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How to Become a Full Time Housesitter – 21 Tips
Have you ever wanted to become a full time housesitter? YOU may have dabbled in caring for pets for friends or relatives, or even tried holiday housesitting for friends and family before. But housesitting and petsitting full time takes a different level of commitment.
Photo courtesy of Kelly Hayes Raitt
What is Full Time Housesitting
Full time house sitting is when you manage your housesitting assignments in a back to back fashion so that you move from one housesit to another with few breaks. Read on to find the best way to learn how you can prepare for your full time housesitting career, the challenges and opportunities.
21 Ninja Tips to Become a Full Time Housesitter
Do you dream of traipsing around the world like a modern-day Marco Polo? Of storing your stuff and paring your life down to a suitcase? Of starting fresh every few weeks as you explore a “new you” or heal from a painful betrayal?
I did. Throughout my life, at my deepest rock-bottom times, I fantasized about locking my front door and escaping to a deserted island where I could be free of other people’s expectations.
Truthfully, I never thought I’d actually do it! But after a painful mid-life loss, I hit the road. And started my housesitting career, full-time. And never looked back.
House sitting made that happen – affordably, safely, logistically. Here’s what I learned after I chose to become a full time housesitter and after during my 15 years of serial house sitting throughout the U.S., Mexico, Europe, Africa and Asia.
How Do I Get Started as a Full-Time House Sitter?
Photo credit – Alexas_Fotos
Become a Full Time Housesitter
Do you want to become a full time housesitter or even just to try housesitting for the first time, like Kelly? Join a housesitting platform like HouseSitMatch.com as a housesitter and enjoy a new experience.
1. Move your financial life on-line. With the internet making anyone’s life more portable, it’s important for full-time house sitters to manage every aspect of their finances on-line. Make sure all your financial institutions (savings, checking, investments, credit cards) allow on-line 24-hour access and transactions. I recently closed an investment account that required me to call and speak to a live person to make a routine transaction. Time zone differences and the added expense of overseas calls made this institution too inconvenient when compared to its competitors.
2. Get familiar with on-line communication apps such as Zoom, What’s App or Signal to be able to text and video chat with others on the platform. Even if you aren’t “tech-savvy,” you will find yourself increasingly relying on some of these new, user-friendly communication tools to be able to “meet” with prospective homeowners and stay in touch with far-flung friends.
3. Buy a sturdy suitcase! I swear by my Briggs & Riley duffel on wheels that’s accompanied me to so many countries it should have its own passport. After twenty years, it’s stained, torn and definitely shows its age. B&R offers a lifetime repair and replacement guarantee that I could take advantage of – if only I’d stay in one city long enough!
📦 Ready to Start Your House Sitting Journey? Join HouseSit Match today and browse hundreds of house sitting opportunities worldwide.
Seriously though, if you plan to become a full time housesitter and live out of your suitcase, you have to absolutely fall madly, deeply in love with it.
Photo courtesy of Kelly Hayes Raitt
What About all my Stuff?
4. Take as little as possible it makes your housesitting lifestyle manageable. Chances are you will rewear most of your clothes. Honestly, you don’t need a different T-shirt every day – the dog you are walking won’t notice! And you will likely have a washing machine at every one of your house sits.
5. Learn to pack before you become a full time housesitter. There are hundreds of videos of You Tubers packing their suitcases, but I’ve never seen my method: If you are living out of your suitcase, roll each item tightly and – instead of stacking the rolls on top of each other – line them up side-by-side, vertically. This way, when you open your case, you can easily see your entire wardrobe and remove one shirt or piece of underwear without disturbing the rest of the rolled clothes.
In hotter climates, I wear linen. “Linen?!,” you ask, horrified. Linen rolls up small. When I arrive at my destination, I hang the tops, dresses and trousers on hangars, soak them in the shower and let them drip dry. The water weighs down the linen, which dries quickly, leaving a wrinkle-free garment.
6. Develop a system for keeping track of your stuff. Realize that you will be living on top of other people’s stuff. (Here’s a blog with 13 tips for doing just that.)
Photo credit – Hans
Some full-time house sitters take care to keep track of all their stuff, using checklists of their belongings, including electronics and cables. I keep all my stuff contained in one area – one shelf in the bathroom and the fridge, one area of the living room, one section of the bedroom. And I keep most of my stuff out in plain sight. That way, when I leave, I just scan each room and shelf to be sure I have everything.
I also triple-check the most important things: passport, travel docs, laptop plug, smart phone charger.
7. Here’s an obvious tip for your house sitting career: Don’t accumulate more sh*t! While picking up a needed umbrella that will follow you on your travels is sometimes necessary, resist the urge to buy souvenirs at every stop. Instead, collect memories!
Ready to Housesit with HouseSit Match? 🏡
Experience the charm and fun of housesitting, exploring new towns and regions like a local, while taking care of a lovely home (and maybe a few pets!) while working from your new location.
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8. Follow your gut. While you will gather information about the sitting assignment, the pets’ needs, the community and the country you might be visiting, in the end, if something doesn’t feel right, don’t take the assignment.
Photo credit – JenniGut
It’s really, really tempting to accept an assignment that fills a gap in your full-time house sitting schedule. But, I promise you, if the sit is not a good match, you will regret not springing for a hotel!
9. Determine the reason for your particular desire to house sit at this moment. Is it to explore a new city? (Then caring for dogs who need multiple walks and can’t be left alone for long stretches won’t be a good fit at this time.) Is it to complete a project – like the Great American Novel you are writing? (Then those dog walks will be a welcome respite away from your writing desk!)
10. Find your sweet spot for the length of sitting assignments. Mine is three weeks. It’s long enough for me to get into a routine and get familiar with the new community, but not so long that if the sit isn’t a good fit, I can’t stick it out.
But that means, as a full-time house sitter, I’m moving every three weeks. Sometimes, I break that rule to give myself a longer respite from constant traveling. You need to be ready for this before you become a full time housesitter. All that movement can be tiring.
11. Assess each sit at the end. Following a sitting assignment, I do a personal assessment about what worked for me and what didn’t. This is a private conversation I have with myself so I can better evaluate future sitting opportunities.
What About Gaps in my Schedule ?
12. Always have emergency credit available! Even if your schedule is perfectly dove-tailed, life happens. A few years ago, I had a sit in Riga, Latvia. I was due to arrive two days before the homeowner departed. (I’d sat for her before and we’d become friends and were looking forward to hanging out together.) But my departing flight took off late and I missed my connecting flight to Riga – the last one of the evening! I was stranded in Stockholm.
I found my way to Sigtuna, a delightful seaside village about an hour’s bus ride from the airport, in a stately old hotel I got a last-minute deal on. Thank goodness for my credit card!
In the 15 years since I chose to become a full time housesitter, I’ve had two sits cancel at the last minute – one was after I’d arrived in the country! Again, last minute scrambling and my credit card saved the day.
13. Use gaps to explore the items on your Bucket List. Take a wee break from full-time house sitting and enjoy just being a tourist.
14. Augment house sitting with workstays. Web sites such as Wwoof.net offer homestays in exchange for a variety of manual labor. (But do check the country’s visa requirements. Some of these opportunities’ countries require work visas, not tourist visas.)
How do I maintain my Sanity When I Become a Full Time Housesitter?
15. Establish a base where you can leave out-of-season clothes and create a stable community. What made my 15-years as a full-time house sitter work for me was a great house sit at Lake Chapala, Mexico, every spring and autumn for a decade. I had a closet, a bookshelf and garage space – and a fabulous community of friends and the best dog ever to help create a bit of stability.
16. Alternate busier, “exploring” sitting assignments with quieter, more homebody sits. While thrilling, it’s exhausting being a perpetual tourist. Giving yourself permission to chill and binge on Netflix’s latest series helps you recharge and keeps house sitting exciting.
17. Vary the types of animals you care for. Getting a break from dog-walking or litter-scooping helps keep house sitting fresh and inviting.
How do I maintain a Community as a Full Time Housesitter?
18. Be proactive with maintaining long-distance friendships. We all know out-of-sight can often mean out-of-mind. It’s not that your friends no longer care about their favorite gypsy; you’re just no longer in their routine. So take the lead in reaching out to friends to schedule video chats, send personal emails, or brief texts with photos of some of your adventures.
But remember to ask about their lives, too. To them, you may seem like you are on perpetual vacation. Maintain the ties by continuing to be interested in their lives, too.
19. Be proactive in staying in touch with homeowners whose homes you’d like to return to. This may seem obvious, but it’s often overlooked! Your homeowners are now part of your “community,” too, so maintain the connection with periodic texts or emails.
20. Ask about having visitors. Only once in 15 years of full-time house sitting has a homeowner asked me, “Doesn’t that lifestyle get lonely?” It does. During my introduction video chat, I ask homeowners how they feel about my having a girlfriend visit for a few days. Some homeowners prefer not to have anyone in their home that they haven’t met. I respect that. Others, however, realize it would be more fun for me to invite a friend – and more hands to pamper their pets!
21. Ask homeowners to introduce you to a friend or neighbor or to recommend a dog park where people congregate. This is a great way to have an immediate friend for a coffee date, a hike or a source of “local knowledge.” Some of those “friends of homeowners” have become such good friends of mine that we’ve stayed in touch for years!
I loved my full-time house sitting life and will never regret the day I chose to become a full time housesitter. It was an extraordinary privilege being invited into people’s homes to care for the things most dear to them – their pets. And I have had many, many extraordinary experiences. House sitting made a dream I once thought impossible come true – again and again!
Do you want to become a full time housesitter like Kelly or even just to try housesitting for the first time? Join a housesitting platform like HouseSitMatch.com as a housesitter and enjoy a new experience.
Frequently Asked Questions About Full-Time House Sitting
Get answers to the most common questions about becoming a full-time house sitter
How much does it cost to become a full-time house sitter?
The startup costs are surprisingly low! You’ll need:
- A membership to a house sitting platform like HouseSitMatch (typically $50-150/year)
- A quality suitcase ($150-300 for a durable option)
- Travel insurance (varies by coverage)
- Emergency credit card with available funds
The beauty of house sitting is that your accommodation is free, which dramatically reduces your cost of living compared to traditional travel or renting.
Can you make money as a full-time house sitter?
Most house sits don’t pay a salary – the compensation is free accommodation. However, you save significantly on housing costs, which can be your biggest expense. Many full-time house sitters:
- Work remotely while house sitting
- Freelance or run online businesses
- Have retirement income or savings
- Combine house sitting with paid work exchanges
Some premium sits in expensive cities may offer payment, but this is less common.
What qualifications do you need to become a house sitter?
There are no formal qualifications required, but successful house sitters typically have:
- Experience caring for pets (your own or for friends/family)
- Reliable references from previous sits or character references
- Good communication skills
- Responsibility and trustworthiness
- A complete profile on a house sitting platform with verification
Background checks and verified reviews help build trust with homeowners.
How do I find house sitting assignments?
The most reliable way is through dedicated house sitting platforms like HouseSitMatch. These sites connect homeowners with verified sitters and provide:
- Searchable listings by location and date
- Secure messaging systems
- Review systems for both parties
- Insurance options
Start by creating a compelling profile, applying to sits that match your skills, and building positive reviews.
Is full-time house sitting lonely?
It can be at times, but there are ways to maintain social connections:
- Use video chat apps to stay in touch with friends and family
- Ask homeowners if you can have visitors
- Request introductions to neighbors or local friends
- Join local dog parks or pet communities
- Establish a “home base” location you return to regularly
Many house sitters find the lifestyle enriching as they meet new people and pets at each location.
What happens if there’s a gap between house sits?
Gaps are normal, especially when starting out. Plan ahead by:
- Keeping emergency credit available for hotels or short-term rentals
- Using gaps to visit friends or family
- Exploring bucket list destinations as a tourist
- Looking into work exchanges through platforms like WWOOF
- Booking overlapping sits when possible (arriving before owners leave)
With experience, you’ll get better at scheduling sits back-to-back.
How long should my first house sitting assignment be?
For first-timers, start with 1-2 weeks. This gives you enough time to:
- Get comfortable with the responsibilities
- Build confidence and get a review
- Learn what length feels right for you
Many experienced sitters find their “sweet spot” is around 3 weeks – long enough to settle in but not so long that it becomes exhausting if it’s not a perfect fit.
Do I need special visas for international house sitting?
Visa requirements vary by country. Generally:
- Tourist visas are usually sufficient since you’re not being paid
- Check each country’s specific requirements and length of stay limits
- Some countries may require proof of return travel or sufficient funds
- Work exchanges or paid sits may require work visas
Always research visa requirements well in advance of accepting international sits.
What if something goes wrong during a house sit?
Have a plan before issues arise:
- Get emergency contact information from homeowners (vet, plumber, electrician, trusted neighbor)
- Communicate immediately with homeowners about any problems
- Document everything with photos and messages
- Consider house sitting insurance that covers accidents or damage
- Have backup accommodation options and emergency funds
Most platforms also offer support and mediation if serious issues arise.
Can I house sit with a partner or friend?
Yes! Many homeowners actually prefer couples or teams because:
- There’s always someone home with the pets
- Two people can handle more responsibilities
- Added security for the property
Create a joint profile on house sitting platforms showing both people. Be clear about whether you always sit together or if you’re flexible.
Kelly Hayes-Raitt has now “settled” in Portugal, but she can’t get house sitting out of her blood! Last year, she spent a month sitting in northern Scotland, a month sitting in a wildlife refuge in Tanzania, and a month in a nine-bedroom mansion in the English countryside. This year, she’s been sleeping around Portugal. (That’s how she starts her guide on housesitting – How to Become a Housesitter: Insider Tips from the Housesit Diva – “I sleep around. Usually with animals.”)
At HouseSit Match we like to share useful blogs and practical advice such as this article on how to become a full time housesitter. We also have information to help you on housesitters, home and pet care, and pet sitting. We hope you find this small selection of our blogs on house sitters and house sitting in London useful.
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