To expect visitors to take their shoes off?

[marymungoNminge]

Just that really! Do you take off your shoes in the home or keep them on?

I'm pretty house proud and I like a tidy home, not a germaphope by any means but I take pride in keeping my home fresh and clean. (Well as much as I can with a toddler!) I think it's really rude to walk into someone else's home with outside shoes on where there's spit, shit, dirt and whatever else. If I had wooden floors maybe that'd be different.

Someone came for an appointment today walked in with their shoes on and left dirt on our stone coloured carpet. WIBU to tell people to remove their shoes if they walk in with them on? DD(2) takes shoes off and puts them on the shoe rack. I just think it's gross but maybe I'm the odd one! It's just how I was brought up!

I would always ask the host if they want me to remove my shoes.

To be honest I've never had a guest in my house who has not either automatically removed their shoes at the door or asked me if I wanted them to.

I would never walk on someone’s carpet in my shoes.

When we were selling our old house I had foot covers for viewers.

Everyone is required to remove their shoes in my house and I do tell people they need to remove them and where to leave them.

The only person who ever complains is my Dad

I wouldn't ask guests to take shoes off but I'd always offer to take mine off in someone else's house. I work in people's homes but can't remove shoes for safety reasons so I wear shoe covers.

We dont as we have wooden floors

When i go to someone's house who is s shoes at the door person, I feel like a child taking my shoes off. Especially hate it in summer if I'm wearing sandals

I generally always wear shoes at home and absolutely hate having to take them off in other people's houses (although I do so if it is clearly the custom of that house).

It's polite to offer to take them off with everyone knowing it is a 'thing' for some, and not for others.

This is just basic manners.

This. Pavements are indeed filthy, but they're way less filthy than they were in previous decades, now that most people pick up after their dogs etc. Some tolerance to germs is important unless someone in the home is immunocompromised or frail. (ETA: I meant to add babies and toddlers to that, as I get that they put their hands on the carpet and then in their mouths.)

And personally I think it's far ruder - barring the above - to make guests walk around in stockinged feet/shove their feet into slippers other people have worn, than for a guest to keep their shoes on.

I'm totally with you OP and everyone who visits us always takes their shoes off unprompted.

😂

I really don't care if someone takes their shoes off or not. If my carpet needs cleaned I'll clean it

No one enters our home unless they take their shoes off, or use shoe covers. We have a shoe box for them to put their shoes in if they wish and a seat if they want to sit down to put shoe covers on. Virtually everyone here is shoes off, so you don’t have to ask people.

Will ask everyone, including tradesman, either to take shoes off or I have covers.

I had a cleaner say once she will have to keep shoes on at kitchen because she's mopping the floor. Needless to say, that was their first and last time.

Oh yes, sweaty feet on carpets are so much worse than dog shit particles on your shoes getting on your carpets.

the mind boggles.

When I bought a car once the dealer asked me to take my shoes off before going into his home office to do the paperwork. I felt really uncomfortable carrying out a business transaction with a stranger in stockinged feet.

On another occasion I was in a 'shoes off' household where I didn't know the homeowner particularly well, and it turned out there was a large hole in the toe of my tights which hadn't been there that morning. No slippers were offered and it was really embarrassing having to sit there like that for the duration of the visit. I'd never want to make a guest feel that way.

What sort of house do you live in where you need to remove your shoes to distinguish it from a bus station?

It’s never even occurred to me to ask guests to remove their shoes. I’ve only know one person who asked me to remove my shoes and she was bat shit crazy so I assumed that was why.

Floors are for walking on.

Shoes may have dirt on them.

So have floors that can be easily cleaned and won't mark/stain or harbour filth.

Carpets downstairs are disgusting vile filth traps no matter what colour they are or how religiously you insist on shoes off - and if you must do this, provide guests with slip on slippers to wear instead.

Otherwise, they're treading their sock sweat and skin cells into your lovely carpet, and trust me, that is not removed by vacuuming or carpet shampooing!

I grew up in a fully carpeted, shoes off household.

I have a hard floored, washable rugs, shoes on household now.

Gross - I wouldn’t be walking barefoot in someone else’s house.

If you don’t want shoes on your minging carpets provide shoe covers.

I'm with greensleeves, is sad when material things are placed ahead of guests.

We are shoes on and only once has someone ever walked mud onto our carpet rug.
Our carpet rug is second hand but proper wool and I can't imagine how old it is but it's sturdy.

Unfortunately in my experience it's the people who are the most stringent and aggressive about shoes off who are germ wise vile in other ways...

@OnAMidnightTrainToGeorgia

2 things, why is the carpet youve come across so minging that you wouldn't walk without shoes on? Are you or your friends not clean?

Also, if you look after your carpets, and get them shampooed regularly, and DONT let people walk in with piss, shit, mud, blood and whatever else ridden shoes into your home, the carpets will be perfectly safe on your perfect holy feet.

You're telling me you would rather walk in, in sweaty shoes indoors because your carpets are that minging? I'd rather not have blood and excrement on my carpet. That's gross. Not walking round with no shoes on, on a regularly cleaned, looked after carpet.

As PP said, mind boggles.
Also, let your feet breathe. I can't imagine how sweaty and smelly peoples trotters get constantly wearing shoes / slippers!

@orangeyeahthatsright

How awful

Growing up I was exposed to working class homes and posh ones and nothing was a shoes off situation.
Now it's everywhere.

Ridiculous floors you can't walk on.
Ridiculous kitchen surfaces that can't have a tea cup left on them.

Don't we live in a world with enough constraints without having a home that can't be lived in!

I agree!

Unfortunately op carpets are like the kitchen sponge and no amount of washing will clean them.

They are floors.

They will have everything falling onto them.