A Professional Touch Cleaning

We were looking for someone to clean our townhome and get it ready before tenants move in. The 3-​bedroom townhouse is a bit over 2100 sq feet and the cleaning companies we’ve used in the past charged between $ 100 and $ 120. Since I was busy and exhausted, I would like to find someone who can clean the house and steam clean the carpet so I did not have to make two separate appointments. Since this is a local company that claims to have helped various customers with move-​in/​move-​out service, I decided to give it a try even though there seemed to be no review — a very, very bad decision. BTW, they also go by the name «A Pro (Clean Inc.)».
Carlos, the compoany owner, quoted me $ 500. It was definitely on the high side but he promised that they would do a good job — clean the house, the windows, and sweep the garage. What he said next should have raised a red flag — he told me to write a check in the amount of $ 500 and leave it in the house for his cleaning crew. But I’m glad at least I had the good sense to tell him that I had not used their service before and I’d feel more comfortable making payment after the work was completed.
On the clening day, I stopped by after lunch and saw they started from the bedrooms on the top floor. A woman was cleaning windows in a bedroom and a man with blood-​shot eyes came over waving a piece of cloth. I had trouble communicating with him in English. I left with a very unsettling feeling and decided to go back later that day.
In the late afternoon, I found small debris scattered on front steps and the landing right outside the front door; an empty water bottle tossed in the front yard by the steps; garage hadn’t been swept and garage windows hadn’t been cleaned. Inside the house, there’s a white powdery film on the hardwood floor; small particles on floor tiles in the kitchen. The frost glass soap dispenser was gone, together with a remote for a ceiling fan. These were not the worst yet. When I went to the bedrooms uptairs, I found the glass of a window cracked/​broken.
I immediately called Carlos and asked if the cleaning was completed and why the garage had not be cleaned. He said they would go back the following day. I told him a window was cracked/​broken. With no hesitation, he said it’s already broken when they got there. I told him firmly (1) it was not broken and the property management company could attest to that; and (2) nobody said or showed anything when I stopped by. He then said he called me earlier. I urged him to show the call log on his phone because I definitely never received any call from him that day.
Carlos then said he’d talk to his employees and find out what happened. He called the following day and told me sometimes the windows were too tight and they had difficulty opening them. He asked if he could remove that window for repair. I said OK but told him to board the window up to keep the rain and wind out. Also, I asked them to come back and clean the front steps, the landing, and the floor. Carlos immediately said hardwood floor could not be cleaned because there’s some discoloration due to sunlight. I had to invite him to come over so that I could show him how unacceptable their work quality was.
Another bad decision because this «repair» dragged for 4 weeks. I should have taken the window to the shop myself. I was initially told the glass needed to be ordered because it’s some specialty glass. The original estimate was a week. Then another week … another 10 days. There’s no incoming updates. I had to call and asked when the window woudl be put back. Initially the home was ready for rental ealry that month, then mid-​month, then …
The window was finally put back at the end of the month.
I have nothing good to say about this cleaning company. A total horror — dishonest, no work ethic, and extremely bad service, if there’s any service at all. There was no apology at all for all the inconveniece and horror they have caused. If I had not withheld the check, I doubt they would ever have fixed the window or come back to properly clean my garage. I don’t even think it deserves one star.