I am a host but this time, I would like to share a guest experience. We are remodeling our house and I rented an apartment on AirBnb for 4 days to escape the dust with my kids. It was a budget place but in a very nice spot: $100/night in Dallas for a small 2 bedroom “loft.” The pics and description was nice, I booked the space and got this greeting: House rules, wifi password and “A reminder that check out is no later than 11am.
As a reminder, PLEASE LEAVE THE HOME TIDY, AS YOU FOUND IT. Beds should not be stripped. Used towels may be left in a pile. Dishes should be on cycle in dishwasher or left clean.
Ensure you do not leave any personal belongings behind as we do not take responsibility for returning items”.
I also got the same message the morning of my departure.
I always clean up after self whether I stay at the hotel or someone’s house. This “leave it as you found it” got me confused, I wiped down the counters, swept the floor, then realized that I loaded the dishes but forgot to turn on the dishwasher. At some point, I realized that it felt like I was staying at my mum’s friend’s relative’s place and I had to clean and leave a bottle of wine as a thank you instead of being a paying guest. Is it a normal verbiage in budget places? What do you think?
It sounds reasonable to me for any Airbnb property, budget or not.
Hardly an arduous check out list is it?
The check out message isn’t specifically aimed at you but all guests who may not ‘always clean up after themselves’.
You seem to have taken it all rather personally 
Thanks! That’s why I asked:) These are our check out instructions: On check-out, please make sure all doors are locked and make sure you close the door to the outdoor grill area. Exit through the front entrance way and close the electronic door lock behind you.
That was the “greeting” message? No, not good
I have read (here at this forum) much, much more detailed and stringent check out instructions. We have no check out instructions at all - I just expect people to be civilised and luckily, they always are.
I just tell people:
- empty the fridge
- do not leave trash, take out the garbage
- do not leave dirty dishes.
- leave the key on the table and text the property manager that you have left
i wouldn’t start giving instructions aobut stripping the beds I mean come on the cleaners or yourself will be in to do it that takes 10 seconds. Compared to a fridge filled with leftover food that needs to be tossed, I prefer the sheets.
This was a budge property, did they charge something for cleaning?
If the cleaning was free, I really don’t see any problem with the list they gave you.
I am often a guest, and would appreciate a checkout list, even if I got it twice. Like you, I am a leave-no-trace guest no matter where I go, but hosts have different wants regarding stripping or leaving the bed, where to put the towels, leave the key, etc. It is nice to know what’s what.
If you didn’t realize you forgot to turn on the dishwasher until after you checked out, @ievaluna, your loft host is thinking she needs to send that list three times now rather than twice. 
The cleaning fee is $65. It’s not much but the place was small, too.
I have a similar message. Though not as a checkout reminder when I say that I hope people have had a pleasant stay and tell them they can check out later if there is no one coming that day.
It is for the 1% not the 99%. And I would describe my place as middle priced not budget. A reminder that you are staying in someone’s home and not a hotel.
I display checkout instructions for my whole house rental on the wall (image attached) and in my Handbook. There are additional instructions in the summer (lower the umbrella) and the winter (empty the ashes) but I add them in a message as needed.
Can you post a check out guide the same as the check in guide or is one and the same?
I find the part about leaving as tidy as you found it a little over the top. Implies you should have to clean. Our place is immaculate when a guest arrives. I don’t expect them to clean for 4 hours like our professional cleaner does.
We just ask people to wash the dishes, (they can be drying in the rack/no dishwasher) turn the heat down, lock the door and message us. Having to do a bunch of dishes can really slow our cleaner down, that is why we ask for them to be washed. The rest the cleaner has to do anyway so sweeping, etc., doesn’t really help us much (not that it’s not appreciated but don’t want to ask someone to do those sorts of things when they are paying for cleaning)
Nah - I would say every 4th guest that uses the dishwasher (many guests don’t) forgets to turn it on. It’s always the first thing I check, after looking for obvious damages, when I enter the apartment. Most of the time the washing cycle is complete by the time I am ready to leave the apartment. Do I wish my guests had remembered to start it up? Sure, but it’s not a really big deal. Certainly not compared to leaving dishes in the sink and throughout the apartment. 
I think it is more common in budget places. They make less margin on the nightly rate, and the biggest expense is often the labour.
We try to remind our guests that we can only keep the prices reasonable if the guest takes care of the basic things like sorting their trash and do the dishes. And most of the guests appreciate this.
Check out:
*The housekeeper will be there at 11am on check out day to start work.
Please treat the home with love, respect and care and leave her as you’d hope I’d leave your home. That means clean and tidy (with the dishwasher put on and rubbish disposed of in bins), or an extra cleaning charge may apply.
Let us know if something is missing so we can drop off what you require, or if you break something so we can replace it for the next guest.
Please relax and enjoy your stay!
Here’s mine. I never used to have some much detail but due to guests questions and abuses, it evolved. Note- I don’t want my beds stripped because that’s when I inspect them for stains, tears, bed bugs, etc. It’s easier to view.
Thank you for staying at our suite in Melrose.
As a reminder, check out time is 10 am tomorrow morning.
Our cleaners are scheduled to show up shortly after checkout.
When you leave, please send a quick message via the Airbnb Messaging App.
NOTE - THIS ALMOST NEVER HAPPENS.
When you check out, please Do Not strip the bed(s) and leave out any extra blankets and pillows that you used so that I know they need to be washed. Please shut off all appliances. You may leave your trash inside the suite in a trash can. When you leave, please shut the suite 's front door and the red door on the first floor.
I hope your stay in the XXXX area was enjoyable.
It’s been our pleasure hosting your group. We hope that your review will be a 5 Star Review! Five star reviews help our listing being found by future guests and let them know what our AirBnB is like. Also, we will write you a review that will let hosts know what it’s like to have you as a guest.
AirBnb only gives you 14 days to write the review and as hard as it might seem, the time will fly by once you check out.
Thanks, everyone! I left a good review for the host but commented in a private message that “as clean as you found it” is vague and not reasonable since there is a cleaning fee. I apologized for not turning on the dishwasher.