The home walkthrough turns a written task list into a realistic plan. It lets the candidate see the size and condition of the space, identify special surfaces, estimate time, and ask questions before accepting responsibility.
Prepare the home and meeting
Tell the candidate who will be present and how long the walkthrough should take. Put away financial papers, identity documents, medication, jewellery, and alarm information. A walkthrough is not permission to inspect drawers or private records.
Have the room-by-room scope and preferred schedule ready. If several household members have requests, agree on priorities before the meeting.
Walk through in a consistent order
For each included room, show routine tasks, periodic tasks, delicate materials, clutter expectations, and areas that are excluded. Clarify terms such as “tidy,” “organize,” “sanitize,” or “deep clean” with examples of the desired result.
Point out fragile objects, natural stone, specialty flooring, antiques, electronics, and surfaces that require manufacturer-approved products.
Ask method and judgement questions
- How would you sequence this home within the available time?
- Which products or tools would you use on these surfaces?
- What would you do if a product label conflicts with a requested method?
- How do you report damage or a safety concern?
- How do you handle a room that is too cluttered to clean safely?
- Which tasks would need more time than the proposed visit?
You are looking for clear, safe reasoning—not one universal cleaning style.
Discuss health and safety
Review ventilation, gloves, ladders, lifting, pets, sharp objects, broken glass, needles, waste, mould, pest contamination, and renovation dust. Do not minimize a hazard to preserve a low quote. Some tasks require specialized providers.
Agree never to mix chemicals and to keep products labelled and away from children and animals.
Confirm access and privacy
Explain parking, elevators, keys, codes, alarms, cameras, family members at home, and rooms that remain private. Ask whether another person or substitute may ever attend. No unapproved person should enter simply because the original worker is unavailable.
Align scope, time, and price
Ask the candidate to estimate the first visit and recurring visits separately. Confirm included tasks, hourly or fixed pricing, supplies, parking, taxes where applicable, cancellation, and approval for extra time.
If the task list does not fit the budget, choose priorities or rotate periodic work. Do not assume the worker will donate extra time to finish an unrealistic list.
Finish with a written summary
After the meeting, send the agreed scope, schedule, rate, supplies, access plan, and next step. Give the candidate time to correct misunderstandings. Then complete reference checks before providing unsupervised access.
The walkthrough should produce a shared definition of a successful visit, not a vague expectation that the housekeeper will “know what to do.”