Most dirt is likely from the pets?
Excuse me, but no.
I always ask our sitters if they want our cleaning lady to continue her regular schedule. She knows that sitters might not want her to come and this is fine with her.
Most sitters didn’t want her to clean, some only asked her for the final cleaning and others found it very convenient to have her come once a week. Of course they paid her. Why in heaven’s name should I pay for this?
Exactly. It’s an option which you don’t have to take.
Apparently, some sitters are very afraid of losing a star.
It’s very simple.
The sitter walks into the home, has a look around, sees the standard of cleaning the home was left in. Voila …. they now know what standard of cleaning is expected.
If in any doubt, takes pictures of what the house was like when you arrived and when you are just about to depart. Now you have evidence to back up your cleaning standards. I have never gone to that length but if the sitter feels they need to, do it.
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This is the first time ever I hear that.
I have never been asked to pay for somebody’s wage on a sit before. If you employ your cleaning lady and she isn’t working for fun or out of passion, therefore is counting on this to pay her bills, then every time you leave on holidays, she can’t work if the sitter isn’t willing to pay her for her work? I mean as a sitter, I’d never ever pay for cleaning services but I would be so ashamed to chose the option “no cleaning please” because she would be missing on part of her salary.
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As a homeowner, I’m picky about who comes into my home. I wouldn’t trust a stranger sent by a service. I’ve been very satisfied with how THS sitters have left my home. Well, one sitter didn’t strip the bed, which I found annoying, but other than that it’s been great. I think it would complicate things enormously if THS added such a service. If something is missing or damaged: was it the sitter? Was it the cleaner?
What might be more useful, IMO would be some kind of training for both HOs and sitters on how to manage expectations and communicate them in regard to cleaning and other stuff. Both hosting and sitting on THS involve skillsets that not everyone has. It involves dealing with people with different communication styles, culture, languages, etc. Not everyone is great at that. HOs don’t receive a lot of information on what the exact parameters for sitters are. Sitters also don’t get any training from THS. This is problematic because ANYONE with the money can join as a sitter or a host. And if you blow it the first time out – especially as a sitter – you won’t get another shot, plus the pet parent will be unlikely to try the service again or renew or upgrade, so THS loses as a business, by not offering more support. I’m not talking about anything heavy handed. Airbnb now manages this. I’m talking about online training modules and videos that can help both sitters and hosts find more success and happiness.
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Am going to be a little bit tough here @Marion -if common sense, hospitality, communication and some cleaning is beyond you then my advice would be, please don’t be a house sitter or join a house sitting site. You need to be a self starter, adaptable, reliable and honest. If that’s too much to deal with then it’s not the gig for you. When we start talking about training needed then it all becomes a wee bit dull.
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That is what the forum is for. Anyone who spends a good deal of time reading the discussions from both the HO and sitter’s perspectives will learn what is expected and how to navigate the system.
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@Marion
I agree with you that communication is often the problem. I doubt that training modules would help though. Most likely, the only people who would do them with any dedication would be the ones who don’t really need them.
Communication is also a problem here on the forum, in my opinion. Statements are taken out of context and members get attacked for stating their views.
A few members, including me, have said that they are not willing to provide a professional deep clean of the house. To other members, that seems to immediately mean that we leave the house messy, are lazy, etc. However I do clean up after myself. Most people have been satisfied and gave 5 stars. But if someone is perfectionist about cleaning and other stuff, that’s not the right match for me as a sitter, and if there was sufficient communication before I decide to take the sit, I could just avoid them.
I want to connect with kind pet owners who understand that life has many nuances and isn’t just good or bad, black or white. I want to prioritize the pets and give them love, because I know I’m very good at that.
In most cases, this is what has happened.
Reading the forum it often seems like a sitter needs to be a perfectly functioning machine with no needs of their own. And I’m not that, never will be and I’m glad I’m not.
It’s all about common sense, isn’t it?
That’s something I discuss before I employ someone to clean my house. I make them aware that there might be times when we will have sitters in the house who don’t want anybody else to come and clean. Nobody has to feel bad about it.
On the other hand, she also goes on holiday and during her absence I have to clean myself as there’s no one else taking over.
Not beyond me, but clearly beyond some hosts and some sitters. And I don’t think it’s so much “common sense” as lack of specific skills. You can teach people skills. THS currrently “reminds” hosts to clean up for their sitters. It reminds sitters to clean up before they leave a sit. I’m suggesting a few video modules that help manage expectations and explain “how to” – even how to communicate with each other – hosts so they don’t sound like their giving orders and sitters so they don’t sound like they are being judgemental. Other companies – Airbnb have started to do this for their hosts. THS should be doing this for both. You have amateurs on both sides trying to give/recieve a professional experience.
But it isn’t a professional experience @Marion - the whole point of THS is that it’s a bunch of amateurs doing what they love either because of the animals, the travel, the adventure or a combo of all of them. Muddling through and learning as you go is all part of the experience curve. If someone wants to be a professional house sitter then this is not the right platform. It’s a paid one with rules.
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Except that both sides are paying a platform and want good experiences from each other. And if they don’t have satisfying experiences, they aren’t going to pay. If sitters find they are asked to act as housecleaners, or arrive at messy homes that aren’t comfortable, they aren’t going to be satisfied. If homeowners arrive home and find the sitter left a mess or forgot to lock the door, they aren’t going to be satisfied. Sure, people figure it out. The second time I used a THS sitter, when the sitter called and asked if I had a hairblower, and I realized I did but it was god knows where and I didn’t want her rummaging through everything to find it so I said no, I “learned” to leave my hairblower out in a convenient place. However, if THS just had a checklist maybe of things to leave available in your home or a five minute video showing people what a “ready” home looks like, yes that would be helpful BECAUSE we’re amateurs. If they actually suggested to sitters to photograph the inside of cabinets before using the kitchen so you put things back easily in the right place, that would be helpful instead of someone getting this bit of wisdom four months later on a forum after a bad review.
I agree with you - except it is very clear from this forum that what constitutes common sense, communication and cleaning are highly subjective!
I think training is unrealistic because only (a fraction of) the people most likely to be good and conscientious HOs and sitters would bother.
ETA: I’m sure the videos on airbnb are some sort of CYA for the company in terms of liability. Does anyone actually watch them?
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Exactly! Nobody is paying for a sitter, nobody is paying rent, it is not AirBnb.
Problem with THS is that it is the platform that is not performing adequately for the fee that they are charging. The software is incredibly messy. A manual on “how to clean up a user interface” maybe?
I’m an older person, but I work with a lot of younger people. I think younger people – the least experienced housesitters – would be willing to watch a few video modules to learn what to ask on a video chat, and other things that more skilled sitters do without thinking. I also think HOs would do it because they want to succeed on the site. It’s a good deal for them if they can attract sitters and keep them happy.
There are ways a business can incentivize training – badges, a free month, etc. Clearly, as a business they are trying to scale up. If all they are is a “matching service” taking no responsibility for member satisfaction, then it’s not sustainable. It’s haphazard. My personal experience, BTW as a sitter and a homeowner has been fantasitc. I came to this with sitting experience but not much hosting experence. I’m choosy about sits I apply for or take. I’m lucky to live in a location where people want to sit so I can be selective about sitters. The only not so great experience was one cancelation, where I believe the sitter cancelled to take another sit. In that case, I chose not to “police” the sitter. Just as I believe it’s the company’s responsibility to track cancellations, I think it’s the company’s responsibility to provide a more uniform experience for both sitters and homeowners by providing more guidelines, creatiing a culture, and yes offering training. I agree there are a ton of ways the website, interface, reviews etc need to be improved, but there are other aspects that also could be improved to provide a better experience for ALL members.
Going back to the original idea of hiring cleaners: Again maybe a video checklist for homeowners instead of a vague “spring cleaning” would be helpful for those too mess blind to realize what they are inviting people into. Maybe a video showing someone wiping down counters and table, and following an exit checklist while super basic for most sitters who do this stuff, would be helpful for newbies overwhelmed by thinking they have to deep clean the house.
Good point about generational differences. I am also older, and I despise training videos. Give me a simple checklist every time!!
I would sit through a video for an extra month, though 
The dirtiest home I sat belonged to 40-somethings, LOL. I don’t think it was a lack of know-how. They just had low standards for cleanliness. Like when you’ve got black grime in all of your fridge crevices and layers of old spills running down your fridge and microwave door, it doesn’t take a genius or life experience to clean.
I don’t think we should be assuming that younger people are less clean. I know a good number with clean homes. I work with many of them in the startup world. And personally, I was clean even as a kid.
I don’t think anyone was saying younger people are prone to being less clean; rather that they are more likely to watch a video
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