House Sitters? yay or nay

koomzie · Newbie

House Sitters? yay or nay

copper1 · Guru

koomzie, firstly welcome to the forum. House sitters yes to do or not to do we had this dilemma as well due to our last daughter moving away from home and us, wanting to bugger off when we want to. So what to do well we googled house sitters to see what we could find and finally found this site www.aussiehousesitters.com.au and placed an add and were inundated with applicants of which we severely scrutinised.

We are heading off at the end of the month to Tassie for 7 weeks and with a dog, cat and bird to look after as well as the security of your home we had to do something. Well we are happy to say we have a retired couple from SA coming over to look after things for us we have spoken to them a few time's and the more we talk the more at ease we have become. They are happy for our children to call over and say Gday, collect the mail etc so it's not as if someone close is not keeping and extra eye on things. It is never easy leaving your biggest asset to strangers but sometimes you have to make the decision and do it or otherwise you will never get away.

Anyway will update everyone once we return about the success of this system, but we are sure all will be OK.

Following the Sun · Newbie

Hi koomzie,
My husband and I started our grey nomad adventure last year. We also registered with the aussiehousesitters website and have had great experiences looking after seven properties so far. These varied from town houses on the Sunshine Coast to cattle stations in the outback. As a registered sitter we have developed a portfolio of great references from happy clients and have had return bookings. Many of the clients were booking house sitters for the first time and, like you, were understandably nervouse about having strangers in their home. But a good house sitter can add peace of mind for you as you know that your family pets and property are being well looked after while you relax on your holiday. And you can come home to a well tended garden, mowed lawns, clean house and happy pets. We even have a hot meal on the table and a cake in the oven for our people when they arrive home. But then we are especially proud of our reputation as house sitters. Give it a go. Check prospective sitters references. And you will be surprised by the results. It will open up new possibilities for your future travel plans knowing that you have some one you can trust looking out for your property while you are away.
Ps grey nomads make good house sitters because they appreciate a break from their caravan which often gives them the chance to catch up on any needed repairs or maintenance. Then they are just as happy to hand over your house keys and get back on the road on your return. It is a win win relationship.

Pam · Guru

Just wondering, who pays who? Do you pay sitters to look after things or do they pay you rent? Or is it a freebie both ways? What about insurance?

Gerty Dancer · Guru

We have used house-sitters several times from this site.... http://www.housecarers.com/

As others have said, check references, ask lots of questions and follow your instincts!

The web-site gives guidelines about who pays what. We found it helpful to write a list of duties expected and we were always thrilled to come home to a fresh clean house. They forwarded our mail in pre-purchased Express-post bags about once a month when we sent our address by text, and in one case became long-lasting friends.

Also have a look in the Classifieds section on the front page of the GN's web-site.

copper1 · Guru

Pam wrote:
Just wondering, who pays who? Do you pay sitters to look after things or do they pay you rent? Or is it a freebie both ways? What about insurance?

Pam, the House Sitters pay an annual fee to be a member. People like us who require a sitter don't pay anything and there is no money that exchanges hands with the home owner and sitter, the sitter looks after your property in return they receive free lodgings. Regarding insurance, you should be covered under your policy just check with who ever you use as your insurer, in fact most insurers prefer someone in residence if you are going to be absent for any length of time.

hako · Guru

Our insurance policy for house and contents states that you cannot claim for any damages caused by invited guests or anyone who lives in the house except for accidental damage. What happens if the sitter disappears with all your valuable stuff?...just wondering as we're also going away for a few months and just are a bit dubious of letting strangers have free run of the house. There are a lot of personal items in a house not just in one room that you can lock shut.
The other worry is that there are quite a few sites that offer this service which indicates to me that there is money in it.
Regards

Gerty Dancer · Guru

Hako, the money made by house-sitter sites is paid by wannabe house-sitters, and theres lots of them.

As far as risking your property, yes theres always a risk, that's why you check references carefully!
Our insurance company wants a visitor to enter the house once a week if the house is vacant for more than 60 days... its either get a neighbour or friend or relly to do this or have a house-sitter... any one of them might steal your property, you can only choose the most reliable honest person you can get.

villatranquilla · Guru

we are house/dog sitting at the moment in Perth till the end of January. Registered with an agency who gives us detailed info about tasks and manages the service. We met with the client a week before the 'sit' began to familiarize ourselves with the dog/house. We pay a security fee ($450) to the agency which is refunded if we no longer want to stay registered with this agency. I believe she charges the home owner a fee just a bit less than what they would pay a boarding kennel. We don't get paid and live in the house which has been great given Perth's heat wave. We walk the dog daily, water gardens and collect mail - that's it really. And of course supply all our own food etc.

the ginger nomad · Senior Member

We spent 3 months away last year and had the same problem,what to do with the dog and who would look after the house.
Found a fantastic couple by advertising on The Grey Nomads under house sitter wanted.We could not have been happier with our sitters.The house was tidier than when we left.Our sitters parked their van in our yard but stayed in our house.when we travelled it was winter and we thought nobody would want to spend a winter house sitting in Bathurst area.

kandagal · Guru

We have been house sitters on & off for the last 10 years. During this time we have looked after properties in NT, WA, Vic & Qld. We take house sitting very seriously & always care & tend to the owner's properties very well. Also looked after horses, cows, dogs, cats, chooks, geese, ducks, fish & birds. We have very good references & remain friends with the owners after the house sit. Most have invited us to pop in any time we are passing for a cuppa or if we need an O/N stop in their area.

robbolifestyle · Member

Hi we are 2 grey nomads in Perth area, who are very interested in house sitting, we sat our first house 2 weeks ago for a family that went on a holiday o/seas, they were happy on our sit,as we were happy to do it, and are wanting to do it again and again, we live in a retirement village north of perth, sold our van, and now want to sit in wa state, Cheers Robbo.

fridaydog · Member

Hi
We have sat a number of properties in Australia and NZ over the last four years and really enjoy it. One couple in NZ we have sat for now twice and they always tell us to drop in if we are passing. Charging for the service is quite common in UK/Europe/USA, much less so here. We have looked after cats/dogs/fish/gardens over those sits. We never take a sit when the owner want to charge us. We always offer to leave with the owner, for the duration, an amount equal to their householder insurance excess, so they can relax. Oh, and its never been needed.

For the owner, the first key point is always check references. We always give the names/contact details of the owners we have sat for, with their permission, to those who include us on their consideration list. This means the owner gets a better picture of the sitter's skills/abilities/attitudes. The second key point is start looking well in advance, because the best sitters will be booked up well over a year ahead. Leaving it to the last minute will mean your search will be hurried and you may make mistakes.

As sitters its always good to talk about any skills you may have, and as I'm a handyman and my wife likes to garden, we always like to leave things a little better than when we arrived. In the end its about balance for everyone involved.

In any event, we can talk from both sitter and property owner positions so if anyone wants more specifics, please let me know.
Graham

poodles1950 · Veteran Member

House sitting is a wonderful two way street. We have used www.housesitworld.com.au We've done lots of sits, always with pets as we just love animals. We have left the place cleaner than we found it, had a meal ready for the returning home owners and enjoyed exploring a new area with all the comforts of home. We have also used sitters and done home exchange, all with success. HOWEVER, we have heard some horror stories as well. Best to communicate extensively, ask for referees and thoroughly check out the person[s]. At the end of the day though, you need to trust your gut feeling and go with it. Having a friend pop in or drive past from time to time may put your mind at rest. A good sitter will understand. Change your house insurance to landlords, the extra premium - it wasn't much - was worth the peace of mind. Hope this all helps.

hokianga · Senior Member

I have used housesitters from the grey nomads classifieds plus also found a houssit for myself. There is a certain amount of trust involved, but in most cases I have been very lucky.