Communal area cleaning for residential buildings

Buildings with international tenants have a particular problem: the cleaning contract is inherited, the schedule is unwritten, and nobody can say who is responsible for the bin store. We start by fixing that, on paper.

Scope and frequency, in writing

Typically: entrance and doors every visit, stairwell and corridors on an agreed frequency, lift every visit, basement and roof space monthly, approach and grounds seasonally. Entrance glazing is handled separately, because it is where neglect shows first.

The schedule is posted in the entrance and states which day each task happens. A resident who can read the schedule does not call the building manager to ask whether anyone came.

One contact, one response time

A named supervisor for the building, reachable directly and in English. Anything reported is resolved within 24 hours. No switchboard, no ticket number, no call back when someone has checked.

Seasonal obligations

Winter: snow and ice clearance from approaches and steps, salt or grit. Spring and autumn: machine cleaning of the stairwell, gutters at the approach, leaf clearance. Summer: watering and grounds upkeep where the building has a courtyard.

For buildings with a liability concern about winter access, we log clearance times — the record matters if anyone ever slips and asks who was responsible.

A price that holds

Quoted per flat, per month, against a fixed frequency. Anything outside that scope — deep-cleaning the stairwell, facade washing, bulky waste removal — is a separate line, agreed in writing beforehand. Items appearing on an invoice that were never discussed is the fastest way for a building to change contractor, and quite rightly.

What we will not take on

Buildings that want a visit once a month so that something is happening. That frequency cannot hold a standard, and a year later nobody is happy — residents or us.