First buy lots of baskets or plastic boxes or whatever goes with your decorating style. Then consider what is the minimum you can get away with. Quentin Crisp famously said that you don't notice the dust after four years, but I've never been quite that brave. You also need to do a bit more if your mother (or his mother) is likely to drop in unannounced.

"The dust makes a nice velvety effect" - seems I said this thirty years ago and it's become a family saying in the house I said it in.It's at least as good a motto as Shirley Conran's "Life's too short to stuff a mushroom"

Washing up

Rinse crocks as you use them, stick them in the dishwasher or a large basket until you've got enough for a load. Do not dry them. Cloths spread germs. Wash in hot water and leave to drain.

Washing

2 large laundry baskets. One for light colours and one for dark. Wash when you have a load In the middle of the night may be cheaper, but don't wake the neighbours. Or take to the laundrette while you're shopping (if there is one: they're getting scarcer) and get them to do a service wash.

Ironing

Don't iron anything that doesn't show, unless it soothes you while you're watching soaps, in which case invest in a long lead and take your ironing outside in fine weather. Fold things and put them in lavender scented drawers

All socks go into one basket and everyone gets their own out. If they want to go out wearing one green and one orange sock, that's OK. Men should only have black dress socks and white sports socks , anyway.Same system for knickers and T shirts
(Or live near a Chinese laundry)

Dusting

The owner of the knick-knacks dusts them. This includes sports trophies. Small children like metal polishing. Big children don't.

Vacuuming

Anyone big enough to push the vacuum cleaner can push it round their room. A carpet sweeper is good in living rooms where you have toddlers Do not have pets that shed hair - or any other sort: aquaria and aviaries smell very quickly. Have houseplants if you think the bother's worth it - I do. Public rooms are the responsibility of the person with the lowest dirt tolerance. A house should be as clean as the family that lives in it want it to be

Cooking

Not every meal every day. However, there are few pleasures greater than having a grown up child cook for you. So organise some group sessions when you've got the energy. Fast food does not mean junk food.The cook does not wash up unless it's a meal for one.

Clearing up

One big toy box/basket into which EVERYTHING goes every night. Children who play in their rooms need separate baskets. If you're big enough to get it out, you're big enough to put it back.

Health?

Sometimes you have to disinfect the bathroom and the kitchen sink, but modern cleaning products are pretty good. Another good rule is that people only use the shower, unless they clean the bath after them ¹