jdarg said:
Ohhh, JD I'd love to have a copy of that!!!
What do you leave out for your renters in the way of supplies?
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Ohhh, JD I'd love to have a copy of that!!!
Mermaid said:
Our management company leaves a packet of dishwasher soap, trash bags in the trash cans +1 extra bag for each can, soap and body wash in each bathroom, t.p.+1 extra in each bathroom, a box of tissues, 2 rolls of paper towels.
We provide, dvd's, board games, some beach toys (if our guests don't take them), beach chairs, we do have internet access, Tivo, and 2 fully packed bookcases.
We do not provide laundry supplies. Our kitchen is fully equipped. Blender, coffemaker,food processer, knives, cutting boards, pots,pans........and the list goes on.
We just signed up for high-speed (up to 1.5 Mbs) Internet for us and our guests. Now we have dialup at the beach house - MAKES ME WANT TO CLAW MY EYEBALLS OUT - I can't deal with it anymore! We have a desktop computer available for our guests, although it's dysfunctional because the last guest infected it with a virus that Norton can't even clean. GRRRRR! So we're gonna have to wipe out the hard drive, reinstall XP and MS Office.
Then we're installing a wireless network so when we have 4 people there with 4 laptops (as we typically do), we can all surf simultaneously.
Hopefully our guests will appreciate this.
BTW Mermaid, your questions are NOT sophomoric - I was clueless until the members of this board gave me some great suggestions.
Then we're installing a wireless network so when we have 4 people there with 4 laptops (as we typically do), we can all surf simultaneously.
Hopefully our guests will appreciate this.
BTW Mermaid, your questions are NOT sophomoric - I was clueless until the members of this board gave me some great suggestions.
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Yes, I'm replying to myself. But I just learned that if I leave out cleaning products, the rental company and I could be sued if some child ingested them. Also, the rental company likes to strip the place of "stuff" in the drawers, cabinets, and closets so that the place is uncluttered. I see their point - how can a cleaning person hurrying to clean a bunch of properties in one afternoon be expected to make the judgment call between what is a neat arrangement of goodies for guests and what is just clutter? My apologies to my guests for being inconvenienced due to litigious individuals.Beach Runner said:
Mermaid:
This is useful information. Thanks! Another reason to work on getting a locked owner's closet!
Best,
Paula
This is useful information. Thanks! Another reason to work on getting a locked owner's closet!
Best,
Paula
I think it is a great idea to leave cleaning supplies that you would use at your own home. Not chemicals and things like that because who really wants to get that into cleaning when they are on vacation but I always have 3 brooms and dust pans (in case one ends up next door or down the street), I have 2 swifters and I start with a nice supply of cloth pads for my guests to use, I have a vacuum on each floor that I leave, I leave hand washing soap (I wait until Bath and Body Works has a huge sale), I put the extras under the sink with the house name and not to remove. I leave light bulbs, batteries, extra flashlights. I always try and have a dish washing cleaning brush and Brillo pads for my guests. I have never had a guest say anything about the supplies being left. If anything they have been appreciative because they have been there and want to leave the home as presentable as possible after staying a week full of sun, fun, and wonderful family memories.
Beach Runner said:
We have wireless Internet in our houses and the guests love it. I tried to keep a computer there, but ran into the same problem as you. Personally, I'd take the computer away - most people bring their laptop anyway. We do have one of those printer/fax/copier combos and it gets some use as well.
Regarding supplies, we supply sample size soaps, shampoo, conditioner in the bathrooms and then dishwasher soap and washer soap. The kitchen is stocked with various cleaning supplies. Additionally, there is plenty of TP.
Regarding books/dvds etc - I made the mistake last year of giving an ample supply of DVD's and games for the Xbox. Low and behold, at the end of the season we were missing about half of the DVD's and every Xbox game (about 10) were missing (including a controller for the Xbox). This year, I'm only buying <$5 DVD's, etc.
Isn't it so demoralizing when you try to do something extra for your guests and someone abuses your generosity?Philip_Atlanta said:
Our management company provides a roll of TP in each bathroom, but no tissues (they are usually not biodegradable and should not be flushed, but are if there). They also put out enough soap and dishwasher detergent to get through a couple of washings. No laundry soap or other product. I used to leave stuff, but people would use it and take the remainder home with them. 
We leave extra light bulbs in the pantry and have the mngmt company replace them on the fixed rate program, which covers other things. For awhile, I left boxes of garbage bags, extra cleaning supplies, and extra TP. It was used and never replaced. The way I figure it, most people are accustomed to a trip to the market if they are renting a house or condo. The initial stash is for convenience. Even the housekeeper does not put out extra items when I leave them. The way I figure, if one is paying a housekeeper over $300 a pop each time a guest checks in, then it is little to ask that they purchase some convenience items that they might wish to have.
There are several items that need pretty constant renourishment in a beach place. The big #1 is plastic food containers like Rubbermaid. For some reason, we simply cannot keep Corningware casserole dishes, either and they're not prone to breakage. I think people pack up perishables in both items for the trip home and just figure it's no big deal, that you'll never miss it. Same with chip clips, but no big deal. Wine glasses have a high attrition rate, understandable. What really bugs me is missing silverware. We put two sets in about every other year and it just goes through attrition. What are people doing with this stuff? Sadly, I think lots gets thrown into the garbage with cleanup. So I have stopped putting good stuff in. I do keep my own set of flatware, dishes, and wineglasses in the lockup, just so I know it is there in the right numbers when we are there and entertain. Oh, and plastic juice glasses...forget it!
The DVDs are a lost cause; kiss them goodbye. So are the back casings on remote devices. It pays to keep an extra (especially the cable one) in your owner lockup.
Your housekeeper is a good resource for advice on what should be left and which things will not survive a summer of fun. In the end, it's not that big a deal to make a run to Bed Bath & Beyond, spend $40 or so on these kinds of items each year. Sure beats spending even 10 minutes fretting about it, I have found.
We leave extra light bulbs in the pantry and have the mngmt company replace them on the fixed rate program, which covers other things. For awhile, I left boxes of garbage bags, extra cleaning supplies, and extra TP. It was used and never replaced. The way I figure it, most people are accustomed to a trip to the market if they are renting a house or condo. The initial stash is for convenience. Even the housekeeper does not put out extra items when I leave them. The way I figure, if one is paying a housekeeper over $300 a pop each time a guest checks in, then it is little to ask that they purchase some convenience items that they might wish to have.There are several items that need pretty constant renourishment in a beach place. The big #1 is plastic food containers like Rubbermaid. For some reason, we simply cannot keep Corningware casserole dishes, either and they're not prone to breakage. I think people pack up perishables in both items for the trip home and just figure it's no big deal, that you'll never miss it. Same with chip clips, but no big deal. Wine glasses have a high attrition rate, understandable. What really bugs me is missing silverware. We put two sets in about every other year and it just goes through attrition. What are people doing with this stuff? Sadly, I think lots gets thrown into the garbage with cleanup. So I have stopped putting good stuff in. I do keep my own set of flatware, dishes, and wineglasses in the lockup, just so I know it is there in the right numbers when we are there and entertain. Oh, and plastic juice glasses...forget it!
The DVDs are a lost cause; kiss them goodbye. So are the back casings on remote devices. It pays to keep an extra (especially the cable one) in your owner lockup.
Your housekeeper is a good resource for advice on what should be left and which things will not survive a summer of fun. In the end, it's not that big a deal to make a run to Bed Bath & Beyond, spend $40 or so on these kinds of items each year. Sure beats spending even 10 minutes fretting about it, I have found.
We leave a broom, dustpan, swiffer, lightweight vacuum cleaner at each cottage. The management company leaves a starter supply of soap (should last the week), one roll of toilet paper in each bathroom, a few individual bags of dishwasher detergent, towels and potholders. We also leave flashlights/batteries/light bulbs (including the self-charging ones that you plug into an outlet that double as a nightlight). Out of 3, one is missing.
We have never had a problem (as far as I know) with people taking dvds or cds or books (and we have some very nice ones at the cottages). We leave puzzles and games and we get pieces missing from them, but we check them and replace them if pieces are missing (it's a pain in the neck, but it's a job the kids sometimes do). We haven't had much trouble with breakage of dishes/glasses, though we have lost some silverware (especially the small spoons and forks which suggests that children may be tossing them away by mistake). I lost a few travel alarm clocks once that I left on the side of the beds for guests, and I assume they took them by mistake and I haven't replaced them (I have plug in clocks by the side of the bed now).
We get mostly adults with children because our places are relatively small and inexpensive compared to some of the larger homes. I think they tend to be more careful than larger groups travelling together. Once we had someone rent our cottage and the one next door, and they did mix up a lot of the pots and pans and serving dishes since they were travelling together and brought stuff from each cottage back and forth. The other owner and I straightened it out.
We leave beach toys and floaters, and we seem to gain more every month because people also go out and buy more and then leave them.
Overall, our guests have been great. I want an owner's closet, though, because we then can leave some extra stuff for us.
We have never had a problem (as far as I know) with people taking dvds or cds or books (and we have some very nice ones at the cottages). We leave puzzles and games and we get pieces missing from them, but we check them and replace them if pieces are missing (it's a pain in the neck, but it's a job the kids sometimes do). We haven't had much trouble with breakage of dishes/glasses, though we have lost some silverware (especially the small spoons and forks which suggests that children may be tossing them away by mistake). I lost a few travel alarm clocks once that I left on the side of the beds for guests, and I assume they took them by mistake and I haven't replaced them (I have plug in clocks by the side of the bed now).
We get mostly adults with children because our places are relatively small and inexpensive compared to some of the larger homes. I think they tend to be more careful than larger groups travelling together. Once we had someone rent our cottage and the one next door, and they did mix up a lot of the pots and pans and serving dishes since they were travelling together and brought stuff from each cottage back and forth. The other owner and I straightened it out.
We leave beach toys and floaters, and we seem to gain more every month because people also go out and buy more and then leave them.
Overall, our guests have been great. I want an owner's closet, though, because we then can leave some extra stuff for us.