‘Home Based Business’ Category

Tips on how to be the best House Sitter

Nomad. Yes, that's what we can call house sitters, although you may have a permanent address. House sitting, will it work for you?  Here are some tip...

 

Nomad. Yes, that’s what we can call house sitters, although you may have a permanent address. House sitting, will it work for you?  Here are some tips on how to be the best house sitter:

You should be impeccably trustworthy. Why? For obvious reasons of course, homeowners will have to entrust their homes and other properties to you. When posting notices on local bulletin boards make sure that you have a reputable record, this can be verified through your friends and families you have worked for.

Once you receive a call about a house set up an appointment to meet the owner of the house. During the meeting you can learn about their pets and layout of the house.   Make sure to take down notes for noticeable damages and other important details such as the electric meter, gas meter and etc. By doing this you can show the house owners how responsible you are and you are really serious in looking after their house.

Like animals! If you’re getting involved in house sitting you should learn how to appreciate animals, if you are not already an animal lover. Majority of people will have pets for you to care for. Some animals require intensive care while others need to be let out every once in a while. Make sure to ask the owner about the pets routines and that includes feeding and bathing.

Make sure to find out specific and important details like where to find the mop, cleaning supplies, gardening equipment and such. Ask your sleeping arrangements, some homeowner let you choose to sleep in any one room or in the couch.

When moving in you shouldn’t have too many personal belongings because they tend to get left behind and inevitably annoy people. Few changes of clothes and a book or two will suffice. You will need more or less food depending on how long you will be staying.

Settle in ONE room. Do not try to spread too much because it will only get harder when you leave. Try to contain your belongings to the bedroom and kitchen as much as possible, so that when you leave you wont rummage through the whole house.

Enjoy your stay. The most important and basic rules in house sitting are to not trash your client’s house. Clean up immediately. If you follow these house sitting tips, you may as well be called one of the best house sitters ever.

Rules to Follow in House Sitting

 

House sitting looks complicated. Not if you follow these house sitting rules for both the homeowner and house sitter.

Homeowner Rules:
Complete a list of requirements before hiring a house sitter.

During selection, choose the right house sitter by creating a correct candidate profile according to your needs. Of course you do not want an out going person if you want your house to be stayed in 24/7.

Create detailed and specific instructions. Including all minor and major house keeping responsibilities. For example: Water the plants every day. Feed the dogs 3 times a day.

Give important details that might be needed by the house sitter. Such as, alarm code, emergency numbers, alternative contact person and vets number if any. If you asked your sitter to forward your mails give your address as well.

It is a good idea to tell people like close relatives, friends and neighbors that you have a house sitter coming in during the time you’ll be away. It avoids unnecessary concerns and embarrassments.

Ideally, try to make a list of your valuables, identifiers and private papers. Put them in a secure place preferably under a locked room.

Provide for your sitters needs. Give a spare key, linen, supplies and storage room for your house sitters’ belongings.

Now for the house sitter this is more of a do’s and don’ts
House Sitter Rules:

Do not trash the place. Don’t invite your friends over unless permitted.

Don’t use the client’s things, again, not unless you are permitted.

Don’t make long distance calls from the home’s landline. It’s better if you just use your cell phone when making personal calls.

Do not spread out your personal belongings all over the house.

Do not leave the pets unattended. Never leave the pets for a long period of time other than what the owner suggests. You won’t want all the mess they’ll make when you get back.

Contain all your belongings in one room or place.

Treat the home as you would treat your own home.

Introduce yourself to the neighbors, or at least do when someone asks.

Obtain all utility receipts for reimbursements.

Do your responsibility seriously and perform all daily tasks.

Contact owners when there is an emergency or when needed.
House sitting is a marvelous way to provide and generate income. Following these simple house sitting rules for both parties can make it easy like Sunday mornings.

International House sitting: A New Trend.

 

If you often go abroad or a frequent business traveler or you would like to go on a long vacation with the family but you want to have peace of mind that there is someone watching over your house and properties, you may wish to avail of house sitting services.

At present, it doesn’t matter where you are. House sitters from many other countries are willing to travel to care for your house and pets while you are away. Most of the time, international house sitting is enticing for house as they get to travel to other countries and stay in a house free of rent. Imagine how much they can save from spending in hotel accommodations.

Individuals like young adventurous couples, or retired couples who likes to house sit for dozens of reasons. Retirees love house sitting to explore other countries and enjoy the change of location at lower cost. Students also look for house sitting opportunities because it is a cost-effective way to study abroad. Writers, artists and other professionals who can do their regular jobs even when hopping into different places or countries also find houses and do pet sitting to experience new environment.

However when hiring an international house sitter it’s advisable to house sitter that also suits your needs. In finding a house and pet sitters, it is best to refer online.  This way you can select the best sitters who you can trust as it allows you to see their personal information. It is of high importance to get someone who can do tasks and responsibilities you will be assigning them. Checking their background and conducting interviews can also help a lot in choosing a house sitter. Feel free to ask for work experiences and references.  Inspect if the sitter has been in the business for a length of time, they should be willing to give you a couple of contact numbers or email addresses of their previous clients.

Hiring a pet sitter is not as difficult as it seems, if you know what you are looking for. Start searching at least several weeks before you leave so that you will have ample amount of time to work out all the details you need to know. You’ll be thankful for it.

House Sitting Services

 

People are customarily unwilling to leave their homes unattended for a pro-longed period of time while they are elsewhere traveling. The thought of burglars or intruders marching into their homes and destroying their property or garden and landscaping while they are gone brings horror to home owners. Others frequently fret over their mails and newspapers being trashed and not collected in time. That’s why others prefer to hire house sitters to care for their homes and mails to discourage crime. Other than that, house sitting can also help in avoiding extra expenditures like storage and mail forwarding.

House sitting duties normally includes the maintenance of the home and yard. Sitters are usually required to perform light housekeeping tasks to retain a dust and clutter free house. In addition, watering plants, grass and outdoor greenery is expected. If a sitter is in charge over an extended period of time, it is also a requirement to ensure the grass is cut and tress, shrubs and foliage are trimmed and pruned.

Paying utility bills and opening mail that needs urgent attention are also part of the house sitters administrative tasks. Sometimes the resident may ask her to monitor bank account activities, There is a list of contractors often supplied by the house owners to the sitter in case there are unexpected electrical or plumbing repairs. Answering phone calls, messages and greeting visitors are part of the sitter’s job.

Occasionally, a house sitter may be mandated to care for the pets, frequently feeding the pets, such as birds, cats, dogs, fish, hamsters or small reptiles. If the homeowner has a dog she may also be required to take it for a walk in the park or take it outside just to exercise and meet its bodily function needs.

More often than not, a house sitter builds her resume and list if references by providing services for friends and family before seeking work from the general public. Since there is no educational requirement for this position, having a driver’s license may be compulsory when seeking house sitting services.

House Sitting is the Best Way to your Property’s Safety

 

If you leave your property unattended for an amount of time the risk of someone breaking in and robbing your valued properties increases.  Some people might think that it is simpler to close their house up, lock the doors and leave rather than going through the process of finding a house sitter, sadly, reality is the more signs of your home being unoccupied such as mails and newspapers piling up in front of your house makes your house an easy target for burglars.

House sitting is a practice where a homeowner leaves his/her house for a period of time and entrusts it to a house sitter. A mutual agreement is made between the homeowner and the house sitter, where he/she may allow the sitter to stay in the house rent-free in exchange of taking housekeeping responsibilities like receiving the mails and newspapers, performing general maintenance, gardening, dusting, do not allow any trespassers in the property, and generally, make sure everything runs as smoothly like how the owner would’ve done if he/she was home.

Now you may be wondering who will pay the utility bills while you are away. Customarily the house sitters will shoulder those expenses during their stay. This removes the anxiety from the homeowner who may be concerned about coming home with a large electric, gas and phone bills. All the other bills, such as mortgages, taxes, and home insurance are still the responsibility of the homeowner.

Homeowners who will avail house sitting services for the first time are also reluctant to leave their homes to total strangers. They prefer to have some sort of house sitting insurance. Sometimes, it is upon the homeowner’s discretion whether to ask for a bond or security deposit, this deposit is normally equivalent to a two weeks rent. If you plan to collect bonds be sure to incorporate it to your written contract.

For amateur house sitters it is easier to lodge for a house sitting insurance. On the other hand, professional house sitters who have proven maturity and responsibility are convinced that bonds are unnecessary.