Second homes
Second homes, opened and closed
For houses that sit empty for weeks and fill up in a weekend: opened before you arrive, looked after while you are away, and closed behind you with a signed list.
In every visit
Opening: air, heat or cooling set, beds made, refrigerator stocked from your list
Between stays: a visit to turn the linen and clean the rooms used
While you are away: a weekly walk through every room with a written note
Closing: perishables out, linens stored, lights and shutters as your list says
One named person for the house
- Priced bythe visit, and the size of the house
- The numberin writing, before the first visit
- Billedmonthly, for visits made
Included, by room
What a house in season needs
Written to the house and the calendar. Some weeks need nothing; some need a crew.
Opening
Windows opened and the house aired
Thermostat set to your numbers
Beds made and baths stocked
Refrigerator stocked from your list
While you are away
A weekly walk of every room
Sinks, floors and ceilings checked for water
A written note on what we found
A call to you if anything looks wrong
Between guests
Linen stripped and washed
Rooms used cleaned top to bottom
Kitchen reset and trash out
Closing
Perishables cleared
Linens stored as your list says
Lights, blinds and shutters set
The closing list signed and sent to you
After a storm warning
A visit to check the house, if you ask
Loose items brought in from porches
A text to you when we leave
- Extra
Extra, by arrangement
Restocking from your list; you reimburse the receipts
A deep clean before the season
Letting in a tradesperson you name
A visit
How an opening goes
- 01
Step 1: You tell Tania the date
By text, with the number of guests and anything you want in the refrigerator.
- 02
Step 2: The day before, a walk
The house is aired and checked, and anything that needs you is reported before you arrive.
- 03
Step 3: Beds, baths and kitchen made ready
Done to the card, in the order the card names.
- 04
Step 4: A text when it is ready
You hear from Tania when the house is opened, and again when it is closed.
Before we arrive
What to leave us, and what we pass on
Before we arrive
Text the arrival date and the number of guests
Tell us who else holds a key or a code: caterer, gardener, pool service
Name the person we call if the alarm company calls us
What we do not do
Drain pipes or winterize a house
Pool, lawn and exterior care
Heating oil, boiler or generator service
Manage repair trades
Questions about second homes
Do you open the house if we are not there?
Yes, with a signed key card and your word each time, or a standing instruction on the house card.
What do you check while we are away?
Water at sinks and the floors beneath them, the thermostat, and signs that someone has been in. If something looks wrong, the lead calls you before anything else.
Can you turn the heat on?
We set the thermostat to the numbers you give us. We do not touch the boiler, the water main or the generator.
Tell us when the house is empty
Say which weeks it is used and which it is not. Tania writes the openings and closings around them.