Item: Trusted Housesitters
Rating: 9.9
Author: Jonathan Kerns

Trusted Housesitters Review

No longer the newcomer on the scene, TrustedHouseSitters is by a large margin the best and biggest option for both finding a house sitter or finding house sitting opportunities. With over 50,000 members from around the world, whether you're looking for a weekend in Manhattan or a year in an eco-resort in Belize, TrustedHouseSitters is the place to look. Pets get to stay at home, owners avoid kennel costs, and sitters receive free accommodation in return for pet, home (and sometimes garden) care. Pretty simple, right? Here are the pros and cons of the platform for both housesitters and house owners from my personal experience.

For Housesitters

Free accommodation, simple as that! If you want to avoid hotel or hostel costs, house sitting helps… a lot!

Animals! Sometimes we miss our furry friends, so sharing the travelling adventure with Marley the Golden Retriever or cuddles with Juliette the cat is a great way to add even more fun to the journey.

People, no matter where we’ve gone or who we’ve stayed with we’ve always been welcomed with open arms. Some homeowners may connect you with people in the area or give you local tips on what to see, where to go, and the best food in town.

Locations: Trusted Housesitters has the largest number and widest range of available house sits, compared to other sites I’ve used. You can travel five miles down the road or halfway across the globe with TrustedHousesitters.

Simple to setup and easy to use follow the easy steps and you’ll have complete and ready to use profile in no time.

For Home Owners

Free pet care, no more paying for kennels or having a neighbor come in once a day. For a one time fee ($100 to join the site) you can find someone you approve, to be with your pets as much as you wish.

Reduced stress for your pets, no cat or dog enjoys being shipped off for a two week ‘vacation’ to the kennels. With TrustedHousesitters pets get to stay at home and relax.

Solution for those more unusual animals or situations. Do you have a small holding? Is your pet parrot a little fussy? Or are you located an hour from civilisation? Chances are with such a large number of active members TrustedHousesitters will have your perfect match.

You’re in control. The way TrustedHousesitters is set up allows homeowners to set the terms, make the decisions, and have the final say. Set up a Skype call, ask any and all the questions you might have. Ask for a background check and read references.

Vet Line, unlike other platforms, TrustedHousesitters offers a 24 hour vet line for homeowners and sitters to use in case of emergency or just to reassure themselves.

For Housesitters

You have to be flexible, as a house sitter your holidays and travel plans are going to be determined by the homeowners. This might mean a different location, timing, or length of vacation than you’d planned.

Competitive, the ratio of sitters to opportunities is high. You might find that you apply and apply but don’t secure a gig, or even a reply. Don’t let this dissuade you though, check out my tips and advice below to up your odds.

Responsibility, at the end of a day the homeowner is entrusting you with their home and pets, you need to be prepared to take that on. If you don’t like chickens, don’t apply to a house sit with poultry, or if you’re favorite part of a holiday is trashing the hotel room, housesitting might not be for you!

Website, while TrustedHousesitters is definitely the best site out there it still has some bugs, and improvements need to made to the filters.

For Home Owners

Trust, housesitting works on the basis of mutual trust, if that’s hard for you or you don’t feel a connection with your sitter then you might have problems.

Risk, you're leaving your home and pet with someone you don’t know which carries a risk, if you are willing to this then there lots of ways to mitigate risks before you leave and reassure you while you’re away.

Trusted Housesitters Pricing – A Pro or a Con?

Some users (both house sitters and homeowners) have mentioned the price as a downside. Personally for me, it was a great investment. So far this year I’ve traveled for 45 days without paying for hotels. It also saved me a fortune as the owner of a very fussy cat.

They have changed their pricing structure to a single year long subscription for both house owners and house/pet sitters at $199 per year. If you want to sign up as both, you can simply add $29 a year. You also get 24/7 access to a free vet line advice.

TrustedHousesitters pricing plan was designed to encourage you down the path of year long subscription. For lots of members annual membership great, if you take more than one holiday, want to start planning in advance, or are travelling for a long period, a year membership is perfect. For those looking to just dip their toe and try the housesitting thing, the pricing is a little unfair, but don’t forget you can browse available house sits or house sitters for free before signing up.

How TrustedHousesitters Works

The TrustedHousesitters system is different for sitters and homeowners.

For Housesitters

Housesitters need to sign up and create a profile. The basic steps for this are easy and won’t take more than 10 minutes, but to really build a profile and increase chances of success it will take a little longer and some thought. After setting up a profile, housesitters should browse available posts or set up tailored email alerts. Applying is easy, when you find an opportunity you like, simply click ‘Apply’ and send the homeowner a message using the in site messaging system.

For Homeowners

As a homeowner you sign up and create your posting. This includes an introduction, information about your home and the location, and the responsibilities and pets the housesitter should expect. This is quick and easy, and now TrustedHousesitters has increased the number of photos allowed, you can include your favorite snaps of your pets and home. Once a post is live you will (hopefully) start receiving applications, this should continue till you hit the ‘reviewing applications’ button. Once you’ve picked your favorites, go ahead and set up phone calls, skype calls, and ask all the important questions. When you’ve decided, click the ‘confirm’ button and seal the deal. At the end of a house sit you’ll have the opportunity to leave a review of the sitter(s).

Advice for Housesitters

Being a housesitter definitely requires a little flexibility, otherwise you’re going to spend a long time waiting (and probably not finding) your ideal location at the perfect timing. That being said, this summer we’ve been extremely lucky and found three house sits in the exact three locations we wanted that have lined up perfectly. Here’s my advice for securing your ideal house sitting opportunity:

Set up email alerts. TrustedHousesitters (and other house sitting websites) will email you every time a new house sit that meets your criteria is posted. You’re going to get a lot of emails and some of them might not be relevant, but it will ensure you don’t miss your dream house sit!
Apply quickly. Don’t hang around before sending in your application, we received over 30 applications in less than 24 hours. At that point, we decided to close the posting and ‘review applications’. Remember that once the homeowners are in the reviewing applications phase, you cannot apply any more.
Have an application ready to go. Prepare a stock response that you can tailor to each posting. This will save you time and make applying to lots of different posts less daunting.
References, and lots of them! TrustedHousesitters has three distinct types of references: TrustedHousesitters Homeowners Review, External House/Pet sitting References, and Character References. When you first start, take advantage of the external references to bolster your application. After a house sit don’t forget to ask homeowners to leave you references.

Advice for Homeowners

Make your requirements clear. Different pets and homes require different levels of care; make this clear from the beginning. If you’re looking for someone with specific skills/characteristics, include that. If your pets require medicine or extra care, include that. If your home is in a remote location, include that. The more information the better and the more likely you are to find your ideal match.
Understand what you need in order to feel reassured about the arrangement. For some people, a Skype call is perfect. For others, a face-to-face meeting (though is it often not possible), and some people want to see police checks and sign agreements. My advice is to know what works for you and try to create a sense of mutual trust.
Advice and instruction, leave clear information about the important details, be it about the pets, house or the nosy neighbor. We’ve always appreciated the extra information, what only the locals know; the best nearby pizza place, hidden treasures to find, but most important the closest supermarket!

What's the Verdict on Trusted Housesitters?

A Must Try