Property management companies located in popular tourist destinations can make good money managing vacation properties. However, it is no easy task. There are rental payments to collect and maintenance to address. Repairs need to be made in a timely manner. And then there is cleaning between vacation and tenants.
A property manager can save plenty of headaches by contracting between-tenancy cleaning to a commercial cleaning service. But if in-house cleaning is preferred, one of the most valuable tools a property manager can employ is the cleaning checklist.
Simple in Principle
Cleaning a vacation home between tenants is simple in principle. Cleaners just do what they do at home. Floors are swept and carpets are vacuumed. Bathrooms are cleaned, kitchens are scrubbed, and trash is discarded. It is all pretty straightforward – except when it’s not.
Vacation rentals can offer unique challenges due to the variety of guests they host. Different guests treat vacation properties with different levels of respect. So following any given tenancy, cleaning crews might go in and find a disaster. They could also go in and find a home just as clean as it was when the tenants first arrived.
This takes us back to the idea of creating a checklist for cleaning between tenants. A checklist eliminates the guesswork for cleaning crews. It eliminates the need for them to use their best judgment when deciding what to clean and how to clean it. Instead, they just follow the checklist every time they enter a home.
Kitchens and Bathrooms
Property maintenance companies need to turn vacation properties around fairly quickly. Usually, rental agreements are weekly agreements that begin and end on weekends. Cleaners may have only a few hours to turn over several homes. Their biggest challenge: kitchens and bathrooms.
Just like in your own home, a vacation home’s major traffic areas are these two rooms. Kitchens and bathrooms are also the rooms that take the most abuse. A typical kitchen checklist includes:
- Cleaning (and potentially scrubbing) all appliances.
- Cleaning and sanitizing countertops, back splashes, and sinks.
- Sanitizing and disinfecting fixtures (faucets, handles, etc.).
- Sweeping and mopping the floor.
The checklist for the bathrooms is similar:
- Cleaning and disinfecting toilets, including tanks, seats, and bowls.
- Cleaning and disinfecting sinks, faucets, and counters.
- Cleaning or replacing bathmats.
- Scrubbing and disinfecting shower stalls and bathtubs.
- Replacing linens, including towels and washcloths.
Disinfection is a key component to cleaning kitchens and bathrooms. After all, these two areas are the most likely areas through which germs can be spread. Cleaners cannot take any chances.
Cleaning Everything Else
All cleaning tasks outside of those in the kitchen and bathroom can be scheduled according to need. Obviously, bed linens are going to be changed for every new tenant. All hardwood floors are going to be swept and all carpets vacuumed. All trash will be removed as well.
The most important thing to focus on is creating a checklist that is consistent and easy to follow. It can be extremely helpful for cleaners to arrange a checklist in the same order in which tasks should be completed. For example, the common principle of starting high and working down can be reflected in a checklist.
A checklist brings consistency to vacation home cleaning. It gives cleaning crews a way to know they have completed all their tasks. A checklist also provides accountability, just in case a tenant arrives and complains that the home hasn’t been properly cleaned. From our perspective, there are few things as valuable to vacation property cleaning as a consistent and easy to follow checklist.
