In my opinion, one of the coolest jobs out there is house sitting.

You get to stay at someone’s house, do next to nothing and get paid for it.  It’s also a great way to travel for next to nothing.  It’s a job I have mentioned plenty of times, such as in my 100+ ways to make money without a job and 42+ second job ideas posts, but I have never jumped in to explain how the entire process works.

If you like the idea of traveling and getting paid to stay at someone’s house and/or you just need a few extra dollars and want to do minimal work, then house sitting may be the right gig for you.  As long as you’re responsible, do as you’re told and complete the job, then you shouldn’t have a problem finding one.

How many house sitting jobs that are available does depend on where you live and/or where you are searching, but I promise you that they are out there.  You just need to know where to search.

So, in today’s post, I’m going to talk about the many ways you can find a house sitting job as well as what house sitting usually entails.  In some cases, you may be able to find a long term house sitting job, where you may be able to stay for months!

How to Become a House Sitter

1. Find a House Sitting Website

There are a ton of great house sitting websites, all of which I list next.  While most will charge you in order for you to use it, I encourage you to at least check out the listings to see what’s available in the area you’re interested in as they all vary.  In most cases, you can at least do this for free; you just won’t be able to contact the owners.  From there, pay for a month to see if you can garner any leads.  In the next section, I will talk about the many websites where you can apply as well as how it works.

When checking out any of these house sitting websites (there are quite a few), make sure that you carefully search what you’re looking for, such as when you want to travel as well as where you want to travel to.  Whichever website offers you the most listings is usually your best bet for now.  As long as you sign up for the monthly plan, you can always cancel when your term expires.

2. Create an Awesome Profile

All of the websites I mention not only allow you to apply to jobs, but you can also create a profile, similar of that to a resume, so that potential owners can find you.  This is your time to shine and sell yourself as many owners will directly contact a few sitters first before publicly listing their home.

In your profile, be sure to boast about your experience, talk about your pet sitting experience as well as list any skills you have.  Are you handy?  Good with gardens?  The more people know about you, the more likely they will want to contact you.  Don’t forget to include a few professional pictures as well as sound enthusiastic in your profile to ensure an owner knows they are working with someone who will be passionate about watching their home.

3. Be Personal

In applying to a job, you will have to send out an introductory message on most sites.  Instead of using the predefined message, make sure that each and every message is unique and catered to that specific job posting.  If they need help with plants, let them know how you can help.  If they need help with their pets, let them know how they can benefit from your experience.  The last thing you want to do is send out a basic copy/paste message as this won’t show any effort at all.

4. Keep Checking

Much like the major job boards online, the house sitting websites are always adding new jobs.  And, the thing is that the good ones go fast.  If you’re serious about finding a house sitting job, make sure that you’re checking in as much as possible to increase your chances at landing a gig.  Make an attempt to apply as fast as possible since these people tend to get hired the fastest.  In short, good listings go fast, while the not-so-great options tend to rot on the websites.  It’s for a good reason!

5. Be Prepared for an Interview

Put yourself in the owner’s shoes for a second.  You wouldn’t hire a person from the internet that you never met to watch your house, right?  Well, to help ease their concerns, many owners will want to meet you virtually as well as in person before they hand over the keys.  For that reason, make sure you have references as well as be prepared to have some sort of videoconferencing interview.  Just like a job interview, be prepared to sell yourself as to why you’re the perfect fit for the job.

How to Find Paid House Sitting Jobs Near You

Now, that you know what’s expected of you as a house sitter, I wanted to list some of the most popular house sitting options online that pay.  There are quite a few.  Again, I can’t stress it enough that you should at least browse the sites first before committing to a premium membership.  The last thing you want to do is apply and then find out that there are next to no leads in your area.  When you do find one that is of interest, apply the tips mentioned prior to increase your chances at landing that perfect house sitting gig.

TrustedHousesitters

Founded in 2010, TrustedHousesitters was designed to help you find a house to sit or a pet to sit if that’s your sort of thing.

TrustedHousesitters is nice in that you can use the interactive map, making it very easy to find anyone across the world who’s looking for a house sitter right now.  If you see a listing of interest, simply click on it to view the dates they need you as well as what’s expected of you.   As long as everything looks right to you, then you can apply to the job.

The website, much like the many I list here, do require that you pay a fee, which is about $119 per year as I write this.  This fee includes unlimited sits all year, free verifications, an insurance backed guarantee as well as 24/7 membership services.

If you want to travel overseas and technically get a free hotel stay, this is one to highly consider investing in as they seemed to have a lot of overseas options.

• Website:  TrustedHousesitters

Care.com

Care.com is more known for babysitting services, but you can find people who need a house sitter as well.

Whether you want to create a profile and wait for house owners to contact you or you want to apply to the many jobs available in your area, it’s up to you.  Regardless of which option you choose, however, you will have to pay a fee, which can range from $13 to $39 per month, all depending on how long you commit for.  Keep in mind, though, that a premium membership isn’t required as a free subscription allows you to post a job as well as browse through the listings.  But, if you want to apply, you will need to upgrade.

Out of all the options I list, Care.com tends to offer the most opportunity as it is one of the biggest websites.  Don’t just think it’s catered to the caregiver crowd.

• Website:  Care.com

HouseSitter.com

HouseSitters.com works in one of two ways.  You can either post your profile, wherein local house sitters can find you or you can view current house sitting opportunities and apply to them as you see fit.

The cool thing about it is that you can browse the jobs ahead of time to see what’s available in your area as well as what most people are looking for.

For instance, when I took a gander in my area, I found more than 40 house owners looking for a sitter, ranging from watering plants for 15 minutes to someone who can watch the pets, collect the mail, take out the garbage and water the plants.

In your search, play around with the filters if you have a specific set of jobs in mind.  If you want to collect mail, then you can filter those results.

If you’re interested in applying for jobs as well as having your profile posted, you do need to pay a small fee, ranging anywhere from $30 a month to more than $90 for the year.

• Website:  HouseSitter.com

LuxuryHouseSitting.com

As the name implies, LuxuryHouseSitting.com seems to focus on “luxury” homes.

Glancing at the available homes, they didn’t seem to have as many listings as the other websites I already mentioned; however, the ones they did have posted seemed to luxury in nature.  You can view the listings for free, but of course, if you want to apply, you will have to pay a fee.

The great news, however, is that the fee is very low at $25 per year.  This gets you a public profile, the ability to apply for unlimited assignments as well as the opportunity to message homeowners.

It will be up to you to communicate with any homeowners that you wish to house sit for, but be forewarned that there aren’t a ton of listings, so do your due diligence in searching before committing to a yearly membership.

• Website:  LuxuryHouseSitting.com

HouseSitSearch

HouseSitSearch had more than 4,800 results, most of which were overseas, when I was writing this guide.  If you want to house sit overseas, this is definitely one to keep on your radar.

On each listing, you can view the nearest major city, if pet sitting is required as well as the dates they need you.  Most owners also leave a detailed description, sometimes pictures as well, to let you know what’s expected of you if you were to get hired.  Near the bottom, you can check out the amenities as well as what the home is nearby if you have a house in mind.

What makes this site different is that it’s more of an aggregator, picking out listings from the many sites I already listed.  If you have something in mind, you may want to start with this one first just to see which website it takes you to.  99% of the time, whichever website you land on, you will more than likely have to pay a fee to join and apply.

• Website:  HouseSitSearch

Nomador

Nomador focuses on home owners across the world, but in my research, it appeared they had the most houses listed overseas, primarily in Europe.

The unique thing about this website is that they use what’s known as a “trust profile,” which can help build a foundation between the house owner and the sitter.

Take a glance at the site and play around with the search tool to see what’s available.  The website allows you to search where you want to go, when you’re going to stay as well as what you’re comfortable with.  In the results, you can then take a glance at what home owners expect of you as well as when the home is available.

The “Discovery” option, which allows you to view offers and be contacted by owners, is free, but if you want to apply to any offers on the site, you wil need to pay $89 a year in order to so.

• Website:  Nomador.com

House Sitters America

House Sitters America didn’t have a ton of listings, maybe seven pages worth when I took a glance, but hey, it’s an option.

This website only focuses on USA opportunities, so if you’re looking for something overseas, you will want to skip out on this one.

It costs $30 a year and offers you access to the entire site.

• Website:  House Sitters America

Craigslist

You can give Craigslist a shot, but it isn’t my favorite out of all of them, mainly because it’s Craigslist.  You never know what you’re going to get yourself into.

If you do use it, you won’t have to pay a fee, but you will have to do a lot of due diligence to ensure you’re not getting yourself into a scam or you’re showing up to the next Charles Manson.

To search Craigslist for any potential house sitting opportunities, you will primarily find them in the jobs and housing section.  If going this route, just make sure you’re meeting up with the owner in a safe place to discuss all of the details.  It’s best to only consider this option if you’re going to be local and can meet before hand.  Never show up at the house until you met the person and felt it was a legit opportunity.

Use Craigslist as an option but definitely not as your first.  While you will have to pay a premium for the websites mentioned prior, you will usually get what you pay for, so consider it as an investment to find a decent place to stay.  I mean, an annual membership will cost you less than one night at a hotel chain.

• Website:  Craigslist.com

Other Considerations

I did find a few other house sitting websites, but I didn’t want to write about them in detail since they only had a few listings.  However, it doesn’t mean I should leave them out.  As in all my guides, I try to include as many options as possible in order for you to make an informed decisions.

Again, these websites aren’t the best options, but it could be one to consider…

• HouseCarers.com
• HouseSitMatch
• MindMyHouse

Final Thoughts

Whether you want a few dollars on the side or want a way to get paid to travel, house sitting is one to consider.  It will take a pinch of work on your part, but what job doesn’t?

If you’re interested, consider the many websites I mentioned prior.  All of them are 100% legitimate and can help connect you with a homeowner.  As to which one is the best is only an answer you can decide as every website has different offerings.  In taking a few minutes to see what’s available can help you decide which is best for your situation.

For now, start researching, applying to jobs, and hopefully, you can get a house sitting job that pays you handsomely.