

Do the Light Work Yourself 

Maids provide a valuable service for rentals, but their price can be high for easy, quick tasks like doing laundry or washing dishes. In fact, most cleaning companies no longer offer those services. You may want to click here to continue reading more about it or check your rental before a maid arrives to clean it and do the quick, easy tasks yourself. If you are unable to do these tasks, you should check with your provider and make sure dishes and linens are included in your cleaning agreement. 

Hiring a maid service to clean between each of your guests can be a costly investment, but it can also set your rental apart from others, making it more desirable for future guests.