Best Housesitting Sites for Jetsetters Like You
So, you wanna travel and stay someplace cute while saving a coin? If you don’t mind AirBNB like accommodations, then housesitting might be for you. I’ve house sat for friends, of course, but more recently scored my first international house sit in a beautiful, spacious two bedroom, 3 bathroom home with a pool and 2 super-chill fur babies in Colima, Mexico.
I mean check it out for yourself...
So, HOW did stumble upon this good fortune, you ask? Well, I’ve been clicking around on house sitting sites for a couple of years now, but would never commit to paying the typical membership fee, no matter how small it was. After this experience, I’ll be honest— I’m definitely gonna pay up.
I happened upon this particular listing on Nomador, but because I love Mexico, and really want to move around to explore different parts, I’m going to be giving Housesit Mexico a fair shot as well.
The dope part about most sitting sites is that it’s usually free to browse. Nomador, the site where I found my current sit, offers 3 free applications after you confirm a few details, like your ID, address, and proof of an income. It’s not at all necessary, but I think it proves you are serious and not an obscure drifter just looking for a place to crash. Plus, don't you want the people you're sitting for to be vetted?? Exactly.
Anyhoo, I didn’t find the process intrusive at all. I just uploaded a few docs and they confirmed me. Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy. I mean, you’ve seen the place. TOTALLY worth it! And now that I have a reference on the site I’ve got a little cred. to refer to for future inquiries.
So, with that I give you the 5 resources that I regularly check, along with their pros and cons:
Housesittingmagazine.com
This is just an all around good resource to keep up with what’s going on in the house sitting community. The pros are it’s free. The cons, I really couldn’t find one.
Nomador.com
This site is at the top of my list because of its ease of use. I scored my first sit on my second (free) application. The pro is that the first 3 applications are FREE. The con is that many of the listings are actually in Europe. Which is great for the summer months, if you ask me. Other locations are available, but not plentiful.
Housesit Mexico
I’ve been stalking this site since I found out about it last year. Pros: They often have discount codes that you can message them on FB to ask for. The cons is that it’s limited to house sits in Mexico. Which is more of a pro, from where I sit.
Housesitting World
In the past I feel like this service was not free initially, but I guess that changed at some point. So, there’s the pro. You’ve got 9 days, so make the most of it. The big con is that some of the listings are cross-posts from other sites, like Nomador and Housesit Mexico. They are partners, apparently, so... I’m not sure why I’d pay twice for 2-3 separate sites with the same results.
House Carers (no typo)
It’s been awhile since I clicked around in this site. The pro is that their FB page is very active with listings. The con is that on the back end, the interface is not very user friendly. Plus, you’ll have to pay to play right from the beginning. Looking at the situation objectively, they do seem to have a lot of social proof with followers and engagement on posts… so the $50 fee could potentially be worth a roll of the dice.
Trusted HouseSitters
The big pro is that the site looks as though they have a wide array of sitting options as far as I can tell. Whether you prefer the mountains, the ocean or city destination, they’ve got it. Plus, this site has been featured on a number of mainstream media sites. A couple of cons, in my opinion, are that due to apparent popularity, the competition to land a great sit might be on the high side. And, at $119 per year, I’d like some kind of guarantee of at least one sit in order for it to be worth the investment risk. IJS.
