If you are someone who loves to side hustle while traveling, you must have heard about house sitting jobs.
You can’t miss them if earning on the side is something you love doing while being a travel junkie.
Over the last few years, house sitting has seen significant growth as a side job. It’s interesting to note that even full-time job holders are turning to house sitting for extra income or if they plan to travel (to cut costs).
When it comes to travel, whether it is traveling with kids or solo travel, the accommodation could take the fun out of your experience. Of all the jobs you can do while traveling, house sitting is a great way to satisfy your travel bug if you lack the funds to get a place to stay.
Learn more about house sitting jobs
What exactly are house sitting jobs?
House sitting is taking care of a house while its owner is away for a certain period of time. By taking care of the house, I mean general cleaning, gardening, taking care of pets if there are any, and other household chores. It’s very much like how you treat your own place.
House sitting jobs are abundant in countries like the US, Canada, Australia, the UK, and many other places.
You also need to remember that typically house sitting jobs are for more extended periods from one to six months. During this period, you are supposed to be taking care of the house and pets. You can always choose between short-term and long-term stays.
Who can do house sitting jobs?
Anyone.
Though there are no particular requirements for house sitting, I have noticed in some forums that families with young children don’t get many opportunities. Homeowners prefer people who are capable of taking care of their homes while they are gone. Much better if you have some experience doing this gig.
How much can you earn with house sitting?
How much you can make as a house sitter depends on many factors like
- The location of the house
- The responsibilities
- The duration of house sitting
So it varies widely depending on the duration and length of your stay.
House sitting doesn’t always involve getting paid. Some house sitters don’t charge at all. This is the case when someone is visiting a new place and wants accommodation. They do house sitting gigs in exchange for rent and food.
Related:
- How to Work from Home as a Travel Planner
- Earn While You Travel as a Tour Guide
- 18 Legit Remote Travel Agent Jobs in 2024
Where to find house sitting jobs?
There are many places to find house sitting jobs:
#1. TrustedHousesitters
TrustedHousesitters is by far the biggest resource for house sitting gigs, and it charges a fee of $119 to register as a house sitter on its website. It’s one of the sites that does not ask for a background check for house sitters. This website has house sitting opportunities in the US, Europe, UK, and Canada. It’s a good place to start if you just want to sign up for one website, considering that it has a large number of houses listed.
#2. HouseCarers
HouseCarers has house sitting opportunities in the US and Australia. The fee for registering as a house sitter on HouseCarers.com is $50 per year. You need to keep in mind that this website only works on the premise that you can do house sitting in exchange for free accommodation, so there is no pay involved. If there are additional duties, then a fee is decided between the house sitter and house owner.
#3. Nomador
The fee to become a registered member of this website is $89 per year. Nomador has house sitting gigs in France and other French-speaking countries exclusively. It’s also expanding down under in Australia now. It has a “Discovery” option where you can create your house sitter profile and send up to three applications without paying the full fees.
#4. MindMyHouse
This website charges $20 per year for creating your house sitter profile. It has a relatively low number of houses listed when compared to the above sites. MindMyHouse is an excellent place to get started if you are new to house sitting given the low fees.
#5. HouseSitMatch
The charges to sign up are around $49 to $79 per year for this website. HouseSitMatch advertises house sitting opportunities in the UK, Australia, France, and Spain for now. It also has a lot of pet sitting opportunities in these countries, if you are a pet lover.
#6. LuxuryHouseSitting.com
This website charges $25 per year to create your house sitter profile. LuxuryHouseSitting has house sitting gigs in many countries like Australia, the UK, the US, Africa, Thailand, and many more. It also has a 60-day refund policy if you are not happy with their service.
#7. House Sitters America
This website has a fee of $30 per year to become a house sitter on its platform. House Sitters America only caters to US states.
#8. House Sitters Canada
This is a relatively new startup in the house sitting market. House Sitters Canada only lists houses in Canada. For a limited time, it has a two-year free membership for house sitters (which is excellent news if you want to house sit in Canada).
How to get started as a house sitter?
Register on the above websites
If you want to land house sitting gigs, then sign up for a bunch of house sitting websites. I know they are expensive, but if you can grab a good number of house sitting jobs, then you will be earning more than the membership fees for all these websites.
If your mission is to travel to new places, then sign up for a website like TrustedHouseSitters.com, which has a big list of houses and covers many countries.
Create a stellar profile
All these websites are like matchmaking sites. The better your profile is, the better your chances are of getting the house sitting job. Being as descriptive as you can be in your profile about your past house sitting jobs, highlighting your soft skills like good with pets or excellent gardening skills, etc. can make a positive impact on the house owner.
To make it more personalized, add good photographs to your profile. You can also provide as many references as possible, which can increase the trust factor, helping you to land more jobs.
Apply and communicate
Once you find the right house, apply promptly. Be quick in answering questions and ask any questions you have. It’s always good to know what the rules are and the expectations of the house owners before you jump in.
Things to remember before you start house sitting
- Getting a background check organized in advance will give you a better chance of getting more house sitting jobs as most of these websites ask for background checks.
- Many of these websites have house sitter terms and conditions, but most of the time, house owners and house sitters make their own agreements, which is more convenient.
- Always check the requirements and do your research before you agree to any house sitting gigs. Personal safety is most important if you are going to live in a new place for a more extended period.
- There are short-term stays and long-term stays, and both of them have different requirements, so check them before you apply.
Pros and cons of house sitting
Pros
- House sitting jobs can save you a lot of rent if you are in a new place and want to test the waters before renting.
- It is a great way to cut down costs if you are a frequent traveler as major tourist destinations like Europe have super hefty hotel charges.
- House sitting is a flexible way to earn extra money on the side if you want a change of place.
Cons
- There is an initial investment to sign up for all these websites, which might be hard if you are on a tight budget.
- You might have to take care of expenses like gas, electricity, and others as some of the owners don’t pay for those.
- If you are not a pet lover, taking care of pets can be a little harder (most of these house sitting gigs come with pets).
House sitting is great for many reasons like cutting down costs, saving rent, living in a new place, etc. It can put money back in your pocket if you are a frequent traveler with no expenses for accommodation at all.
If you are keen to experiment with this new gig then sign up for the above websites and become a house sitter.
