Where do you work but you’re not an employee? Stay in gorgeous homes but have to walk dogs? Fix super meals in beautiful kitchens but not have to pay for the space? It’s a magical land called Petsitting, a place we find by using a website called Trusted Housesitters.
This post isn’t your typical “house sit and save money” post. It’s the truth behind the task of housesitting/petsitting and how to protect yourselves from the liability and trauma that petsitting can bring.
We’ve had bad experiences. We’ve had great experiences. But we are clear about WHY we housesit and the conditions under which we will stay in other people’s homes, take care of their pets, and save ourselves money on accomodations.
We have a set of sure-fire tips for not only getting good housesits, but for also getting 5-star reviews, which of course, generate a full circle back to good housesits. You won’t find these tips anywhere else from anyone else.
Housesitting For the Win
Let’s start with WHY we housesit. At first we scheduled housesits into our Nomad Life travel to save money. Why wouldn’t we want to save over $100 a night in expensive locations like London, Dublin, Paris and Amsterdam for the exchange of walking a dog or changing a cat’s liter box?
But we soon learned that Nomad Life is a constant balance of decisions about comfort. Pay more, get more comfort. But that comfort can be elusive in Airbnbs where the pictures show a King-sized bed, but the reality delivers a double. Or a kitchen filled with cooking utensils that we find are dull, broken, melted, or mismatched.
After months of settling for comfort that rarely delivers to our desires, we pick up a housesit or two to relax our beaten Nomad Life bodies. In our housesits, we find
King-sized Tempurpedic mattress
Chef kitchens filled with salad spinners, garlic presses and sharp Gingsu knives
Overstuffed couches with arms in front of large-screened TVs filled with watch apps like Netflix, Hulu, Apple TV, and HBO.
It’s the comfort we now seek, not the dollars saved, that drives us to housesitting. (By the way, we use the terms housesitting and petsitting interchangeably. Some housesits have pets, all petsits have houses.)
Where Do We Find Our Housesits?
When we say “housesitting,” we are referring to where we book our housesits. We use a website called Trusted Housesitters (use our link and our code EATWALK25 to save 25%).
This website allows homeowners and housesitters to find each other, interview one another, and exchange details. There is no money exchanged between the two parties, and the website picks up the liability of the interaction. Both parties pay an annual fee to be members of Trusted Housesitters.
Start Housesitting Before You Launch Your Nomad Life
We started housesitting when we still lived in Denver. Since Trusted Housesitters uses a review system and background checks to qualify people, we started in our home town prior to leaving for Nomad Life. We took local weekend sits and told the homeowners the reason we wanted to sit at their homes was to get our reviews gathered so that when we applied for international sits, we’d have a cache of good reviews to help us get housesits further afar.
The strategy worked.
Even though we were new to housesitting, locals felt comfortable with un-reviewed locals staying in their homes. If something happened, they felt that we, as locals, would have back-up resources locally. They took chances on us being un-reviewed, and we delivered excellent sits in exchange.
Our 5-star reviews racked up. Once we had 5 in the bag, we began applying to international housesits. Because we had a good set of 5-star reviews, the international homeowners felt much more comfortable with our skill sets and trust levels.
How to Get 5-Star Reviews
Anything less than a 5-star review can cause us problems and limit our ability to get great housesits in the future. Therefore, we shoot for 6- or 7-star reviews (even though no such things exists) in order to alleviate any doubt the homeowner might have about how we took care of their home and pets. We overachieve to ensure 5 stars.
Getting consistent 5-star reviews opens up excellent housesits and makes us more competitive with other excellent housesitters.
5-Star Reviews Starts with a Great Interview
Here are our sure-fire things we do to get our 5+ star reviews. First let us explain how we secure the sit. We begin by setting alerts for the locations where we want to sit. We respond immediately with pre-typed paragraphs, substituting in the pets’ names and appropriate details so our reply hits in the first five responses in the homeowner’s inbox.
When the homeowner replies, we quickly set up a video call. We don’t want the homeowner to talk to anyone else, and we try to be the first interview. We hold the video call, peering into their lives and their house, “meeting” the pets virtually. If we feel the housesit fits us and them, we try to “close” the homeowners quickly by letting them know we want the housesit.
Upon an invite to the sit, we confirm immediately, exchange WhatsApp numbers, and follow up in WhatsApp with the details of the housesit, including arrival/departure information, use of car, and any other details. Sometimes many months pass between the call and the housesit, and having the confirmed details written and shared helps us remember what we committed to and when.
7 Sure-Fire Steps to a 5-Star Review
During our video interview with the homeowners prior to accepting the housesit, we require that the homeowners take us on a video tour of their home. Here, we can actually see how messy/dirty/clean/pristine they actually are. Our definition of dirty might be different than their definition. Understanding these differences helps eliminate conflicts in the future when we leave the housesit.
During this video review, we watch for how things are stacked around the house. Are end tables neat or overflowing with books and magazines? Is the kitchen clean or cluttered? Is trash empty or overflowing?
Where are the pets while we chat on the video? Up in their faces and demanding attention? Asleep on the couch? Laying on their own beds? Are leashes hung by the door or thrown on the ground, mixed in with toys and doggie bags?
Noticing these items isn’t about passing judgement, it’s about understanding how the family lives in their house and how they interact with their pets. From these video calls, we set expectations and ask questions.We critique the reviews from other housesitters, and we review how the homeowners have reviewed other housesitters. If either leave long and drawn out reviews, that’s cryptic for “there was a problem.”
No one is glowing, and no one is terrible. But comments like, “We loved walking the high-energy dog” means the dog probably wasn’t good on the leash and paced the house anxiously. Or “They reached out to us everyday with questions to check in” could mean that the homeowners didn’t trust their housesitters.Upon arrival, we take videos and pictures of EVERYTHING for two reasons. The first reason is to cover our liability in case something breaks or goes missing. Was it broken before? Was it there when we arrived?
The second reason is that when we leave, we want everything to be EXACTLY like we found it when we arrived. If the pots and pans drawer was a mess of willy-nilly nesting, we return it the same way. If it was meticulously arranged from big to small, we replace everything in that order. We want the homeowner’s review to say that it didn’t even look like we’d been there. That’s a compliment.We return the house to the homeowner in better condition than we found it in the rooms that we use. If it’s a 5-bedroom house and we only use 2, we never even go into the other 3 rooms. But the 2 rooms we do use (plus kitchen and common spaces), we clean them to a standard better than how we found them. If they were filthy, we return them clean. If they were clean, we return them pristine.
We ask how much the homeowner wants to hear from us and how often they want pet pictures. Sometimes it’s twice a day, sometimes it’s once a week. Understanding and discussing this expectation builds trust and relieves the homeowner’s anxiety about strangers in their home.
In addition, we always start the texts with “All is well” and then continue with pictures, questions or clarifications. We always want to lead any communication with security and anxiety-relieving comments.As we execute our departure routine, Steve goes through the house and reviews his pictures and videos, returning the home with exactness. I compile a hand-written message with a checklist showing what we’ve done prior to leaving. It’s below. We hint in the note that we’re giving a 5-star review, and hope we’ll get one in return.
In addition, with consideration to their return, we ask if we can stock the refrigerator with anything, we provide snacks/or a quick-to-prepare meal (fresh pizza to pop in the oven, a nice salad, or a roasted chicken) or snacks, we stack their mail, empty the garbage, mow the lawn if necessary, and/or leave flowers.
We want to make their return back to their home a stress-free entry back into their life after a joyful vacation. That includes with us not being there.
Here’s a sample Welcome Home message:
Sample thank you note Of course, when you complete the housesit, make sure you follow up with the review you promised.
Getting Great Housesits
The way to get te great housesits is to deliver great housesits. Do the work; get the reward. We now have over 30, 5-star reviews. Because of this, when we apply to a housesit, we almost always get it. There’s no competition.
And the Truth about Housesitting?
We promised the truth behind housesits.
They’re work. Some are more work than others.
They’re rewarding. Some are more rewarding than others.
They’re comfortable. Some are more comfortable than others.
They save you money on accommodations and possibly transportation. In the five years we’ve been housesitting, we’ve saved over $20,000 in accommodations fees alone.
They do limit your ability to do things. You can’t sneak off for a long day of tourism, a quick overnight to the beach, or even have friends over (sometimes the homeowner allows this.)
They provide routine, normalcy and comfort. But these treats come at the limit to your freedom.
Some pets are awful. And you get stuck. But most aren’t, and when the petsit comes to an end, we’re often sad to go.
There’s no sure-fire way to ensure a good petsit. Trust your gut. Don’t see what’s not there. We’ve and two terrible housesits despite our best vetting.
If you would like more tips on housesitting, stories, and truths about our experience with housesitting, read these posts:
Fitting Housesitting into your Nomad Life
We Save $20,000 a Year on Accommodations by Housesitting
Or watch these videos:
Don’t Just Travel; Housesit
How to Get 5-Stars on Every Housesit
~Chris
P.S. And remember to click here and use our code EATWALK25 to sign up as either a homeowner, housesitter, or both.
Fantastic info Chris! Thanks for sharing your well-thought out strategy!
This is great information!
We are currently getting more house sits than we expected by word of mouth, but it would probably pay to be listed and gathering reviews if these homeowners are already on Trusted Housesitters.