How to find a great house sitter
By Amanda Scali

2/12/2019 1:18pm

How to find a great house sitter
Are you heading away for the summer months for a family vacation?

You might be looking to find a reliable house sitter, who can look after your garden, pets and home like you will.

So how do you find that someone?

Here are our top tips.

Decide what you need from a house sitter.

Do you need someone to love and care for your pets and plants or just someone to keep the lights on and clear out your mailbox?

For example; if you have two large dogs that need regular exercise and the need for someone who can wrangle a lead at walk time you may want to pick someone who is fit, and has the time to walk and look after your pets instead of a busy professional or retirees.

Finding the right fit for each house is important for a successful house-sitting partnership.

Seek recommendations or use a reputable house-sitting website

Ask friends who have recently used a house sitter for recommendations or use a reputable house-sitting website to find the right match.

Check through applications and seek up to two references to check their ability to look after your asset.

If you have pets – Look for people who are good with pets and have previous experience owning them or looking after them.

The same goes for picking someone to care for your garden if this is a consideration.

Once you’ve picked a sitter, prepare for their arrival

Once you have picked the right sitter, prepare for their arrival by writing out detailed notes or a manual for everything that you expect during their time looking after your home.

If you feed and walk your pets on a specific schedule, write it down. Don’t expect that your sitter will know what you want, no matter how good they are you will need to leave them detailed notes.

Make it easy for them to find the information for your local vet, shops, etc.

And it’s a good idea to sit down with your sitter before you leave to set the expectation so you can discuss anything that might arise before they look after your abode.

And lastly, enjoy your holiday, knowing that you have picked a great sitter.