I received a 4-star review from my latest sitter in which she said she did not give me 5 stars because of “the cleanliness of the home.” She gave me 3 stars for cleanliness and 4 stars for hospitality. My son and I spent days scrubbing, cleaning, vacuuming, and tidying our house before she and her partner arrived. This is a lived in home, not a hotel, and it is a 43-year-old farmhouse in a rural setting on a dirt road. Granted, we did not wash every window or paint unpainted trim, but the house was definitely clean and tidy. In addition, we went out of our way to be hospitable, suggest special places and things to do, cleared out space in our pantry, fridge, and closets for their things, and left them a gift of homemade jam. No other sitters have complained about our house or our hospitality, and we feel insulted. I am worried that other sitters will see this and avoid our home. We invited these people into our home, which many people love, in a very peaceful, beautiful setting for a week. Do sitters have a right to expect perfection?
And there is another thread saying “is every sit 5 star these days?” As a sitter I would not say all the homes I have sat in have been 5 star clean everywhere. I focus on the bedroom and bathroom for my use. Is that really clean and they’ve made an effort? Then ok 5 star. Kitchens are never perfect but neither is mine, because it gets used, I would not mark someone down for a bit of dust here or there. But people are all different and you will never please them all. Try to get over feeling insulted, I get it, but it will be better for you if you can let that go.
Thanks, you are right!
In her review did she elaborate on the reasons or did she simply deduct the stars? I have recently docked one star for cleanliness but did mention my reason in the review without making a big deal of it. I also mentioned a cleanliness issue in another review but without docking a star.
It sounds like you did a great deal of preparation in advance so it could be more a case of ‘lived in’ rather than unclean and I think some people confuse the two things. Personally I prefer a lived in feel and even the most squeaky clean looking places sometimes have grim surprises lurking in the corners.
If you have other reviews that show 5* for cleanliness I wouldn’t worry too much, sitters generally read all previous reviews. Have you looked at how she has reviewed her previous sits? It may be a pattern with her.
Honestly I don’t think you have too much to worry about but I understand that it’s disappointing.
I have never cleaned a window in 11 years of sitting. Don’t worry too much about it, some people will never be satisfied, just move on.
If you responded to their review with something similar to your Original Post here, I certainly would not be put off applying for your sit. Just leave out the more emotive comments. . . . Perhaps leaving in something akin to the following from your OP :-
“ . . . My son and I spent days scrubbing, cleaning, vacuuming, and tidying our house before arrival. This is a lived in home, and it is a 43-year-old farmhouse in a rural setting on a dirt road. . . . . The house was definitely clean and tidy. In addition, we went out of our way to be hospitable, suggest special places and things to do, cleared out space in our pantry, fridge, and closets for the sitters’ things, and left them a gift of homemade jam. No other sitters have complained about our house or our hospitality . . .We invited the sitters into our home, which many people love, in a very peaceful, beautiful setting.”
(Some people are just never pleased! - although don’t say that. 
)
I had one sitter deduct one star from cleanliness, 5 stars everywhere else, but gave 4 stars overall. With no explanation as to why. I texted her and asked and she replied everything was great but there was dog hair on the sofa when she arrived. No where else, just the sofa.
Mind you, we had scheduled this week long sit but had plans changed when a family member in another state became ill. We travelled with our dog for a month, and rather than cancel the sit left the sitter to care for our two cats for the week (drop in sitter for the cats the rest of the month we were gone). So in the rush to pack for a long cross country drive, we forgot to brush off the sofa. In addition to that the sitter showed up a day late as she had trouble arranging for care for her own cat, and we allowed her to have a friend stay with her for the week. We covered the extra day with our drop in sitter at our own cost.
So, some people want a ton of consideration for themselves but won’t give anyone else the slightest kindness in exchange.
I replied to her review and pointed out our cleaning regimen (steam clean sofa and rugs, mop floors, clean bathrooms, wipe kitchen surfaces, clean oven/microwave, clean fridge - as in pull the shelves out and run them in the dishwasher - dust everywhere, leave empty fridge/freezer space, empty cupboard space, and left a welcome basket of goodies) and that we met her halfway when she showed up a day late and didn’t believe that the 2 days of dog hair she had to clean up (15 minute job lol) warranted a 4 star review.
It hasn’t impacted the applications we got for our next listing.
So, just except this sitter is impossible to please - some want an Airbnb experience vs living in a real home.
Thank you Chrissie.
It sounds like you bent over backwards to be accommodating. And it’s hilarious that someone who has agreed to take care of animals would complain about dog hair.
I didn’t respond to the review – I thought the sitter would probably think I was being defensive and wouldn’t take what I said to heart. I think it’s best if I just move on! Thanks to all who replied.
The response to her review would mainly be for other, future potential sitters. Wouldn’t care one but if she thought it was defensive or not 
I wonder what she would have done if we had left our dog as we originally planned. Our dog is a golden retriever and she’s her coat 2 times a year (this happened to be one of those times) so it’s not like she would have gone a week without dealing with dog hair?!?
We keep the door to our guest room closed so the pets don’t go in there at all (so no pet hair) and our dog sleeps in a crate overnight. It was truly only a couple of days worth on the sofa that she had to clean (and we have a hand vac and also a tool to easily remove the fur - it’s literally 10-15 minutes!).
I probably should have guessed when I read her prior reviews which focused on thread counts of sheets and luxury towels vs the pets that she really wanted a 5 star Airbnb!
@LWMonk, sorry to hear that you’re feeling insulted. Some THS policies are very clear - for example, it’s clearly unacceptable for aggressive dogs or internal cameras. Some THS policies are less clear - for example, which devices are ‘recording devices’. From experience in housesitting in many countries, we find that cleanliness is highly subjective - based on property age, environmental conditions, culture and other aspects.
Housesitters definitely do not expect perfection - rather they expect the property, pets and housesit to be consistent with the listing and Welcome Guide. Some less-than-five-star reviews result from expectation gaps between pet parents and housesitters.
Recommend take clear photos and define responsibilities to set clear expectations.
In regards the recent sit, encourage let it go. Demand for listings varies a whole lot. Provided that you received ample applications last time, and provided photos and responsibilities are appealing, most future sitters are not going to be deterred next time.
The things you list and mention are lovely but not unusual, most are standard and expected.
I’m not sure I would emphasize and respond with the fact that “you and your son spent days scrubbing, cleaning, and vacuuming,” cause in homes that are regularly cleaned this wouldn’t be necessary to begin with.
Did these people mention in their profile expectations for cleanliness and tidiness, or was your focus perhaps more on their reviews (which isn’t uncommon)?
Haha everyone typically cleans especially nicely if they are expecting company. I do regularly clean my house!
And there is a difference between regular maintenance cleaning and deep cleaning, and you’re correct most people do more extensive cleaning when they are expecting company.
“thread counts of sheets and luxury towels”
I think that was your sign. Maybe a new amenities filter? Lol
Some people
Yeah I should have known LOL. Live it, learn it. Now I look at past reviews and if they mention amenities like that, or luxury soaps etc, or mention they had a great ‘stay’ it’s a pass.
We live in a very rural area in a 200+ year old stone house and our first 2 sitters docked us a star for cleanliness even though we thoroughly cleaned beforehand. We too did a lot for them. We ended up adding a disclaimer to our listing about it being an old house and that we can’t keep out the spiders so the webs and dust will return. That seems to have worked and subsequent sitters have given us 5 stars.
Luckily, most hosts do, and I’m sure you do as well. If your home required two people scrubbing, cleaning, and vacuuming for days, then it clearly felt necessary.
There’s a big difference in what individuals consider “deep cleaning.” Some clean as they go, while others don’t. Different people, different priorities