live-in housekeepers, carers and summer-house staff
In Santander and along the Cantabrian coast we work with live-in posts only: housekeepers, carers, nannies and couples who live at the house, all twelve months or from June to September. In-depth interviews, references checked with previous employers and first profiles in under 3 hours.
Placement agency licensed by the SNE, no. 1300000318
4.8 · 79 Google reviews
One-off fee · 6-month guarantee
DOMESTIC STAFF IN SANTANDER
Live-in housekeepers, carers and summer-house staff across Cantabria
Santander is a city of settled families and homes with a history: the villas of El Sardinero that started as summer houses and are now lived in all year, the detached houses with gardens in Valdenoja, the stately apartments of Puertochico and the Paseo de Pereda. In these homes household staff stay for years, with one person who knows the house and the family and who, very often, ends up caring for the grandparents too.
Here we select live-in staff only, the people who live at the house: the live-in housekeeper for the larger homes, the carer who moves in with elderly parents so they never have to leave the flat overlooking the bay, the live-in nanny and the couple who take on house and garden. From June, seasonal staff for the houses in Comillas, Suances, Somo and Noja join the list, for Cantabrian families and for those arriving from Madrid. Live-out and hourly work we don't cover in Cantabria.
At Maids & Co we help Santander families find that person through in-depth interviews and direct reference checks with previous employers. Before we put anyone forward we have a clear picture of how the house works. How many people live there, whether there are elderly relatives, whether there is a garden and a garage, and which months of the year the family is in residence. We present only candidates who fit, and we support you through the contract, the registration and the first weeks.
We work Cantabria from our Madrid head office: that is where we interview candidates and where we introduce the shortlist to you, before anyone moves north. And here the calendar sets the pace: the decision is best taken before the season starts, not in September when the house is already shut. The first profiles reach your portal in under 3 hours and very specific ones can take up to 48 hours; the follow-up during the six-month guarantee is the same as in any other city.
We work on success: you only pay if you hire.No cost until the selection is complete. Replacement guarantee included.
Live-in staff in Santander and along the Cantabrian coast
El Sardinero
Valdenoja
Puertochico
Pedreña
Somo
Comillas
Suances
Noja
Laredo
Santillana del Mar
Torrelavega
+ all of Cantabria, from Castro Urdiales to San Vicente de la Barquera
AREAS OF SANTANDER
Where we work in Santander
El Sardinero
Former summer villas now lived in all year and apartments overlooking the beaches. Families here ask for a trusted live-in housekeeper for a large home and, very often, a carer for parents who want to keep living by the sea.
Valdenoja
The neighbourhood of detached houses and gardens in the north of the city, between El Sardinero and Mataleñas. Families with children looking for a live-in housekeeper who drives, for the school run and the afternoon activities, in two-storey houses with an attic and a staff room.
Comillas
The grand houses built by returning emigrants — the indianos — and villas beside Gaudí's Capricho that open at Easter and over the summer. Families want staff who prepare the house before they arrive and run it through the season, or a live-in housekeeper who relocates from the city.
Suances
Family homes and detached houses above the La Concha and Los Locos beaches. Second homes for families from Santander, Torrelavega and Madrid who need a seasonal live-in with fixed dates, or the one who already works at the city house and moves out for July and August.
Santander has two rhythms. From October to May the work is that of a capital of resident families: live-in housekeepers for the large homes of El Sardinero and Valdenoja, and carers living with elderly parents in the centre. From June to September the city and the coast fill up: Madrid families opening the house in Comillas, Suances, Somo or Noja, and Santander families moving to their own beach house.
That creates two kinds of role we prepare well in advance: the live-in housekeeper who travels with the family to the summer house, with accommodation and rest days agreed in writing, and the seasonal live-in who opens the house before the family arrives, runs it through the months they are there and closes it in September. The earlier you tell us, the better we choose.
In Cantabria the working language is Spanish. English is requested by some families connected to Banco Santander, the university and the British community that summers here, mainly for nannies; we always ask before proposing anyone.
DOMESTIC COUPLES
Couples and domestic couples in Santander
Cantabria has homes that one person cannot run: Sardinero villas with a garden and garage, the grand houses of Comillas that open at Easter, and homes in Suances lived in only during July and August. For these we select domestic couples, two people who take the staff quarters and divide the work: one side indoors — house, laundry, cooking — and the other outside: garden, pool, cars and the small repairs.
When the house is left alone from October to May, caretakers are what fit: they live there all twelve months, watch for damp and leaks, which on this coast do not forgive, and have it open and warm the day the family comes back.
How you hire domestic staff in Santander with Maids & Co
A clear process from start to finish, with a single point of contact who knows your home.
1
Tell us what you need
A five-minute brief by phone, WhatsApp or the form: duties, schedule, area and salary. We define the exact profile with you.
2
Profiles in under 3 hours
The first matching profiles reach your client portal: in-depth interview done and references checked with their previous employers.
3
Interviews and a 2-day trial
Schedule in-person or video interviews from the portal and, if you wish, try the candidate at home for two days before deciding.
4
Contract and Social Security registration
You only pay when you hire. We advise you on the terms and, if you prefer, our labour team handles the contract and the registration.
WHAT THE FEE INCLUDES
What's included and what we never charge
What's included
Selection with an in-depth interview of every candidate
References verified directly with previous employers
Advice on the contract and Social Security registration
Free replacement during the first 6 months
Support until onboarding, plus your client portal
What we never charge
The search: you pay nothing until you hire
Monthly or sign-up fees
Lock-in or commitment of any kind
FEES & GUARANTEE
One-off fee and a 6-month guarantee
You pay nothing during the search. Only once you take the person on and you're happy do you pay a single fee: the equivalent of one month of the agreed salary, plus VAT. No subscriptions or lock-in.
Other domestic services in SantanderLive-in cooks, housekeepers who run the home, drivers, gardeners and caretaker couples for the grand houses that stand alone through the winter.
COSTS & SALARIES IN SANTANDER
Live-in staff in Santander: salary and monthly cost
Live-in staff in Santander: salary and monthly cost
Type
Market salary (2026)
Estimated total cost
Live-in housekeeper
€1,500 – €2,500/month
+ employer's Social Security (≈ 22%)
Indicative 2026 market figures for Santander based on the current minimum wage (RD 126/2026). The real cost depends on the hours, location and each home's needs. At Maids & Co you pay no agency fee until the selection is complete.
Clients who hire domestic staff with Maids & Co in Santander
★★★★★
“Maids and co is the best agency we have dealt with. We contacted them on Sunday and they replied the same day. We had an initial chat regarding our requirements and after a few days they sent us 3 suitable Curricula. All the candidates were…”
Hiring domestic staff in Santander: what you need to know
We publish a national range of €1,500 to €2,500 gross a month, on top of which come the contributions the family pays. The post costs more when the house is large, when there is an elderly relative to look after and when the contract covers July and August in Comillas or Suances. The closed figure comes with the quote; the calculator gives you the total in advance.
Yes, it is one of the most frequent briefs in El Sardinero, Puertochico and the centre: live-in carers with care qualifications who let parents stay where they have lived for forty years. We call the previous families before putting anyone forward and ask about what matters here: the slopes of El Sardinero with a walking frame, getting to appointments, and holding the routine together when the rest of the family leaves for the beach in August.
Yes. We select both live-in housekeepers who travel with the family from Santander or Madrid and seasonal live-ins who open the house before you arrive and run it until September, with an end date in the contract. It's worth telling us in spring: in June, demand on the Cantabrian coast is concentrated into a few weeks.
A room of her own with an outside window and, in the villas of El Sardinero or the detached houses of Valdenoja, usually a bathroom as well. If the summer house in Comillas or Suances is not the same as the one in the city, we describe both in the job offer: the candidate has to know where she will be living in August before she signs anything.
Every post we cover comes with accommodation: live-in housekeeper, carer, nanny, cook, a housekeeper who runs the home, a couple and caretakers for a grand house or estate, on permanent or seasonal terms. Live-out and hourly work are not part of what we do in Cantabria, and it is better you know before describing the whole job to us.
Yes. Social Security registration is mandatory from the first day, including on a June-to-September contract with an end date, and the family does it as the employer. We help you draft the contract and process the registration; if you prefer, our employment team handles the lot.
We don't have an office in Santander. Cantabria is worked from the Madrid head office, which is where we interview candidates and where we introduce them to you; references are checked by phone with the people who employed them before, and we travel when the house needs seeing. Distance changes nothing about the support during the guarantee.
You will see the first verified profiles in your portal in under 3 hours, and a very particular brief can take up to 48. The Cantabrian pool is small, so we add candidates from elsewhere who are ready to move; which is why, if the start date is June, it pays to begin in spring rather than at the last minute.
Yes, although in Cantabria it is a less common request than in Madrid. We ask which languages are spoken in your home before proposing anyone and never promise a level a candidate doesn't have; if what you need is a native English speaker, we tell you plainly and widen the search to other provinces.
