Alpha Living

I used this service again around the holidays and on the day of the appointment no one showed up! I called them and emailed them 20 times with no response.

I used/​tried to use Alpha Living Green Cleaning twice now.
The first time was several years ago and their employee was THREE hours late, and then barely stayed the 2 hours I had booked for the cleaning appointment. The man in the main office said she was coming from downtown via subway to my UES apartment, and that is why she was so late. It does not take three hours to get even from Battery Park to the Bronx, let alone UES. It was an excuse.
Once the employee did finally arrive, she did an okay job. I wouldn’t say it was anything beyond «okay».
Currently, I have been waiting four hours for someone to arrive from Alpha Living. I am not just assuming they are not coming. They have an «hour and a half» travel time allowance, but they are still beyond that at this point. I am wasting my entire day, sitting around, waiting for this service.
I have tried calling their main office 8 times now. No one is answering and their voice mailbox is full. I have sent an e-​mail but doubt I will get a response.
DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE!!!
Update: No one ever showed. I ended up calling my credit card company and placing a hold on the funds they charged. The credit card company was never able to reach AL either and my money was refunded by the credit card company.

Do not use this cleaning service. They require pre-​payment, but have a 75% no-​show rate with me so far. I keep booking to try to use the money I’ve Already paid them. Their staff is pleasant but does not do a good job unless I’m right there to watch them. They broke a delicate little candle holder when trying to dust over it instead of trying to pick it up to move it out of the way. They have discounted rates, but the amount of time spent calling them for poor service makes it a bad deal. If they no-​show again, I’m going to get a refund and will never use them again. I hope I can get my money back! I don’t know if this is a badly run business or an irritating scam. All I can say is what goes around, comes around … Do not use them.

DO NOT USE THEM!
I read some poor reviews and decided to give it a shot anyway since they were so cheap. I should have read a few more.
THE CLEANER NEVER SHOWED UP! I have tried to contact the company for the past 4 weeks to get my money refunded without success. When I email, it bounces back because their inbox is apparently full. For three weeks. When I call, it goes to voicemail or I get a message saying «that number is not accepting calls at this time.» A second number they provide is not even in service. They have not returned my messages.
DO NOT DO IT!

Terrible!!! My fiancé booked a cleaning for our apartment the morning before Thanksgiving. They never showed, and didn’t tell us they weren’t going to show so it wasn’t until we arrived home late at night that we noticed nobody came. We sent an email upon arriving home asking for a refund and they still haven’t responded, and aren’t answering their phones. Lesson learned — read all of the reviews first!

DO NOT ENGAGE WITH THIS BUSINESS!
They never showed up, cancelled the appointment late and never got back to me when I tried to reschedule or get a refund. IT’s A SCAM! Groupon should not sell their deals, please don’t purchase.

My usual cleaning lady was away this summer so I bought a package with Alpha Living Cleaning services. I purchased 12 hours of cleaning and have only used 2. Here’s why:
1. The first appointment I made when booking the package was at 8am on a Saturday morning. the woman showed up at 6am. Two hours early and the doorman would not allow her up as my building does not permit cleaning to take place before 8am on the weekends… which is why I made the appointment at 8am in the first place.
2. Since that appointment I tried multiple times to call and email for an appointment. I tried various numbers that they have including the one that was used to book the package. I literally left about ten voicemails over 3 weeks time. no one EVER called me back!!! FINALLY– I got an appointment. Two months later. I arranged to have my dog out of the apartment for the day and came back and the woman never showed! No call. no email. Nothing. I have since tried calling and left multiple times to ask what happened and reschedule. no response.
The place is a scam — save your money.

WHY DIDN’T I READ ALL OF THESE REVIEWS FIRST! UGGHHH!!! Just say NO to Alpha Cleaning. I could be really angry right now but I’m going to just breathe through this nonsense. My cleaner Harriet was very good, but sadly the «business» side of this business is so poorly run that I just can’t.
I wasn’t sure what my groupon voucher covered in terms of hours so I called to see how many hours I paid for. They said 4 hours. Well, Harriet was over an hour late so we didn’t have four hours so I simply asked him if we could use 3 of the 4 hours and I would use the other hour another time. He said fine.
One day later I receive an email that my cleaner worked «an extra two hours» and that I would be billed as such. WHAT!!! I called the next day and the gentleman proceeded to tell me that I was wrong and that he told me I only paid for two hours. His tone was so defensive and rude that I decided not to engage any further. But I reminded him that she only worked three hours in the first place and that I would not be paying for four. Now I’ll be receiving a bill for the «extra» hour which is the same price as the whole cleaning by the way. Ridiculous. I should have read the reviews.

Headline: Cleaner never showed; phone numbers are useless and addresses are defunct. Please stay away.
I should copy and paste Aman’s and Hal’s (and other) reviews. I was tempted by multiple email promotions with what seemed like a really good deal. The cleaner did not show up on the appointed day. I left a message; no response. I called a few days later and got someone. Apologies for no one showing up (and for not calling me earlier because they had their annual retreat) and promises to look into the matter were given. There was no response a week later. I called and left a message asking to forget about rescheduling for a refund (instead of a rescheduling). There was no response. Three days later I called again and reached someone. He said the refund had been processed on their end. No funds in my account a week later. I then began a «calling every day, several times a day» campaign. I reached someone on the third day. He very calmly explained that the credit card vendor they use is very slow and that I shouldn’t worry. Besides, he says, I’m not the only one waiting on a refund. I feel uneasy but I say okay. He also says he will send an email verifying that they’ve processed the refund on their end. Dear Unilocal readers, I think you get the point. I also want to highlight that I went to the Broad Street address and the Varick Street address looking to get my money. Moved out under mysterious circumstances at both addresses. I am disputing the original charge with my bank. I am thinking of other ways I can report them as well.

Cleaner never showed up. tried calling no answer on their phone either.
After 1 week no response from email either.

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY.
That’s the quick takeaway. The more detailed story, though, follows. I booked Alpha Living using one of their many coupons (they send them seemingly weekly). I figured that $ 99 for 3 two-​hour cleanings was a great deal, and I didn’t set my expectations high. Admittedly, had I read the other reviews, I wouldn’t have used them. But this one time that I forgot to check Unilocal.The cleaner came on time, and she did a pretty mediocre job. It took her an hour and fifteen minutes, but still, for $ 33, I felt it was a good use of money. The next time another coupon came out, I bought it.
I then scheduled another cleaning after a sublettor stayed in our apartment. The cleaner showed up, but seemingly did nothing. When I returned to our apartment, it looked terrible — surfaces unwiped, floors not swept or vacuumed, trash not taken out. Basically, all the things you expect a cleaner to do, weren’t done. I called Alpha Living and no one ever answered. I left messages. I emailed. Finally, someone returned my call. I believe this person is named Abe Lewis, but his emails are always signed «AL» (which may just stand for «Alpha Living»), and his name is hard to discern on voicemail (I suspect that this is for legal reasons, given the number of people that Alpha Living has presumably screwed over). In any case, he was nice on the phone, and he apologized, but only after giving several excuses (e.g., «everyone has a bad day»). To make up for the crappy service, he offered to schedule another cleaning free of charge. The date comes around, and the cleaner fails to show. I email, I call, nothing. Finally, 6 hours later, I get a call from «AL» saying that he has no idea what happened, but the cleaner just wasn’t dispatched. Again, he offers to reschedule this cleaning. At this point, I told him to just refund my coupons ($ 204 worth) and we could both go about our business. He told me he would absolutely do that, and he again apologized.
A week went by. I didn’t receive any refund.
Another week went by. I still didn’t receive my refund. So, I emailed him and told him a list of things that I would do until I did receive my refund. Number 1 was posting a review on Unilocal. (Number 2 was posting a review on another consumer review site, Number 3 was telling my friends and family and the BBB how awful this company is, and Number 4 was getting a lawyer). I heard from «AL» immediately and he promised my refund in 3 – 5 business days. That was 14 days ago.
So, if you want terrible cleaning or no cleaning at all, and you want to donate money to a shady business, then definitely give your business to this company. But if you want a clean apartment and dependable service, then look elsewhere.

DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE, THE CLEANING PERSON STOLE FROM US.
My cleaning person, arrived early, without calling. She did a mediocre job at best. While she was in my apartment she told me if I needed someone to come back and clean I should call her directly, (I read on the co’s website it’s illegal to use the cleaners w/​o going through the service) While she was in my apartment she told me the owner isn’t paying their people and he got kicked out of his space on Broad street. He was asking her to work all day Saturday and Sunday. Okay, that’s not good news.
I had to leave my apartment for an hour while she was cleaning. I booked a 3 hour apartment, she only stayed for two hours. I gave her a tip because I felt bad. An hour after she left I got showered and dressed and went to put on my earrings. They weren’t on the tray I keep them on. I looked around thinking maybe I had moved them. No where. They were the earrings my father, who passed away earlier this year gave me. I wear, or should I say, wore them every day. I called her to ask if she had seen them while she was cleaning, she said no I didn’t clean over there — over there, how did she know where over there was? She then said call back «if you find them». We both know that won’t be happening.
My husband arrived home that evening from a business trip. We quickly remembered the emergency money we leave hidden in one of his drawers. Gone, the rubber band that was holding the money was lying at the bottom of the drawer empty.
In addition to being on my hands and knees after she left cleaning up after her, putting away the vacuum and swifer as if I worked for her. I tipped her. What an idiot I was. Not a bad day a pair of 18K gold earrings, $ 500 in cash and a tip.
We filed a police report in hopes we can claim some of it to insurance. I called the co have yet to hear back.
If anyone files a class action suit I’m in.

Have to sue them in small claims court.
Started with an online booking. They called to confirm the time and place a week before. 11pm the night before they are going to come, the email confirmation says 90 minutes earlier than previously set (8:30am instead of 10 on a Saturday morning). The woman shows up at 8.
Like many of the other reviews, poor time management and she didn’t get to everything (we bought 4 hours, she should be able to clean a medium sized 2 bedroom in 4 hours). She worked hard so I even gave her a tip for her troubles.
Then we noticed the damage. She broke a custom made gift we received as a wedding gift and just put it in the corner out of sight. While she was cleaning our kitchen, she cut herself. I offered her bandaids which she said were unnecessary. Well, the blood she left on our shower curtains said otherwise. Then, when we used the vacuum the following week, we noticed that she had sucked a sock into the machine and just kept going until one of the belts on the machine broke.
I called the company to hash it out. They said that they would file a claim with their insurance company. Fine. Two weeks. Three weeks. After a month, I call for an update. They say the claim is ready and the check will be mailed out. After six weeks I called them back, and the manager refused to speak with me, saying that I would need to take him to court.
You think it is a bargain, but when you have $ 500 in damage, it just isn’t worth it.

Can I give them zero stars? No? Alas, one it is…
Terrible customer service, mediocre cleaning, and ridiculous manipulation of the legions of Lifebooker customers who think they’re scoring a great deal. Avoid it like the Bubonic.

This «service» is absolutely horrible! I ordered three 2-​hr cleaning service vouchers from
. For the first experience the woman, though nice as can be, was OVER an hour late (they ask you to allow for1hr after your slotted time). She even admitted to getting on the subway at 10am in the Bronx when my appointment was set for 10am in Queens! Though she did a ok job, I wasn’t all too impressed with it and would have done a much better job myself. It definitely wasn’t worth the money spent.
The second experience happened two days ago. After scheduling my appointment online and getting all of the confirmation emails I sat around waiting for TWO HOURS for a cleaning person who never arrived! No phone call, no email, no notification of any sort to explain why. I called the company and was directed to a voice mail where I stated my unhappiness and demanded a call back. It has been two days since then and I still have not received
If you’re reading this please overlook the few positive reviews. I assure you that they are just a few sporadic exceptions. This cleaning service is a nightmare and the company should go out of business. There are way too many competitors out there who are much better for this company to survive.

My experiences were somewhat similar to Jennifer C’s but perhaps they are reading these reviews and trying to fix their seemingly horrible service.
I booked online and I used my lifebooker loot coupon. I called to confirm my appt 2 days prior and a person did pick up the phone (had to call twice in a row) who confirmed. Alyssa showed up about 30min EARLY. She was pleasant and looked professional. She asked me what to start with. I told her to start with the kitchen. I also told her to clean ALL ROOMS except one of the two bedrooms. And my bf and I do not live in a terribly huge apartment. She agreed.
Cleaning:
She did a decent job — I still see some pet hair in places but wiped everything down pretty well, scrubbed the bathroom nicely and even got out some of these hard-​to-​get-​out stains on our flooring. Like another reviewer said, paper towels were NOT requested as one of the supplies we needed to have on-​hand. I had to make a run out to the pharmacy to buy 2 rolls. Annoying but ugh, whatever. I needed them anyway.
Organization:
Minus 1 star. Disappointing. She moved things out of the way to clean which is the right way to go but didn’t put anything back. I’m ok with piling in a neat corner but there are certain items that should be put back, like our box of dog toys, dog dishes and other items that are still stacked on top of our dog cage. She left some big items in the middle of the bathroom floor.
Time Management:
Minus 1 star. She did not touch the bedroom one bit, due to time. I understand, in so far as she did have another appointment to make and the 3 hours I purchased was just that-​3 hours. However, at the outset she said no problem when I told her the rooms to clean. To leave an entire room untouched was puzzling to me. She said she can come back next time to finish it off. I wasn’t sure if that meant for free… or not.
Service:
I called up the service right after Alyssa left and explained that an entire room was left uncleaned though she did an acceptable job everywhere else. The lady on the phone was very accommodating and understood the situation and offered me a complimentary 1-​hour credit, at which point I booked my 1-​hour the following Saturday without trouble. I VERY MUCH APPRECIATED THIS and only wished this level of service was extended to everyone else who had problems.
Overall I thought Alpha was good not great. Clearly there are things they need to do — like manage expectations. I would maybe use them again but we’ll see next Saturday.

I was happy when I had my first service although the assigned employee came almost one hour late. That was not a big deal and she did a very good job. I made another appointment online. The same employee came 1 hour late but this time she wasn’t able to clean due to Kitten phobia.
That is understandable, so I called the company and asked a replacement. I had it schedule for the next day. Next day, very patiently I waited one hour to call Alpha Living confirming the service. The attendant said they could not contact the professional and didn’t provide a solution. Disappointing. I opted to schedule for the next day and had a bad cleaning service. I do not recommend.

Very disappointing. 2 hours of cleaning and she only cleaned the kitchen (which is about 20 sq ft). I should have stayed and watched her, this was not a dirty kitchen to start with.
I would not recommend this service.

I feel bad writing a negative review when the poor woman who cleaned our house was so nice, but this company should not be supported.
I had signed up for the 4:00 slot and when they called to confirm the appointment yesterday, they changed it to 5:00. I was fine with this since an hour didn’t really make a difference. Today the cleaning lady called at 5:15 to tell me that she was on her way she said that she was lost in Kew Gardens and needed help getting to me. I proceeded to give her directions to our house via car. She told me that she was taking the subway, (she had to carry all of the cleaning supplies). I was surprised by this as most cleaning companies provide a car. We live in Bayside which is not on a subway line so I felt horrible telling her that she would have to take the subway to Woodside or Penn Station to catch the LIRR to Bayside. She finally arrived here at 8:30, 3.5 hours past the «start» time.
The woman was nice but exhausted and showed me her schedule from the day. Alpha Living had her start in Jackson Heights, then go to Ridgewood, next to Kew Gardens, and ending up in Bayside. These neighborhoods aren’t too far from each other mileage wise, but when your carrying heavy cleaning supplies and taking the subway these areas don’t make sense. Alpha Living should do a better job at organizing the routes and provide the cleaners a GPS or a map at the least. This woman lived in the Bronx and really didn’t know her way around Queens. She just left and the place looks great but it’s 10:30 pm! Talk about a thankless job at under $ 10. I am going to really do my research next time if I decide to hire a cleaning service.
Lastly, I don’t think that they’re really using «green» cleaning products. Everything that she used to clean with was in clear generic bottles. Having worked at a health food store in the past I have become a user on natural supplies.

DO NOT USE THIS CLEANING SERVICE EVER!!! I purchased a $ 100 certificate through lifebooker that was supposed to be good for a THREE hour cleaning service worth $ 180. The day I was supposed to have the cleaning, the woman was supposed to show up at 8am. She called at 8:10 am and said she was having car trouble and would be there by 9am. 9:15 she called again and was having a «hard time finding parking». 9:30 called again she had the wrong # and what apt did I live in, b/​c she had #112. I know I gave them the right # which was 114. 9:50 she calls again and realized she was on EAST 74^th and I live on West 74^th and could I reschedule for 1pm??? These repeated phone calls all happened while I was on a conference call with my boss from 9 — 10am (when she was supposed to arrive at 8am) and a colleague in china so that made it extra special.
I called the manager and they begged to me to reschedule with a different person for the next day. The next am she did show up early and that’s about the only positive thing I could say. I got home expecting to find a clean and sparkly apartment since I live in a 500 sq foot one bedroom. SHE DID NOT EVEN SET FOOT IN THE KITCHEN! Did not even wipe the counters down, the stove was dirty, the dirty dishes were in the sink, She did not VACUUM my bedroom, empty my wastebaskets. The fact that she didn’t make my bed was the least of my worries. This was supposed to be a $ 180 service and I tipped her $ 25 and they don’t TOUCH your kitchen??? What kind of «proffessional cleaning service» is that???