Reviews of Trusted House Sitters From My Family (and Others)
As a family with a dog, bird, and copious amounts of plants, including an indoor hydroponic garden tower, finding reliable care for our creatures while away on vacation used to be a major challenge. The hassle of carting them to my mom's and relying on a neighborhood kid to water plants and bring in the mail left us anxious and my mother overwhelmed. Boarding is crazy expensive and way too stressful for the animals, plus the house loves having someone keeping an eye on it. We're experienced home exchangers and used to opening our home to strangers, but we needed a reliable solution for pet and home care when planning a vacation to Europe for three weeks with two young puppies at home.
Our reviews of trusted house sitters in this article are our personal and real experiences with using trustedhousesitters.com, along with other reviews we found helpful in our journey.
In this review, I will share our experiences and reviews of trusted house sitters platform trustedhousesitters.com, highlighting the upsides and downsides of using it for our house sitting needs.
First, What is Trusted House Sitters.com?
TrustedHousesitters.com is an online platform that connects homeowners with pet and house sitters. The platform works like Airbnb, with sitters and homeowners leaving reviews of their experiences. It provides a platform where families can find someone to take care of their homes and pets while they are away without having to pay for pet boarding or absentee owner services.
Easy to Use Platform and Abundance of Applicants:
One of the first things that impressed us about TrustedHouseSitters.com was its user-friendly website. Navigating the site was a breeze, and we quickly generated a lot of applicants for our house sitting posting (which was a 3.5-week pet and house sit). Living in a resort area, we were fortunate to attract a large pool of interested sitters, which made the selection process much easier.
Drawing on Our Home Exchange Experience:
Having previous experience with home exchanges, we had a clear idea of what we were looking for in an ideal house sitter. Trusted House Sitters provided us with a platform to connect with like-minded individuals who shared our values and understood our expectations. This familiarity with the process of home exchanging (where someone stays in your home and you stay in theirs) helped us narrow down our choices and select applicants for further consideration.
Tips on how to recruit good applicants are below!
How TrustedHouseSitters.com Works
Trusted House Sitters is a platform (website and phone app) that connects homeowners with identification-verified house sitters for their homes and pets.
This is an honest and UN-sponsored review. Ashley, LAP.com's founder, uses the platform personally and these opinions are her own.
Here's a simple breakdown of how the process works:
Sign Up and Post Your Travel Dates & Details:
Start by creating an account on Trusted House Sitters. Provide details about your home, pets, and the dates you need house sitting services. Be clear about your expectations and any specific requirements for your pets.
Browse and Connect with Sitters:
Once your listing is live, you can browse through the profiles of available house sitters. Filter the results based on location, experience, and other criteria to find suitable candidates. When you're starting, look for house sitters with lots of good reviews! Take your time to review their profiles, including reviews from previous homeowners.
Reach Out To Sitters:
When you find a potential match, you can message the sitter through the platform or wait for applicants to submit their information to you. Ask questions and get to know them better. This step helps build trust and ensures compatibility. You don't have to say yes to the first sitter who replies! Take your time.
Talk To Your Favorites:
For added assurance, schedule a video chat or phone call with your top candidates. Arrange video calls or phone conversations to discuss the house sitting assignment in detail. This helps you assess their responsibility and suitability for your home and pets. You want people who listen carefully and ask questions about your home and animals.
Iron Out The Details: pre-Arrival
Once you've found the ideal sitter, finalize the agreement. Discuss the terms, duration, and any specific instructions or guidelines. Establish clear communication channels. Accept the house sitter for the stay to stop new applicants from applying.
leave Detailed instructions
Be sure to leave detailed instructions about the house and pet/plant care. I created a document that I can print out and leave on the kitchen table. Along with pet instructions, the document has information about trash pickup, house quirks, water shut off, emergency contacts, and a selection of our favorite restaurants and activities. Yes, plan to take a couple of hours to create this the first time, but it's quick and easy to edit for future trips.
Enjoy Your Trip
With the house sitting agreement in place, you can stay connected with the sitter through the platform or agreed-upon communication methods to receive updates and ensure everything is running smoothly. (We use WhatsApp for international travel and regular text for in-country travel.)
Leave a Review
After the house sitting assignment, leave a review for the sitter on Trusted House Sitters. Reviews of Trusted House Sitters help the community and provide feedback for future travelers and sitters. It's important to be honest but also transparent. Did they forget to take the trash out (it happens) or did you forget to tell them the right day? Just remember they're staying in a new place, too!
We found Thorough and Responsible House Sitters
The mobile app and easy to use website streamlined our communication with potential sitters. After posting our listing, we were delighted to see the applications start rolling in. We quickly identified the candidates we wanted to interview and conducted phone calls and Zoom meetings to get to know them better. Both methods proved equally effective in assessing compatibility and addressing any concerns.
Our Initial Reviews of Trusted House Sitters Experiences
Other Reviews of Trusted House Sitters
Meeting the pet sitters in person or over a video call really helped me feel comfortable about the person I was entrusting to care for my animals and home. And you can read tons of reviews on TrustPilot.com. Here are a couple reviews that felt like a good reflection of our family's experience:
Marta says
The pets stay in their familiar place while the sitters get to experience new destinations at no charge. It is a win for everyone. I like that TrustSitters.com verifies sitters' credentials, posts reviews, and clearly showcases the expectations.
Helen says
We have now had six pet and house sitters using this service, all have been different, and all of them 5 stars. Our most recent trip was a long one (7 weeks), and the constant communication and photos really helped me feel everything was okay at home.
Upsides of Trusted House Sitters
We found a lot of pros to having a trustedhousesitters.com subscription. Once you have your house and pet care document written, it's easy to update and future travel is even easier. You just update the dates your house sit is available and any new changes to your home or pet care plan. Some other pros:
Save Money
Cost-effective alternative to boarding or hiring pet sitters. Kennels around us cost upwards of $55 per night! We paid $130 for an annual membership is 2023 - that's less than 3 nights boarding.
Less Stress
Pets stay in their familiar environment, reducing stress and anxiety. Humans know someone is keeping an eye on your home.
ID Verified
Verified sitters with credentials and reviews tend to offer regular communications and updates while you're away
Downside of TrustedHouseSitters.com
When using any pet or house sitter, it's important to set clear expectations and have a backup plan in the event of an emergency. While we've never had a pet sit fall through, I always have a backup plan in place (a friend or family member who could get the pets to a kennel or check on the house) - just in case! Some other things to consider:
Taxes & Laws
Assess your legal situation and ensure compliance with local regulations. You may need to claim bartering services on your tax forms. Check with your accountant!
experience varies
We carefully select house sitters with prior pet sitting experience and excellent reviews, but there are lots of new pet sitters out there. The right person is always a worth a try, but research carefully.
BackUp Plan
Have a solid backup plan in case a sitter cannot fulfill their commitment. My friend (who also is on the platform) and I use each other as emergency contacts.
To Recap
Trusted House Sitters has been a game-changer for our family when it comes to finding reliable and trustworthy house sitters. The platform's user-friendly interface, ample applicant pool, efficient communication tools, and the peace of mind it offers make it an excellent choice for pet owners and homeowners.
By narrowing down the applicant pool to individuals with prior pet sitting experience and excellent reviews, we have had consistently positive experiences.
The online reviews, good and bad, are reflective of individual experiences. They're all true, and all opinions. In our experience, diligently selecting experienced pet and house sitters has resulted in a great experience every time. Setting clear expectations is the key to the success.
We wholeheartedly recommend Trusted House Sitters to anyone seeking stress-free vacations while ensuring their pets and home are well cared for. As we eagerly plan our upcoming trip to Scotland in the fall, we will certainly be posting our listing on Trusted House Sitters once again!
This blog provides a valuable resource for families seeking reliable and trustworthy house sitters. The author’s in-depth reviews of the Trusted House Sitters platform offer a balanced perspective, highlighting both the benefits and potential challenges based on personal experiences. A must-read for anyone looking to find the right house sitter for their family.