Questions people actually ask

Two ways, and neither takes long. Call or text Viviane on (508) 726-1610, or fill in the estimate form on this site with the basics — how many bedrooms and bathrooms, whether there are pets, how often you want us, and anything you already know is a problem. From there we agree what the visit covers and pick a first date. Nothing is committed until you say so.

As early as you know your date. Move-outs and construction handovers cluster around month ends, closings and the end of a build, so the earlier you call, the more choice everyone has. If you need something sooner than that, still call — some weeks have room, and we would rather tell you honestly than have you assume there is none.

Both. Plenty of first calls are a single job: a deep clean before family arrive, a house after the builders leave, an apartment at the end of a lease. Some of those turn into a regular plan afterwards and some do not, and that is entirely your call.

There is a simple test. If the house already feels rough about nine days after a clean — hair back on the floors, the bathroom turning — you are a weekly household. If day thirteen still looks respectable, every other week suits you, and if the house is lightly used, monthly is a genuine reset rather than a compromise. Describe your household when you call and we will tell you which one you actually need, not the biggest one.

Yes. A plan is a rhythm, not a trap — school holidays, travel, a week when the house is full of guests. Call as early as you can and we will look for another day. When you set the plan up, ask Viviane how she handles short-notice changes, so nobody is guessing about it later.

Commercial work is normally scheduled for when the building is quiet, which for most clients means outside their business hours. For homes, tell us the windows that work for you and we will be straight about what we can fit, rather than promising a slot we cannot keep.

That is the point of a recurring plan: a set day, and the same trained team — our own people, not subcontractors — so nobody has to be told twice which rug lifts or where things go back. If a date has to move for a holiday or a storm, we call you rather than leaving you to work it out from an empty driveway.

Clinton, where we are based, plus Lancaster, Berlin, Bolton, Sterling, Boylston, West Boylston, Worcester, Leominster, Marlborough, Hudson and Northborough. If you are just outside that list, call and ask — the answer depends on the day and the job, and it is a thirty-second conversation.

Sometimes, and it costs you nothing to ask. It is worth asking either way — a Tuesday call for a Thursday clean sometimes works, particularly for a one-off. What we will not do is say yes and then send a rushed visit, so if the honest answer is a date next week, that is the answer you will get.

No. Some customers are home, some leave a key or a door code, and some are at work every single visit. Tell us which you prefer and how you want the house left afterwards — doors, alarm, lights, where the dog should be — and that becomes part of the routine rather than a question every time.

Whatever arrangement you are comfortable with: a key we hold, a lockbox, a door code, a garage keypad, or a key kept at a building office. We agree it once, and because it is the same team each visit, you are not re-explaining it to new people every month.

It is a fair thing to ask before handing anything over. What we can tell you plainly is this: we are fully insured on every job, the crew is our own trained team rather than subcontractors, and you choose the arrangement. Plenty of people prefer a door code precisely because they can change it whenever they like, and that is a sensible thing to want.

Give us the code and the sequence, or disarm and re-arm it remotely if your system allows — either works. Tell us what to do if it trips and who the monitoring company calls, so a false alarm is a phone call rather than a police car. Some commercial clients would rather staff let us in and secure the building afterwards, and that is fine too.

No, as long as we settle it before the first clean rather than on the doorstep: buzzer code, fob, whether a key sits with the management office, and whether the service elevator has to be booked. Tell us where a van is allowed to stop as well. If the building changes managers or codes, one message from you keeps the arrangement working.

Not at all — it is your home. Just tell the crew where they are, particularly the indoor ones, because people generally like to know when they are being recorded. Nobody is uncomfortable about it as long as it is not a surprise.

Exactly as you have asked us to leave it. Tell us the routine once — which doors get locked, whether the alarm goes back on, which lights stay on, where the pet ends up — and it is followed every visit. If we found something you should know about, a dripping trap or a stain that will not lift, you hear about it rather than discovering it later.

We call you, and if we cannot reach you we call whoever you told us is the backup, which is why a second number is worth giving when you set the plan up. Ask Viviane at that point how a missed visit is handled, so it is understood by both sides long before it ever comes up.

Yes, and it is common for rentals, second homes and units between tenants. Tell us how the property is accessed, who else holds a key, and who to contact if something on site needs attention. For a portfolio it is usually simpler to agree one system — a lockbox at each address, for instance — than a different arrangement per building.

Describe the place. Bedrooms and bathrooms, pets, how often you want us, what the floors are, and anything you already know needs work — the estimate form on this site takes about a minute, or you can call and tell Viviane the same things. Some jobs are better seen in person before anyone quotes: construction handovers, empty houses and most commercial buildings. Either way the estimate is free and there is nothing to commit to.

Because an honest number does not exist until we know the place. Two three-bedroom houses on the same street can need completely different visits depending on pets, floors, how long it has been since a proper clean, and whether the inside of the oven is in scope. A figure on a website would be a guess, and you would find out it was wrong on the day. Describe the property and you get a real answer instead.

It is free, and it commits you to nothing. Plenty of people call two or three companies before they decide, and we would do exactly the same. If our answer is not the one you wanted, there are no hard feelings and nobody will chase you.

Sometimes. A straightforward home on a regular schedule can usually be settled over the phone. A building, a house after a renovation, or an empty property at the end of a lease is worth walking first, because that is how a scope gets agreed properly instead of argued about afterwards.

It can, if what we find is not what was described — an oven nobody mentioned, cabinets to be done inside and out, a house that has stood empty longer than anyone thought. If that happens you hear about it before the work is done, not after. Nothing gets added to a job quietly.

Ask Viviane when you book and she will tell you what she takes and when it is due. It is a two-minute conversation, and it is far better had at the start than on the doorstep at the end of a first visit.

Yes. Tell us who handles invoices, what reference or purchase-order number needs to appear on them, and where they should be sent. Getting that right at the start saves a chain of emails between your accounts people and us three months later.

We are fully insured, on every job and every property. Tell us who needs the paperwork and in what form — an association, a facilities manager, a general contractor — and we will get it to them before the first visit rather than on the day. Ask any company you are considering for the same thing before you sign anything, including us.

For a home, most arrangements are simply a schedule you can change by calling. For commercial work, something in writing is usually the right thing for both sides, because a facilities manager needs to hold the arrangement to something specific rather than to a memory of a conversation. Before the first visit, ask Viviane exactly what you are agreeing to and get it in plain language.

Tipping is not built into the arrangement, and nothing about your service depends on it. Some people leave something at the holidays, plenty never do, and both are entirely normal. If you want to recognize a good visit in a way that lasts longer, tell Viviane what the crew got right, or leave a review — that travels further than cash does.

Call and say so on (508) 726-1610, and be specific about what you found and where. We would far rather hear it the same week than read it in a review months later. Tell us which visit and which rooms and we will talk it through with you properly — that conversation is how a family-run company gets to nearly thirty years.

Viviane. This is a family business, so the person who answers the phone is the person who owns the standard and can make a decision about your house or your building. You are not filing a ticket.

No. Nobody should be cleaning before the cleaners. Tidying is a different thing: toys, post and laundry off the floor means the visit goes on cleaning rather than on moving your belongings around, and you get more out of the same hours.

Clear the counters and clear the floors, get the dishes out of the sink, settle the pets, and tell us where to park. If anything has changed since the last visit — a new floor, a sick child, a room being used for work — a two-line message beforehand is worth more than a conversation at the door.

Tell us what your street or building allows: a driveway, a visitor bay, a loading zone with a time limit, permit parking, or a winter parking ban that only applies some months of the year. It is a five-second question that saves twenty minutes on the day.

Put away anything you would rather nobody handled — it makes for an easier visit on both sides. Papers left out are cleaned around rather than moved, and nothing loose goes in a bin. If a drawer, a safe or a whole room is off-limits, say so once and it stays that way.

Usually, yes. The first visit takes longer and works harder, because everything is being reached for the first time and nobody has learned the house yet. If the place has not had a proper clean in a while, we may suggest starting with a deep clean and keeping it with regular visits after — that is the easier way round than trying to catch up during a maintenance visit.

Leave a short note on the counter or send a message before the visit. Be specific and be ruthless about it: if only three things would make you happy this week — the shower, the kitchen floor, the inside of the microwave — say which three, and they get attention first. Nobody minds being told what matters; guessing is the harder job.

Leave the door closed and we treat it as off-limits for that visit. It is worth agreeing that once, so a closed door always means skip the room — then a sleeping baby, a home office mid-call, or a room stacked with moving boxes needs no conversation on the day.

Empty it first. Furniture, boxes and rubbish out, because nobody can clean the inside of a cupboard that is still full. Keep the water and electricity on until after the visit, and hand us your landlord's or agent's checklist if you have one, so we are working from the same list they will be holding at the inspection.

Book it for the gap between getting the keys and the boxes arriving if you possibly can, because an empty house is the only time anyone can properly clean inside every cabinet, closet and appliance. If the sellers said they cleaned, that usually means surfaces rather than the inside of the fridge or the tops of the kitchen cabinets. Tell us the day you get the keys and the day the movers come, and we will work between them.

Decide in advance what you want the visit to reach that a normal clean does not, because that choice is what makes a seasonal visit worth booking. Windows and their tracks, radiators, closet floors, the entryway that took a New England winter of salt and grit — pick the ones that have been bothering you and say them out loud when you book.