Become a House Sitter

House sitters are responsible for caring for a house while the homeowner is away for an extended period of time. It's a great opportunity to stay in a new place Live Rent Free (although you may have to pay utilities). To become a house sitter, first write a house sitting resume which you can use online or in person to demonstrate your experience and qualifications. Decide when and where you're willing to house sit, then ask around or advertise in newspapers and online to find the right house sitting opportunity.

Steps

Creating a House Sitting Resume

1. Start your resume with a strong headline. The headline should be unique and attention-grabbing (but professional) and should highlight what you feel are your strongest assets. For example, a good headline would read something like, "Compulsively clean pet lover seeking an opportunity to house sit in Santa Barbara."
2. Explain why you want to be a house sitter. Briefly describe what attracts you to the idea of house sitting as well as what qualities you have that make you think you would be a good fit for the job.
   • Your examples might be that you are trying to save up for college, that you are looking for opportunities to travel, or even something specific such as “I would like a place to stay while I’m visiting my grandmother in Charlotte, NC this fall.”
3. Give details about past experiences you’ve had. Even if you've never been a house sitter, chances are you've been in situations that required the skills of a sitter. For example, if you babysat for the neighborhood children as a teenager, walked dogs for extra cash, or cared for a sick grandmother in her home, you have the experience to list in your profile.
4. Do a background screen. A background screen (or background check) is a detailed look into your history, and it may cover any criminal activity, employment history, credit history, education, and more. Being able to provide a homeowner with a detailed, professional background check can help give them peace of mind that you are who you say you are.
5. Gather references. If you have past house sitting experience, provide references from the previous homeowners. If you’re just getting started, consider asking your landlord, previous employers, teachers, family friends or commendable figures in your life, such as a police officer, judge or doctor to write a letter vouching for your character, trustworthiness, and responsibility.

Setting Your House Sitting Parameters

1. Select your availability. Before you start searching for a location to house sit, you should know when you’ll be available. Are you more interested in a long-term house sitting opportunity, or do you just want to house sit for a long weekend over the holidays?
   • You’ll have better luck finding a house sitting opportunity if you have open availability during times when travel is highest. For instance, long-distance trips increase 23% during Christmas and New Year’s and 54% the week of Thanksgiving.
2. Choose where you want to house sit. Do you only want to travel to big cities, or is a rural escape more your speed? Would you prefer to house sit in your own neighborhood or are you more interested in a trip abroad? Deciding early where you’re willing to stay will help you narrow down your options as you search.
3. Decide whether you’re willing to pet sit. Houses with pets make up about 80% of house sitting arrangements, so if you’re not open to pet sitting, you may find limited opportunities.
   • Caring for a pet comes with a lot of extra responsibilities, so be sure you’re up to the challenge. In addition to providing the animal with food and water and cleaning up after them, you might also be asked to provide special care, like administering any medications the animal may need.
4. Be honest about what services you can provide. If you’re bad at keeping a routine, you might not want to watch a pet which requires a rigid schedule, and if you don’t have good mobility, you wouldn’t want to house sit in a home with several flights of stairs.
   • Other considerations might include whether or not you’re willing to do landscaping or whether you feel comfortable staying in a location where you don’t speak the local language.
5. Be prepared to pay a security deposit. Not all homeowners require a security deposit, but many do. This is a deposit that you give to the homeowner that helps protect them from any damage caused while a stranger is watching their home. It should be refunded to you after the duration of your stay. A deposit shows that you are responsible and serious about your duties.

Advertising for the Position

1. Ask family and friends about house sitting opportunities. If you’re just getting started, ask your family, friends, and neighbors if they know anyone who needs a house sitter. This can be a good way to get some experience without having to travel far from home.
2. Take out a classified ad in a local newspaper where you want to house sit. You might not be able to fit your whole resume in a newspaper’s classified ad section, but you can post a shortened version in a newspaper based out of the area where you want to house sit.
   • In addition to traditional newspapers, check to see if the area has any independent weekly papers, like the Memphis Flyer or the North Bay Bohemian in Sonoma, CA.
3. Post your profile on free classifieds websites. Sites like Craigslist are free to post on or browse, making them a popular option for people who are searching for house sitters.
   • Since Craigslist and other similar sites are anonymous, be sure to do your due diligence. If someone responds to your ad with an offer that seems too good to be true or you get a bad feeling about it, move on to another opportunity.
4. Pay to place a listing on house sitting websites. There are a number of websites which are dedicated specifically to the purpose of connecting homeowners with sitters. Search online for these companies, then pay a small fee to be listed in their directory of available house sitters.
   • Some popular sites include http://trustedhousesitters.com, http://www.housecarers.com, http://www.luxuryhousesitting.com, and http://mindmyhouse.com.
5. Purchase a list of “help wanted” advertisements. The same companies that manage house sitting directories often also sell lists of homeowner advertisements seeking the services of a sitter. One benefit of buying a list of homeowner advertisements is that you’ll be part of a smaller number of applicants for these opportunities.

Deciding on an Opportunity

1. Follow up with any potential matches. When you’re contacted by a homeowner who matches your criteria, follow up with a friendly email or phone call to find out more about what they're looking for.
   • It's usually a good idea to start with a short conversation and schedule a longer interview for later on so both parties will have a chance to prepare any questions they may have.
2. Ask plenty of questions when being interviewed by the homeowner. You don’t want any surprises when you show up for the first day of your house sitting job.
   • Write down your list of questions beforehand so you can be sure you are on the same page as the homeowners.
   • Some questions you might ask would include: “Do your pets require any special care?”, “Is there anything I should know about your home’s security system?”, “What chores will I need to perform?”, “Will I be expected to pay for utilities?”, and “How far away are the nearest grocery store, pharmacy, etc?”
3. Ask for pictures of the home. This will help you know exactly what you’re in for. You don't want to find out at the last minute that the ceiling is caving in or that bathroom sink doesn't have faucets. Check to see if the pictures look current, as older pictures might not reflect the current state of the home.
4. Research the neighborhood. Search online or reach out to people who live in the area to find out what you can about the neighborhood. Avoid house sitting in areas with high crime or which are known for drug activity.
   • Use Google Earth to search for the address of the home where you’ll be staying, then click around the neighborhood to see what it looks like. This can give you valuable information the homeowner doesn’t mention, such as whether or not there might be noisy construction going on across the street.

Tips

• Consider creating your own static webpage if you want to look as professional as possible. Include your link on all of your advertisements.

Warnings

• Avoid relinquishing your own home in order to house sit unless you are absolutely positive that you will want to sit for a long time, and that you don't mind the prospect of being without a home in between house sitting gigs.
• Be careful not to waste your money advertising on ineffective websites. When searching the Internet for quality house sitter directory sites, pay attention to the quality of the website itself, as well as its search engine ranking.

Quick Summary

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