Work for rent Part Time Vacation Rental Cleaner/Handyperson/Manager (Lexington, VA)
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🏡 Work for Lodging Opportunity Near Lexington, VA --- Part Time Vacation Rental Cleaner/Handyperson/Asst Manager
We have a large studio apartment in a quadplex, conveniently close driving distance to all vacation rentals, offered in exchange for 38 hours of help per month
38 hours a MONTH in exchange for lodging, including electric and water. Also, when guests are not present, you could use the pool at one place, the hot tub at 2 other places, or swim or fish in the Maury River or Buffalo Creek at 3 other properties. These are beautiful properties, and we have almost figured out how to break even. :) Luckily we have other sources of income. This person would be like a part-time caretaker, but as mentioned below, we do not have full-time work — we only have about 38 hours a month, give or take, depending on the season and your skill set, as we sometimes have special projects if you have contracting skills.
🔨 Possible First Project — A Great Way to Meet
We have a bedroom where guests trashed the carpet. I was thinking someone could come tile or install luxury vinyl in this room — give me a quote; it's approximately 12x12 with a closet. This way we can meet, you can do this job to cover costs and make some money, and we can see if it's a good fit.
We also have decks and fences that need to be spray painted, so we could make it worth your while to visit.
We have a fridge that needs a water line, but accessing it requires suiting up and crawling under the house.
Usually Monday–Thursday is best with no guests.
We had a guy who was doing great, but he was too big to go under the house and his personal drama eventually caught up with him — no hard feelings, but it was a bummer as he was very capable. Anyway, please include a resume, even if you remove your address or last name. We want a good fit with our laid-back team. We're looking to talk once, then get ID and references, and meet ASAP. For the right candidate, we can wait a little — but sooner is always better.
🌿 About the Arrangement
Looking to spend time in the countryside near Lexington, VA? We offer a unique work-for-lodging arrangement where you trade landscaping and basic handyman services for comfortable lodging in a private studio with all utilities included (electric, water, sewer) — valued at $875ish/month.
No hard drugs. Weed and alcohol are OK; cigarettes are OK ONLY if always smoked outside. Everyone has some drama, but we're looking for a kind, chill person to work with. :)
📋 What This Means
Part-time work helping maintain beautiful vacation properties — landscaping, basic repairs, and upkeep
Checking on places and doing the final walk-through before guests arrive when owners are not in town
Assist the cleaning crew during last-minute or short turnaround situations when needed — more hours possible here, especially in busy season May–Oct
Occasionally help with same-day turnovers or if a guest has an issue and needs assistance, but most work is flexible on timing
This is not something where you can cram in 38 hours and disappear — the work is spread out in small bits that can work well for someone on a pension or a work-from-anywhere job. For example: cutting grass and weed whacking is best done right before guests arrive, then you can also do a walk-through to check for dead bugs, make sure the cleaners didn't miss something, spend some time reorganizing the pots and pans drawer, and check whether a deep clean is necessary.
In exchange, your lodging and utilities are covered — this is a work trade, not free housing. The studio is not onsite — it's approximately 15 minutes from all rentals and is located in the bottom right unit of a quadplex. 3 of the vacation rentals are right next door to each other and .1 miles down the street, about 12 minutes from the studio; the other 2 are about 15 minutes away. Everything is in the same county (Rockbridge) and near Lexington, VA.
🏊 Amenities & Perks
Enjoy full access to vacation rental amenities including:
Pool table and dart boards
Swimming pool and hot tub
Fishing spots, tubing, and kayaking
Access to rivers and creeks at multiple properties
Rarely are all 5 booked. For the right person (no pets) who enjoys living at cool places and using the studio as a home base, this has worked out great. Again, no hard drugs — that's a firm rule — but you can absolutely have a social life and have friends visit and stay, as long as it's cleared first. For example: "I have a second date coming over" — sure, just make sure the other consenting adult doesn't do hard drugs.
Heck, if you want to really get to know someone you're thinking about dating, we can run a background check for you, as we already pay for a monthly service and can do way more than we currently use. It's sad, but you have to protect yourself from bad people of both genders who may try to take advantage of you.
You will need a vehicle to travel between properties, but all locations are within 15 minutes or less of each other.
⚠️ Important Details
This is a flexible, part-time role, not full-time employment
You must have another source of income or trade to cover personal expenses such as food, cell phone, and other bills
We seek someone trustworthy, reliable, and transparent
Good communication skills and the ability to work independently and with a team are essential
Enjoy country living with great perks, outdoor recreation, and entertainment amenities while having your housing costs taken care of through your work. If you're interested, please contact us with your experience and background.
💬 Please Talk About Yourself :)
Can you give an example of a time when you solved an unexpected problem in a previous job or while caring for a property or home?
Are you comfortable being the main point of contact and "eyes on the property" when the owners are away?
How would you handle emergencies (e.g., storm damage, plumbing leaks)?
How long do you intend to stay in this arrangement?
Would you be willing to provide references from previous landlords or employers?
What interests you about a live-in caretaker position?
What will your source of income be for phone, food, etc., since this is just an average of 38 hours a month to cover rent, electric, and water?
7 out of 10 responses say "I am interested" and will not get a response. Ask any questions you have too, but PLEASE give us information and then we can have a phone call. We don't need a resume, but ideally both an intro letter and resume. We at least need an intro letter — we are not responding to "I'm interested." We tried to give a lot of info on the position and we want someone with good communication to INTRODUCE themselves and ask any questions they want, but someone who can communicate in writing. If this ad is still up, the position is open. Will delete the minute we fill.
📅 Hours Breakdown
To be clear: approximately 38 hours A MONTH, not a week — which we feel is a fair exchange for rent and property access, for someone WITH AN ALTERNATE SOURCE OF INCOME. Since we want this to be year-round, we are structuring this as 457 hours a year:
🌞 May–Sept (busy season): 49 hours a month
🍂 April, Oct, Nov, Dec: 37 hours a month
❄️ Jan, Feb, March (slowest): only 16 hours a month — so little to do, a great time for you to visit friends, family, or take a vacation
We can be a little flexible about hours between months — this is just an average to fit with our guest calendar. Extra hours will be paid of course, but YOU MUST HAVE SOME OTHER SOURCE OF INCOME. Hope this makes it more clear that we are looking for year-long help who can also enjoy the homes and amenities.
All 5 vacation rentals are close together and all in Rockbridge County, VA — but MUST HAVE VEHICLE.
🚐 Camper/Trailer Option
We also have a beautiful space for a camper or trailer — it would be rustic (looking into running power). You could still enjoy the 5 properties when not booked with guests, which is a lot of the time, and we could look into a gym membership for showering. A porta-potty is only $85 a month and they will empty and clean it once a week — and if it works out, we could get gravel and run power to the spot as well. On FB Workcamper groups, a lot of people have campers, so we're interested in exploring the idea of turning a couple-acre area with hundreds of feet on a pretty creek — where we already have an outbuilding — into a camping spot.
However, if you don't have a camper, the studio serves as a permanent home base with a shower and space for your belongings — though we're hoping for someone who appreciates creek and river access, mountain views, acres to explore, a pool, pool tables, hot tubs, a flat top oven, a 75-inch TV, etc., and who will be not just a caretaker but a true appreciator and enjoyer of these properties.
👤 Who We're Looking For
420 friendly but no hard drugs or drama. Prefer a single applicant with carpentry and at least light plumbing and electrical skills — a jack-of-all-trades type who wouldn't mind helping out when busy with cleaning, but whose talents are better used elsewhere. That said, since two people have now flaked on showing up, we're open to anyone — or even a couple — but they must be able to handle landscaping and at least be willing to learn basic light repairs. Also, the studio is near a road — and as much as we love dogs, with the studio being your home base and the rental properties needing to stay clean, a pet is not ideal.
📝 IMPORTANT — Please Introduce Yourself
Please introduce yourself: where you are from, what you drive, your skills, past jobs and experiences, when you could start, when you could meet, where you are located now, hobbies, where family or friends you visit yearly live, what your additional source of income is, etc. So many people say "I'm interested" — please say more. Send a direct message, feel free to ask questions, but please introduce yourself in depth.
Thanks for reading and taking your time responding. Written communication is important to us.
Thanks for reading the whole post and answering in detail — mention this part as well to set yourself apart. 🙂
ONE MORE TIME — PLEASE RESPOND WITH A DETAILED INTRO AND THEN LET'S TALK 🙂 on the phone ASAP. Then we want ID and references and to fill this ASAP. We are looking for someone great AND someone great at communication and details.
Did you read all the way to the very end? Great. Thank you — respond in detail and mention this part too. :)