Seen today:
Photo of a sofa with what appears to be a duvet thrown over it in a haphazard fashion, with a stuffed toy on it.
A kitchen sink and washing machine.
A sunset (which seems not to relate to the home or surrounding area).
I’ve noticed people like their sunsets on THS @Happypets 
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They do, indeed.
Today’s offerings
*A bookcase
*A green hill
*A corridor ( followed by 2 more photos of the corridor and no photo at all of the bed available for the sitter just a partially open door to the bedroom giving only a sliver of a glimpse into the room)
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@Silversitters I’ll add to your list:
- a messy kitchen counter in the foreground
- a hastily made bed
but I’d be very happy with the listings showing a pool as the cover photo
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I saw one of those today …BUT…the listing says two paying guests will be staying in the home while the sitter is there .
To quote “ they won’t look after the dogs but will simply use the kitchen “ and then states “you won’t need to do anything for them” !!! Previous reviews says “expect lodgers” !!!
haha! I actually appreciate photos of cluttered and messy homes because it tells me everything I need to know…NEXT!! lol
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Totally against THS rules and should be reported!
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I thought the same about a sofa bed. My first thought was that it was a strange choice choice but then I thought it was very honest and couldn’t be more upfront. That way if you don’t want that sleeping arrangement you can move on and not waste your time.
Today’s special includes:
- two closeups of garage doors. They seem to be getting popular.
-closeup of an untidy beed. - closeup of a shelf with a few bowls and dishes. It reminds me of a studio Airbnb where you have just a few dishes in a corner.
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I prefer they show the mess, so I can move on the next listing.
I did a sit recently where the main pic was a shower head. It turned out to be one of the best sits ever, and the house itself was beautiful, sweetest dog too. The HO was confused as to the applications had been so low. Fortunately, it has now been changed.
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That’s great and it proves you can’t trust appearances.
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You can’t know for sure based on pictures or anything else info wise, yet all sitters have to decide what to apply for based on what info is available. And some sitters are open to more risks and murkiness. That’s up to each sitter, of course.
Personally, I’d rather miss a good sit based on a false negative than risk a bad sit by ignoring warning signs or talking myself into something. That’s because to me sitting is icing and I’m not interested in bad icing. So far, so good, 18 sits in. I’ve had overwhelmingly great sits.
I completely agree. I also sit as a hobby so I only apply to sits that I think I can enjoy but I am retired and have lots of time to read the listing thoroughly so the cover pictures rarely prevent me from looking further; the one with a room falling apart did.
I would differentiate between pictures which tell everything I need to know like dirty or cluttered rooms, aggressive looking dogs, a cat posing on top of a toaster… and others like the shower head that @strawberryjen mentioned, which may only mean inexperience or lack of attention. Of course that lack of attention could be representative of a more general style but if there are more points of interest for me in the place and dates, I would continue looking at the rest of the pictures and read the whole listing to find if I can see a pattern or a get a good feeling. There are still a few steps before committing where I can find out most of the relevant information I need.
I sometimes need to tell myself that opening up a bit can give way to great experiences, some frustration too but I think the key is to be aware of that possibility and be prepared to deal with it.
You’re absolutely right. The shower head as the first pic was lack of attention and the HO was completely unaware that this was the case! Subsequent pics revealed a beautiful house and garden, and sweet dog. Fortunately, the dates and location suited me very well which is why I clicked on the sit to explore further. I’m glad I did. It resulted in an amazing experience and new friendship with the homeowner
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Good point!
It’s like when you see a real estate listing of a house with “stuff” all over the place, unmade beds, etc. Makes me wonder if they could ask $100k more if they just cleaned their house.
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