The evaluation system is subjective - as many are unfortunately.
When you evaluate another human being for anything - since THS only gives 2 weeks and many people are busy - much of it is projection.
Not much though is out into the reasons why someones values may differ from your own. For example, the subject if sleeping with the pet.
In my experience HO was not upfront that she she wanted her sitters to sleep with her indoor-outdoor cat. This HO would see her cat meowing outside of the room from the patio and would immediatel call me late at night/early in the morining about it. It was so shocking that I talked to her husband and THS who had to smooth things over because I was willing to stop the sit and hand the respinsibility over to her neighbor.
I had another HO evaluation from a psychologist who barely conversed with me re: her cat but I suspect she had cameras she never revealed. She gave me 3/5 stars in 3 areas and never gave a reason. I think she totally projected in that evaluation.
All my other sits have been excellent but those two HO evals - screw the average. Why are these Evaluations averaged especially when they are subjective?
Why are evaluations averaged?
I had a one day sit and the HO surprisingly with no explanation did not give me 5 stars which I honestly believed I deserved on nearly everything. This was not a hard sit even.
But that negative star count - even from a 1 day sit - impacts my total average of over 10 where most of my sits were overwhelmingly positive!
THS’s averaging of sits allows contemptuous HOs to impact a house/pet sitter in a negative way.
That was a 1 day sit from an HO who for whatever reason (not communicative) had contempt.
I always look at the reviews the HO left for their sitters, and in return, what these sitters wrote about other HOs. I do this to read between the lines and spot any patterns that don’t seem to fit. It also helps me figure out what’s really important to my future HO.
I’m always very truthful in my long reviews because I believe it’s about respect. When a sit was good, I write it out of respect for the HO. But if it wasn’t good, I make sure to mention it because I feel the HO didn’t respect me, and I want to prevent other sitters from being treated the same way.
Thank you!
100 percent agree. That’s my argument for accurately assessing Airbnb cleanliness too.
I always do. Not every single one, if there are over 10, but enough to get a feel of their style, priorities etc.
A sitter giving justified, balanced critique for a sit is not a red flag for me, quite the opposite!
Two weeks , in my opinion, is plenty of time to write a review. If you find yourself so overwhelmed when you get home, perhaps you might consider writing - or at least beginning or drafting - the review while on the sit. It doesn’t need to be a master’s thesis !
What you chose to write is entirely up to you. Yes, honesty can unfortunately hurt and it also helps both yourself, future sitters and , possibly, owners.
It can help you and other sitters by honestly, tactfully and objectively addressing issues of concern (cleanliness, etc.). Along these same lines, it may help ho’s by pointing out areas which they themselves have avoided or turned a blind eye to over time. It offers them the opportunity to address these issues for future sitters making them more desireable in the long run.
Of course, some owners will not be happy and that is a risk that we take when we are honest (in all aspects of life !). And, consider the possibility that those dirty sheets you’ve encountered were also slept in (ewwwww…) by previous sitters who were afraid to point this out in their reviews. Your good efforts can assist in breaking a cycle.
These are my feelings, too. Reviews left by sitters demonstrate their values and expectations; if a sitter remarks on being upset at finding a dirty home or encountering an undisclosed issue, hopefully other pet parents will get the message that this sitter has high standards of cleanliness and expects transparency.
Hi @toreishi
Great points, and I did laugh out loud when you mentioned (ewwwww) 
Had the previous sitters mentioned the dirty sheets in their reviews, how likely would it have been for the OP to apply to the sit?
When sitters do not point out less than flattering things on sits and pertinent information is withheld, then it is a “kick in the teeth” to future sitters.
Totally agree! I recently did a sit where the one previous sitter gave the HO an undeserved 5 for cleanliness, I’m guessing to be nice. Problem is, when I got there, I was appalled. Sitters need to realize these reviews are not only for the HOs, they’re to set proper expectations for future sitters as well. (And no, it wasn’t a matter of dirt building up between their sit and mine; some of it was years’ worth.)