Having an effective household manual is essential to the smooth running of any luxury home or estate. But how do you create an ambitious maintenance schedule or household manual that will enable your housekeeper or house manager to run your home successfully? Here is everything you need to know on the subject and some top tips from our own clients and candidates.

What is a Household Manual or Maintenance Schedule?

Put simply, a household manual or maintenance schedule is a document detailing all of the tasks required to ensure the smooth running of your luxury home or household on a daily basis. From wifi passwords to paint colors, and from cleaning requirements to gardening schedules, your household manual is the essential guidebook of how to manage your home.

Household manuals are particularly useful in a luxury home or estate. They become key documents when training staff on how to manage your home consistently, as well as being a crucial reference guide in an emergency or when using contractors to complete any kind of works in your home.

Do I Need a Household Manual?

Some people believe that only the largest or most complex of households need a manual but in truth, every household benefits from having this detailed document, especially when you’re hiring household employees. Experienced private service professionals may even expect to see one when starting a new role. At MHM, we have seen household manuals that have been created entirely by the home or estate owners, or also where they have been developed alongside a housekeeper or house manager. How you create your household manual is up to you but remember that it may be read by a variety of staff and should be clearly written and easily understood.

Household manuals and maintenance schedules are particularly useful if:

You have a large household staff, all with their own responsibilities and areas of expertise.
You have multiple properties, each with their own maintenance needs.
You have a luxury property with specific cleaning and maintenance requirements.
You have a guest property where you may be working with external vendors.
You have hired new members of staff who need to be trained in how to run your home effectively.

What Should I Include in My Household Manual?

The key thing to remember is that your household manual should be a working document. It will continue to evolve over time and as your requirements change. For this reason, we recommend having an electronic version of the document but it may also be helpful to have hard printed copy that is kept centrally within your home.

At MHM we understand that every home is unique and so each household manual will too, be unique to you. However there are some key sections that every good household manual should include:

A contact list. Key contacts for residents, contractors, staff members, children’s schools, doctors, handymen etc
Staff schedules. Who is working, when are they working and are they on- or off-site?
Family schedules. As much as possible, include where are you expecting to be and therefore what do you need your staff to do when you are at your residence/away from your home. List your children’s term dates for school too.
Daily procedures & expectations. You may want to break this section down even further into cleaning, security checks, garden and pool maintenance, children’s homework and behavior etc. You could even included checklists for what you expect to be done on a daily/weekly basis to ensure consistency.
Security protocols. Door lock codes, locksmith contact details, security staff details.
Emergency protocols. Evacuation procedures, next of kin information.
Troubleshooting. What to do when things aren’t working, who to contact if appliances are broken etc.
Relevant Passwords. Wi-fi, door codes, streaming services like Netflix and Disney+.

Things you might need to include on a case-by-case basis:

Medical information. For anyone in the household, make sure you have medical requirements and contact details easily to hand.
Dietary information. If you have specific requirements, include them so all staff in the household are aware.
Laundry requirements. Also list preferred brands and detergents.
Events calendar. If you host or attend regular events annually or monthly, be sure to list them so that staff can anticipate and plan for them.
Pet details. How often does your dog need to be walked or taken to the groomers, food requirements etc.
Inventories and Household Supplies Details. Log what valuables, artwork, tools etc you have, as well as the preferred brands of products.

Who Should Have Access to My Household Manual?

Ultimately, anyone who has responsibility for managing your household should have access to your household manual to ensure that they are able to run your home or estate efficiently and successfully. However certain parts of your manual may only need to be shared with certain members of staff. For instance, an external catering vendor might need to know about any specific dietary information, but they are unlikely to need your Netflix password! This is why a digital household manual is an excellent idea as it can be broken down into sections and shared appropriately with various members of staff. We recommend using software such as Nines Living if you have a luxury home or large estate to help you create and manage your household manual.

Not sure where to start with hiring a new nanny, housekeeper or house manager?

My Household Managed takes a consultative and personalized approach to household staffing.

We help you hire the domestic staff qualified to fit your unique needs, saving you time and providing peace of mind.

Let us help you find the best nanny, house manager, housekeeper or any other domestic employee you may be searching for and submit an application with My Household Managed.