Cleaning the stove of splatters after cooking breakfast is not deep cleaning. I wouldn’t say I’m particular but I would have marked you down for a dirty stove top if I came home to that.
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I agree. I don’t think any of these chores are “above and beyond” or qualify as “deep cleaning.” Other than organizing rooms (which I don’t really understand), the rest is basic cleaning up after myself, and maybe after animals depending on the pets.
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We sit as a couple so there’s two of us to clean, but you’re sitting by yourself, and you have mentioned large houses in a couple of the posts on here, so… question… why are you taking on larger houses if you can’t clean them to the standard in which the HO left them? You are setting yourself up for failure, go for smaller places instead and save yourself the hassle, and then you’ll obtain 5*s instead.
Just a tip, but we have our suitcases ready in the entrance hall the day prior to leaving (minus 1 small bag), and we stick to using only 1 room in larger houses a couple of days prior to leaving, so that everywhere else can be cleaned easily, so we can leave a place as though we were never there in the first place, as though the owners had just left.
I know at some point we are going to be marked down for cleaning, because I read it all of the time on here, but if were single, there’s no way I would be sitting in a larger house at all. I’d stick to smaller, easy to maintain places.
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Agreed. I sit solo and either sit small places or, if a home is large, don’t use a lot of it. Like I’m sitting a large one now and haven’t used an entire floor of it. In other homes, for example, I never went upstairs or into the other guest rooms or media rooms.
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I think I made a forum about 4 stars before but I don’t remember. I think we shouldn’t take 4 stars so badly. No one is perfect and if I saw a sitter or HO with 4 stars I won’t judge unless they have multiple reviews that are less than I would find it concerning
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I’m afraid that is what housework means: doing things all over again. You cook lunch, you eat it, you have to cook again. You make the bed, you sleep in it, you have to make it again and, yes, if you want to have a clean stove, you have to clean it after cooking or at least before you leave the house, if you found a clean stove when you arrived.
Regarding Airbnb, we pay a cleaning fee so nobody expects the same level of cleanliness.
I am one of those, wording is informative, stars not necessarily. Just in this thread we have seen two different meanings of 4 star rating- not ironing sheets / not cleaning the stove. If that was written in the review then everyone would know if that is important for them or even if they want to avoid such a picky owner.
I think that’s a bit of an exaggeration. There are different categories, not just pet care. Perhaps if pet care is all that’s important for an owner, they won’t mind choosing a sitter that doesn’t get good ratings for cleanliness. A trashed house would deserve 1 star in cleanliness and probably a member’s dispute. IMHO
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Maybe I missed it, but, is there a discussion that happens when you do the handover, or better yet, when you’re video-chatting or messaging before you agree on the sit, as to what the owners expect? Asking them to make it clear what they expect to be cleaned and what they don’t, might help. As long as you leave the house no messier than you found it (I have left one or two cleaner) then they shouldn’t be docking stars.
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That’s the way to survive : Pick your battles…and save your energy for the pups!
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@Hiya I am a full time sitter -who also is working . However, I don’t schedule any work for “moving” day .
That way I can concentrate on packing, any final cleaning, and taking care of pets . Then travelling , meeting next hosts and pets and settling into the next sit .
For me it would be a struggle to focus on both work and the homes and pets . One or the other would not get my full attention. It would be very stressful for me .
If it’s working for you and you are still getting the sits you are applying for and not being declined because of previous reviews with 4 stars , then don’t worry about the four stars.
If it’s becoming stressful you may want to change something , like not scheduling work for the moving day .
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I don’t think it is totally avoidable, because people have different expectations, but I do think some can be done by communicating - pre-sit and during sit. I’ve started to have that as a question in videocall. What are your expectations on cleaning before departure? If they say something general like “normal” cleaning, ask what that means to them. Because “normal” won’t really do anything for you in regard to knowing more.
This will make it clearer what is the expectations of the sit. That means on this point, it is perfectly fine to reflect and later decline a sit because the host would be better served with another sitter. I would say that if one for instance expect me to iron the bed linen that is not for me. I’ve had that exact discussion with a friend of mine who irons everything, incl. socks and underwear. 
I’m “able” to but I just can’t be bothered (at all or for a pet-sit). In my opinion mainly becuase then the match isn’t good as I’m not looking for a host that wants housekeeping without salary. It is not so much about the task, it is about the attitude towards sitter. I clean (and I clean more than I think is necessary). There would probably be other flags for me personally and I would find something else. it is not a problem for either party to walk away from an application for a sit, that is part of the process of finding good matches.
I communicate before I leave, typically the day before. I send them a message about me cleaning before departure, what I have already done, what I intend to do last day (wipe bathroom, go out with waste, feed pets…) This will be a time of the day where it is still possible for a little extra. At this point I also say let me know if there are things we agreed on that you think is forgotten. Mind you; “that we have agreed on”. Not “what would you wish for”. Should it be “demanding” (hasn’t happened this far, but might later) I might well say that that is not what was within the agreement/ I’m not able to - hope you will have it sorted some other way.
I think it is less likely to be conflicts on cleaning (or anything) if one ensure a good match regarding expectations, communicate - and communicate in relation to the actual agreement of the sit, and not a wish-list made up afterwards. It is much more room for being critical after arrival, more or less walking around with “white gloves” figuratively speaking and looking for flaws, if one is not accountable to the actual agreement.
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I really think that some sitters are getting too stressed out about cleaning.
We have been sitting now for 14 years and the only question we ask is “What would you like us to do with the bedding” Usually they will say "Just strip the bed and leave it on the bed/in the laundry bin.
We do launder the towels and dog towels without asking
We leave the house as we found it or a bit better (it is marvellous what can be achieved with microfibre cloths)
All of our reviews comment on how the house is cleaner than left. Most owners are so appreciative that it is clean and tidy that they will give you 5 stars.
Just enjoy the experience
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Thank you, I think this nails it! I will start communicating during my final clean and you’re right about the language being important. Without the communication and the language that’s what happens I think, there’s a psychological effect of coming home and “inspecting”, the white-glove effect you describe, rather than being glad the basic agreement and usual terms were met. Again if some sitters want to go above basic tidying up they can, but it’s not feasible for everyone and shouldn’t be considered standard. If the HO had any other guest at their home or even rented to an AirBnb, they would not expect such a level of housekeeping, just basic tidying up. There’s something about the service language of TH that causes a distortion which is why our own language is so crucial, to counteract that a bit. Thanks for this thoughtful response!
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I will add that I guess I have avoided communicating too much during the final clean before as I’m afraid the HO will come up with an endless list of tasks…which is why the preliminary discussion and agreement is important. Sometimes I’m eager to book a place and don’t go through every detail in the initial convos, assuming we can figure it out as we go, or maybe partially in fear I’ll lose the spot. I need to confront this! As I said I’m just getting past some bigger milestones with sitting, so if I continue to do it I may develop a more standard Q&A sheet for the interviews, especially for long sits.
Additionally, many of the bigger homes often come with cleaning staff, so it’s not always a crucial convo. Though recently I completed a multi week sit where the cleaner came once a week which was great…until she suddenly said she was going on vacation, leaving me to clean the place for the remaining weeks and the final night.
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I am afraid that is a risk with some HOs. Also, I don’t think the last day is the best time to ask questions. HOs will be as stressed as the sitter or they may be unreachable.
I think communication is key but most aspects about pets and housekeeping should be discussed before the agreement, minor details to be completed in WG and handover. During the sit itself, I just send updates confirming everything is going well and only ask questions if something comes up which is not covered by WG and wasn’t anticipated.
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I think everyone would save time if the welcome guides were shared ahead of accepting a sit. The sensitive info, like address, wifi passcode and security info could wait.
Like vet info, pet daily routine, medications, health issues and such are all important and can help sitters make informed decisions about whether to take a sit.
For example, I accepted a sit and received the WG immediately after and discovered that the host hadn’t communicated dealbreakers previously — one dog had to be let out overnight to pee and another was prone to diarrhea. Good thing I read the WG straight away — I told the host to cancel within minutes. Dodged a bullet.
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I 100% agree! 
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Same here. The last day of a sit is always for packing, cleaning, and traveling. There’s not time to work that day.
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We did a 3 week sit in Abu Dhabi where the HO offered to hire a cleaner on the last
day. We told the HO that it was up to her, but that we would clean to a high spec before the cleaner arrived, to ensure it was it was up to our standard. Talk about setting ourselves up for a fail, but we wanted to be in control of our destiny. So the cleaner was shelved and we got the 5 stars. PHEW.
I would’ve totally accepted, not only to spare myself cleaning, but also because someone would’ve been able to earn because of that cleaning job.
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Also, if it was their usual cleaner surely their standards would be acceptable for the owners and it would be their responsibility.
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