Practical guide
Managing the relationship with the cleaning company
Cleaning of common areas is one of the most visible expense items to unit owners: dirty stairwells or neglected entrances are noticed immediately, which is exactly why they generate frequent complaints. Managing the relationship with the contracted cleaning company well means having a clear contract, a service specification that details the required tasks, a periodic control system and a correct cost allocation among owners based on stairwell or ownership shares. This guide explains how to set up each phase, from selecting the supplier to the annual evaluation of the service, with the tools a property manager can use to keep everything tracked and demonstrable at the owners meeting.
The contract and the service specification: the basis for every control
The contract with the cleaning company should always be put in writing, even when dealing with a supplier already known to the building: a verbal agreement makes it impossible to challenge poor service in a precise way. The document should state duration, fee, invoicing terms and termination conditions, along with the company's insurance and social security references, which the property manager is required to check as part of their responsibility in selecting suppliers.
The technical service specification is the attachment that turns a generic agreement into a verifiable tool: it lists the areas to be cleaned (stairwells, entrance halls, elevators, courtyards, common rooms), the frequency of each task (daily, weekly, monthly), the products and equipment to be used, and the minimum expected standards, for example no residue left on steps or entrance glass cleaned on a set schedule. The more detailed the specification, the less room is left for diverging interpretations in case of a dispute.
- Detailed list of areas and premises to be treated
- Frequency and timing of each task
- Minimum quality standards and materials to be used
- Contract duration, fee and termination terms
- A single company contact for communication with the property manager
Controlling the service without improvising
Effective control does not require the property manager, who often oversees several buildings, to inspect daily: it can rely on a nonconformity log filled in by the doorkeeper, the building representative or the owners themselves through a single channel, avoiding scattered, untracked reports that get lost across different emails and messages.
It is useful to set periodic checks, for example quarterly, comparing what is observed against the specification's standards, and to keep written records of every complaint sent to the company along with its response. This documentation is valuable both to justify a possible fee reduction for nonperformance and to support the decision at the owners meeting on whether to confirm or replace the supplier at the end of the contract.
AmministraPro allows reports, contract documents and deadlines to be centralized in a single supplier record, so that every complaint and every response stays linked to that specific relationship and remains accessible to anyone who takes over the management.
Payments and cost allocation among owners
Unless the building bylaws provide otherwise, cleaning costs for common areas are allocated based on general ownership shares when the service covers areas common to the whole building, or based on stairwell shares when the service only covers certain stairwells or entrances, following the use criterion set out in Article 1123 of the Italian Civil Code. It is therefore important that the specification precisely indicates which areas are included, since this determines the correct allocation criterion.
Payments to the company should be made according to the contractual deadlines and documented with an invoice, so they can be entered into the year end financial statement with the relevant description. Management software that automatically links the invoice to the allocation plan reduces the risk of manual errors and speeds up preparation of the year end statement.
Evaluating the service and deciding whether to renew
At contract expiry, or at least once a year, the property manager should prepare a brief service evaluation to present at the owners meeting: number of complaints received, the company's average response time, compliance with the specification's standards and, where relevant, a comparison with alternative quotes collected in the meantime.
This evaluation, when supported by data gathered throughout the year, makes the meeting's decision better informed and less exposed to discussions based on subjective impressions, also reducing the risk of disputes between owners dissatisfied with the service and those in favor of keeping the same supplier.
Frequently asked questions
Who chooses the cleaning company for a building?
The choice of supplier rests with the owners meeting for general direction and spending decisions, while the property manager, unless instructed otherwise, is responsible for collecting quotes, verifying the company's requirements and presenting compared proposals to the owners. For significant amounts, good practice is to collect several comparable quotes based on the same specification, so the meeting can decide on a consistent basis.
How are cleaning costs allocated among owners?
The allocation criterion follows the use of the cleaned areas: if the service covers areas common to the whole building, general ownership shares are used; if it only covers certain stairwells or entrances, stairwell shares are used, based on Article 1123 of the Italian Civil Code. The building bylaws may nonetheless set a different criterion, which then prevails.
What should be done if the cleaning service is unsatisfactory?
The first step is to formally complain to the company in writing, listing the shortcomings against the specification, and to keep a record of it. If the shortcomings persist despite follow up requests, the property manager can propose to the owners meeting a fee reduction for partial nonperformance or termination of the contract, always documenting every stage of the relationship with dates and evidence.
What should a cleaning service specification include?
It should detail the areas to be treated, the frequency of each task, the expected quality standards, the products or equipment to be used and the company's contact person for communications. A generic specification leaves room for interpretation that makes it hard to challenge poor service precisely.
How does management software help track the relationship with the cleaning company?
A management platform like AmministraPro keeps the contract, the service specification, invoices and nonconformity reports in a single supplier record, linking each payment to the relevant allocation plan for splitting costs among owners. This makes both the day to day control of the service and the preparation of the annual evaluation for the owners meeting much easier.
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