Any HO who treats me like a housekeeper will not get an application from me.
A simple “leave it as you find it” is enough along with some information as to what products can be used on special surfaces and where the vacuum and mop is is enough.
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You see - I can’t just “leave it as you find it” when it is not clean…plus I can’t live for almost a week in not properly clean place, i need to clean it first for me! But yeah it is annoying I feel like i am a free proper cleaner… 
That’s something generally you’ll have to deal with, because clean is subjective and people have varying standards. Like I’m cleaner and neater than many folks, but I know that and I just deal when I go on sits. In those cases, I just want to avoid gross (also subjective).
So far, I’ve had only one such sit. In that case, I laid paper towels or garbage bags over various surfaces that would’ve required such extensive cleaning and industrial solvents that I would’ve damaged furniture while trying to clean built up grime.
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I never assume what is obvious to one is to the other, As a homeowner, I make my expectations clear in my profile or interview since sitters do not get the detailed welcome manual until after they accepted the sit.
In Europe, it is rare for a home to have a dryer, so as a homeowner I ask them to strip the bed and leave everything that is dirty in the hamper. Even with an early morning departure, that is not a big ask. As a sitter, I share my departure time and communicate about laundry proactively.
As for general cleaning. I’ve found that sitters usually leave it spotless like I do for them, but what is “clean” for one isn’t for another. Although I ask to leave it clean, my expectations aren’t that high!
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I actually don’t know anybody who doesn’t have a dryer.
This might apply for Eastern Countries, France, Italy or Spain but certainly not for Germany.
In the parts of Europe I live and do housesits, most households have a dryer. I also don’t know homes without a dryer. Maybe little studios? But even they can have a shared dryer in f.e. the basement.
Or in parts of Europa where it always is good weather?
I sat a flat in London without a dryer. Some places don’t have them, because of space. Some because dryers take a lot of electricity. And some places just out of practice. In my experience, a good number of places in Asia just have washers. People are used to hanging their laundry dry.
There does seem to be an assumption on here that all homes have a dryer. I’m in the UK, I dont have one. In summer/good weather I have an outdoor washing line. For the other 48 weeks of the year*, I have an indoor airer. (*Spot the obligatory British weather joke.)
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Same here @Ketch - no dryer for this Brit either 
I was only talking about Germany and here I don’t know anybody who doesn’t have a dryer.
On a short sit sorry but I’m not a paid cleaner happened to me just recently I had to eat out or not use your cooker.I’m not going to clean up your mess. On a longer sit probably have to .but why should I have to.I’m not talking about excessive clean but basic wipe down your cooker when your finished not to leave it til it’s covered in grease and mess.
I don’t have a dryer. I have access to the common laundry room of our owners’ association where there are industrial-strength laundry machines and several different dryers. This is quite normal in Sweden.
Edit: Sorry if this information was so unwelcome, but we cannot delete messages anymore
I was talking about Germany. I don’t know why this needs to be flagged, but probably will be again.
@pietkuip
Ooh, a tvättstuga 
I have come across them on my sits in Sweden.
I’m from Germany and now live in Ireland and I have never owned a dryer. The people I know in Germany don’t own one either. I don’t like using them and prefer to hang up my washing to dry.
@Pawtastic I did not flag anything, but you seemed to be a bit irritated in that message. So it was probably the tone police.
We leave hard copy manuals for all appliances for sitters reference.
It’s been raining constantly during my current sit, in Glasgow. The outdoor clothesline is not usable, because of that. There’s a foldable rack for drying, but it ends up in the middle of limited living space. And you can dry only so much, so fast.
It would be nice to have a dryer now, especially since I pack limited clothing while traveling. I’ll make do, but as an American who normally has access to a dryer, this is an inconvenience that I wouldn’t put up with wherever I lived permanently.
It’s hard for folks who are used to conveniences to imagine not having them. I like having clean, dry socks, for instance. And I have a pair of thick, fleece-lined pants that will take awhile to dry at this rate. I was traveling for a stretch before I arrived at my sit, so I came needing to wash (and dry) my clothes.
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Welcome to Scotland, the home of rain! 
Owning a tumble dryer in the UK is really quite a rare occurrence… I don’t think I know anyone who uses one and my entire extended family live in Scotland! Most of us hang our clothes outside on a line, or inside on an airer during the winter. It’s free, and it’s better for the environment too, so win-win.
If your HOs have such a thing as an ‘airing cupboard’ (a place where an immersion boiler for hot water and heating lives), this will be a good place to hang things and have them dry faster. If you use coat hangers, you can suspend them from any shelving.
Good luck and fingers crossed that the weather gets a bit less dreich for you. 
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I think it is weird that so many folk in Scotland do not have tumble dryers especially when it rains about 80% of the year!
I couldn’t believe that a member of our family had a complete kitchen overhaul and still did not have a dryer fitted. Amazes me every winter to see airers everywhere and sheets hanging over doors! To me the damage damp washing does to the house negates the cost of running a tumble dryer.
No matter how many times we mention it to family in Scotland they are adamant that they don’t need one and they are too expensive to run!
We are quite careful now to check sits for the presence of a dryer!
@Maggie8K is there an airing cupboard (normally where the hot water tank is if they don’t have a combi boiler)? Warmest place to dry out your socks is on the tank if they have one.
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To me the damage damp washing does to the house negates the cost of running a tumble dryer.
If you don’t have the central heating set at a decent temperature, indoor laundry can create a world of problems. If you do have the heating on, a bit of laundry can actually help to stop the air from becoming too dry. I get terrible winter rosacea, triggered by central heating, but if the humidity is balanced out, it makes a massive difference.