Expressing expectations to homeowners

Thanks for everyone’s comments. It is interesting to see all the different perspectives and approaches.

Perhaps my question sounded like this is the norm that we’ve encountered…it is not. I trust this is a one-off but it got me wondering how and if other sitters approach this ahead of time.

To be clear, in no way do we expect any HO to leave an immaculately clean home. Life happens, they are busy preparing for their trip, stress of having a stranger in their home, leaving their pets, etc… We are all human and this is someone’s home… I expect it to be lived in!

I agree 100% with everything Gina said…we leave to leave a place tidier out of appreciation for the opportunity and trust placed in us, certainly NOT to make people feel inadequate.

These are all what I believe are common sense and courtesy and I’d never thought to ask if a HO would do these basic tasks. I trusted that TH would send HO as many “get prepared” notices and checklists as they send sitters.

I would never expect a deep clean or a maid, just a basic level of cleanliness and thought into very simple things that would make a sitter’s stay more comfortable and afford them the opportunity to get familiar with the pets. Basically, how one would like to be treated if roles were reversed.

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I’m a relatively new sitter. Currently on my second sit. With both of my sits i have been a bit disappointed with the standard of cleanliness from the HO. I understand that we are entering someone’s home and not a hotel but what exactly should I expect cleanliness wise when doing a sit?

Thanks!

Hello @ek31 I have attached a couple of links you may find helpful to have a read through.

Hi there, I am a brand new HO but have been reading a bit about cleanliness. Some sitters have notes on their profiles about this and it seems that it can be an issue for some. I am interested in seeing what other sitters reply to your question, as it will be helpful as we prepare for our first sitters.

As a home owner, I would make sure all the rooms in the house are properly cleaned/hoovered/dusted just before the arrival of the sitter. I would do a Spring clean and pull out beds/sofas etc, and also make sure that appliances such as fridge/freezer, oven, hob, washing machine etc are in clean condition. If I was staying in an AirBnB or holiday let, I would expect it to be very clean, so I would want the house sitter to have the same experience in my home. I would also make sure that I wash dog beds/blankets etc and mow the lawn/do weeding. I would be so embarrassed if the sitter did not feel we had made an effort. I would hope the sitter would leave my house in the same condition that they found it.

That is my perspective as a house owner :smiling_face:

Kind regards
Tina

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We are homeowners and sitters. We have amended our house sitting profile to read: “We appreciate a clean and organized home.” Hopefully, this will appeal to homeowners who recognize that we will treat their home with respect. Other homeowners who are not so particular about cleanliness will probably be dissuaded from considering us as sitters. So far on our 18 house sits, we have had to deep clean only one house.

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I tend to get a bit of flack for being to “candid/direct” on the forum but I would rather speak up and have an authentic conversation about the sit and have a HO not select me if they don’t like my vibe.

I also come from a place where using THS is a perk for me and my wife both as sitters & HO’s …NOT a necessity.

Cleanliness/ sitter accommodations, pet bevaiour and a balace of our travel interests and sitting expectations are my top 3 topics around which a conversation will develope.

As a HO on THS, I am eager to discuss our lovely home, our love of a kitty Ollie and what we are likely to do to welcome a sitter.
I want the sitter to discuss things with me for their’s and our sakes.

Honestly…there are some listing where I don’t get through all the photos or responsibilities before I move on. I start with location…then responsibilities then go to photos before I read the listing.

I just secured my second sit today and I can’t wait to meet the family and care for their kitties and home.

I start my first later tonight for 10 days and the family and pup are delightful and I can’t wait for them to go on their vaca with peace of mind.

Reading the many forum posts has helped inform me on how best to apply for sits and how best to be HO.

And I am still learning.

Ps: I’m all about accurate and fair reviews too…and they should be blind.

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Couldn’t have said it better myself.
We are stepping into others shoes, looking after their possessions, looking after their pets. It’s an opportunity to live a different life for a time. And a love it. Tiny, small, large, gigantic. Simple or luxurious. I embrace the chance to experience their life for a moment.
This way of life has opened my eyes to life.

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@Amparo couldn’t have said it better if I had written it myself, exactly how I go about sits :+1:

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Thank you @tina.boon1978 for ensuring your sitters will be comfortable in your home. I see you already have 1 applicant. All the best.

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As sitters, I have noted in our profile that we enjoy an “orderly” environment and so far we have been extremely lucky. We’ve never arrived at a house sit that I would describe as needing elbow grease. We always leave the homes spotless. I may have a different perspective on some of the other comments - I have often thought of cleaning things in a home that weren’t perhaps up to my standards of cleanliness but I haven’t, as I don’t want to embarrass the homeowners. I think once have I cleaned a microwave that hadn’t been cleaned for some time. I leave the home up to the same cleanliness that it was when I arrived.

Just wanted to pop in with my view as a homeowner. I would hope that most people would take the hint when you say that you yourself are a clean and organized person, that you like a clean environment, etc. It’s sad that there are people who leave behind a dirty house for a sitter!

I can’t imagine leaving anything less than a very clean house for a sitter, and although I would hope that a sitter would make some effort to keep it clean while we’re away, I know it’s not as easy to clean a house when you’re not familiar with all of its nooks and crannies and the tools/supplies left for cleaning, so I don’t expect perfection when we return.

On the other hand, I think it’s easy to overlook things when you live with them and see them every day for years, and if anything, I would see it as a learning experience if a sitter cleaned something that I had overlooked. If someone found my microwave dirty enough to require a deep clean, I would be mildly embarrassed, but grateful, and I would definitely add it to my regular cleaning rotation. (In my case, I clean the microwave regularly already, but maybe there’s something else I’m missing that a sitter might notice!)

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As a sitter, I promise you, it is very easy to keep a house clean that’s already well cleaned, even on a 3-4 week sit.

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My requirements/expectations as a HO and sitter are very specific and very real, so clear communication has been essential. To date, it’s all been incredibly straightforward - everything is mentioned up front, in my profile, so if you’re not a super clean person, you can easily skip over me - it’s fine!

My allergic asthma flares in dusty houses, so as a sitter, I make it clear that I need to be in a clean and tidy environment. As a HO, I also make it clear that my house will be left spotlessly clean for the sitter and that I need it to be kept clean for my return. I have a robot vacuum, a regular cylinder vacuum cleaner, and an air purifier… I’m not messing around! :smile:

Luckily, us clean freak types love finding each other! We appreciate a kindred spirit and know that we’re fairly getting and exchanging what we need.

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Our house is NEVER clean due to needing daily vacuuming due to having two large very fluffy dogs. Even if we have just vacuumed, the second people show up and the dogs get excited, it then needs vacuuming again. Plus they go in and out all day bringing in outside dirt and fluff. We do make this clear to sitters. But the house is old and although it’s cleaned it never looks it. Is this what you’re talking about

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I’m always a little suspicious of a pristine house that have dogs living there. Either the HO cleans and nothing else or the dogs are restricted to a room or live in a cage.
I’m looking for clean and tidy but lived in.

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Clean to me means
Counter tops not littered with crumbs and old dried on food debris
Cook top that doesn’t have Thanksgiving grease from years past.
Clean under the toliet seats and bowls and bath sink
Matress and bedding the HO would offer to good friends
And yeah…furniture to relax on that you would not find in an outdoor dog house.

My best friend’s cleanliness standards are not to my own but she makes an effort for me when we are going to visit at her house and she knows that when she’s at my house…I don’t stress about getting messy… (I do tidy up…rather quickly after. A clean home brings me peace)

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When I stay in someone’s home, it’s all about their standards, not mine. I’m stepping into another person’s life and my goal is to manage the pets, house, and plants exactly as the homeowner does.

Before I leave, I make sure that everything is at least as clean as I found it – but their lifestyle is their own, and it’s not my job to correct it. I see my role as being a really good substitute for the homeowner – not serving as their unpaid housecleaner.

I do leave fresh flowers or a colored-pencil portrait of their pet, so they have a nice surprise to come home to.

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Just wondered what’s everyone’s views on homeowners dirty houses? Do you clean or do you leave things dirty? My present sit the house is dirty, kitchen cupboards, cooker hood, microwave, oven and toilet.
My daughter said mum you can’t go into peoples houses and start cleaning them! I obviously don’t agree with this as I can’t use a dirty toilet or a dirty microwave or oven. So obviously have to clean it first. As for the washing machine that’s filthy too and I usually wash the bed linen before I leave a sit.
Interested in what everyone else does?
I also object to the email from the site telling me to clean the HO’s house before I leave! In all the places I’ve sat it would be a lot cleaner than when I arrived

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We usually clean all the areas we need to use @Beetherapy and shut the door on the rest. Rather live in a clean space than worry about offending them. HOs get an email that says they should clean before we sitters arrive so they’ve clearly ignored it! (& yes the one for sitters is annoying) Happy rubber gloves :raised_hands::flushed:

A clean house is really important to me, and I will not apply to any sit where the pictures suggest it might not be. In my experience, pretty much every home we have stayed in was as clean as it looked in the photos, and we have done dozens of sits.

Most of these houses had dogs, often multiple. There was some pet hair of course on furniture,etc…but that is to be expected. And besides a couple of assignments, none of these owners ever seemed too precious about the state of the house, so I never felt a lot of pressure to make sure everything stayed perfect while I was there–and a lot of these houses were really really nice. My husband and I clean really thoroughly before we leave regardless.

There have been a couple of times a house wasn’t quite up to my standards, but it was not super dirty by any means. So cleaning it to my satisfaction wasn’t some huge task nor did it result in the home looking drastically different than it had. If a place was dirty enough that I felt the need to really clean it deeply in order to be comfortable there, I would probably do that and risk ‘offending’ the homeowner rather than live in an environment like that.

When I read about people ending up in homes like this, I am always curious about that and I would be interested in hearing about these experiences. Like I mentioned above, I really look at photos to see if the house seems clean and they are always just as clean as they looked in the pictures when I arrive.

Did you accept the sit without seeing a lot of pictures of the house?

Did the house appear to be not in the ‘best shape’ but it ended up being much worse than you anticipated?

Did the house look really clean in the pictures and then ended up being really dirty?

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