An applicant for a sit has positive reviews, they are brief and no negatives are mentioned - but more than one reviewer has given only three stars for cleanliness.
How big a red flag is this? Should I weigh comments more than stars, or are homeowners reluctant to make negative comments and use the stars to indicate problems?
This indicates that they are not good at tidying up after themselves. They must be significantly worse at it than me.
Maybe you donât care, for example if you would have a cleaner coming anyway.
That means theyâre dirty.
I guess Iâm asking if the ratings and the review say different things which do you go with?
For someone to get low ratings in the same category multiple times from different people may indicate that their standards are lower than the norm. If it was a one off it might just be an HO with some unrealistic expectations that they booked a house cleaner rather than a house sitter. Do any of the reviews mention cleanliness or what condition the house was left in? If not that would support the lower rating as sometimes itâs not about whatâs mentioned in the review but what isnât. If they are otherwise short listed you could always have a chat with them and ask them about what they do and donât do.
Whichever is worse, because various folks are uncomfortable spelling out things. And thereâs no reason multiple people would knock down stars if a sitter was clean.
@Marj it would be great to ask the sitter, "Hey, I noticed 3 of your reviews were 3 stars in cleanliness. What happened there? I ask because upon your departure I would expect my home to be as clean as when you arrived; I me and thsitter to be on the same page. "
Good be good conversation.
Thanks, this is what I was wondering. Is it the norm to pull your punches when writing the review and be more honest in giving a rating? It seems that it is.
Thanks, thatâs a good point. There is no mention of the state of the house in any of the reviews just positive comments about the pet.
Thanks, I wouldnât engage a sitter where there was any doubt about their hygiene. I was more interested in whether it was the norm on THS to not be negative in reviews and to use the ratings to show dissatisfaction.
Well, there are so many sitters and hosts, I donât know whatâs standard. But what Iâve seen and what many folks on the forum have mentioned is that people often pull punches on both sides, giving five-star reviews even when unwarranted. Against that backdrop, if someone is repeatedly getting downgraded stars, that seems like dirty folks who arenât going to be changing their practices. You can discuss it with them if you like, but dirty people arenât exactly motivated to admit it, especially in this setting.
If it were me, Iâd skip those folks entirely, but if you feel like risking it or donât care about cleanliness, thatâs your call. You could always hire a cleaner, too.
You should weigh up both, if all of their reviews are brief that speaks volumns, and they were only given 3 stars for cleanliness, when all they had to do was keep a place as clean as the HOâs had left it.
When HOâs leave us reviews, their comments mention the care of their pets, our communication, the cleanliness of their home, their pets kept looking for us to walk back in awwww, and a whole host of other things specific to their sit, and also that they would highly recommend us. So Iâd say avoid them.
Yes, the âpet-only reviewsâ. Most of those are written by sitters, gushing about how sweet the pet was, and already that is a bit of a red flag if it is systematic.
When several HOs write âpet was happyâ and not much more and leave three stars for cleaning, then I would conclude that the sitter was very inconsiderate about the home.
When more than one home owner marks the sitter down for cleanliness, then there is a real chance that you will arrive home to untidiness. Do you want that, or rather, would that bother you?
When sitters are really good, home owners usually write more than a short one-liner. They might say how lucky they are to have had âXâ sit for them, that âXâ sent regular updates, how the pets loved âXâ and how clean and tidy the house was on their return, and theyâd love to have them back for future sits. If several prior reviews say none of this, I donât think itâs a particularly good sitter. Sorry, thatâs just my opinion.
Multiple 3 stars for cleanliness is a big red flag. Give them a wide birth unless unless cleanliness doesnât bother you.