Traveling the World with Trusted Housesitters
For the last couple of months, I’ve been roaming around the country without permanent housing and just the belongings that can fit into my car. I got out of my last apartment lease back in September of last year, and made the decision to not sign another lease anytime soon. I knew I wanted to have a homebase near Seattle since that’s where my job is (I’m mostly remote), but also wanted to start traveling around more without the cost of a monthly rent payment to hold me back.
Since September, I’ve been hopping from house to house and state to state, for only the cost of gas money, thanks to Trusted Housesitters. Simply put, Trusted Housesitters is a website platform that connects hopeful travelers with people that need a house & pet sitter. For example, someone in San Diego, CA might post that they need someone to come watch their dog for 3 weeks at their cozy home on the beach, and if you successfully applied for that gig, you’d get to stay there for free as long as you take care of their home and pet. Same could be said for someone with 2 cats in New York, or 1 dog and 3 goldfish in Austin. And since Trusted Housesitters is international, you could easily find a similar dog sitting gig in the countryside of Italy, or in downtown London. I’ve been referring to it as my ‘free Airbnb with furry friends’ (:
When I first decided to commit to this nomadic lifestyle, I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to find enough gigs to sustain myself for the whole year. I even built out my Toyota RAV4 so that I could camp out of it through periods without housing. However, I’ve done 4 of these ‘sits’ already in the first 2 months of the year, and am now fully booked with back-to-back sits until the end of July! Without having to pay a rent & utilities bill (which in Seattle can run you at least $1100), I’ve been able to travel more often AND set aside more money in savings than I have in a while.
So far, I’ve spent time in Lake Tahoe, Portland, Seattle, Corvallis, and Newport! I’ve gotten to explore a bunch of cities I’ve never been to, meet new people, check out new restaurants, and hang out with some of the sweetest pets (,: Although I’m currently sticking to sits on the West Coast due to my job, I plan to get into some international gigs very soon! (Currently have my eye on 3 sweet pups in Puerto Rico).
If you’re interested in taking a swing at the nomadic lifestyle– or are just interested in doing some cheaper travel this year– here’s how to get started on Trusted Housesitters!
Create an account- Super simple, just fill out your personal info, add some photos, and bonus points if you request that anyone you’ve house/pet-sat for in the past submit a testimonial about you (no worries if you don’t have prior experience). If you sign up for an account using the promo code HALLEY25, you’ll get 25% off your yearly membership (taking the price from $129 to $97).
Start looking for house-sitting opportunities- use the different filters to select dates, locations, kinds of pets (useful if you don’t feel like horse-sitting lol), and local sites (beach, countryside, city… or mountains??). You can also use the map feature to just browse the globe, something I frequently find myself doing when I should be working. Each listing will have blurbs about the nature of the sit, the house itself, the neighborhood, and the responsibilities related to the pets. These are usually perfectly informative and will help you decide whether or not you’re interested in applying.
Apply to a house sit- once you’ve found a sit (or multiple!) that you really want to do, you’ll have to write a little note to the homeowner basically explaining who you are and why you’re the perfect person for their sit. A while back, I wrote up a pretty generic message with all my info + a few fill-in-the-blank spots to get more specific to each sit, and I just copy & paste that same message in every time I apply for a new sit, which saves a ton of time. Try to include a little background info about yourself (where you’re from, what you’re doing, interests) as well as any info related to your experience with whatever pets they have.
Await a confirmation- Once you’ve applied to a sit, you’ve just got to wait til the homeowner responds! I’ve found that most people respond in less than a week, and sometimes that day. If they like your application message, most people will ask to set up a sort of informal phone or zoom chat ‘interview,’ just to make sure you’re a real person and that they like your vibe! I feel like I’m a bit awkward over zoom/the phone, so this was a bit uncomfortable for me in the beginning, but now I’m a pro!
Add it to your calendar!- Once a homeowner has chosen you to be their sitter, all that’s left for you to do is mark your calendar and pack your bags!
Some things to keep in mind:
Although the cost of a yearly membership ($129) may seem like a big upfront cost, it is beyond worth it! If you think about the price you would pay for just 1 weekend away on vacation through Airbnb, you’d be spending easily over $200. So essentially, for less than the cost of a 1-weekend trip through Airbnb, you gain access to unlimited housesitting/travel opportunities through Trusted Housesitters.
Different homeowners will have different preferences. For example, there are people I’ve sat for who never needed to do a Zoom chat or meet in person, they just left me their key/door code and I went about the sit like I owned the place! Other people might want to meet you beforehand or have you come a day/few hours early to give you a tour of their house and have you meet their pets. It’s really up to what you’re comfortable with and what you’re down to do.
Only apply to sits where you’re prepared to follow through on the responsibilities!! Personally, I only apply to sits with cats or low-maintenance dogs. It’s incredible to have a free place to stay, but there are some things that just aren’t worth it to me, like staying at a farm where I’m responsible for 3 horses, 6 goats, and 12 chickens. If that sounds cool to you though, go ahead! Just make sure you’re prepared to do what needs to be done throughout the duration of your stay.
Although it’s ‘like’ an Airbnb, it’s not an Airbnb. Because you are just a guest in these people’s homes, it’s important to remember to keep the house clean (and restore it to how it originally was before you leave!), don’t be loud especially if you’re in an apartment, and don’t have friends over without checking in with the homeowners.
Like any travel experience, be safety conscious! Homeowners on the website do have to pass a certain level of ‘background check,’ but it’s still important to be thorough. I try to only apply to sits where there are reviews from previous sitters, and I like to chat with homeowners over the phone or Zoom beforehand so I can make sure they’re not a creep! So far I haven’t met anyone bad, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t bad people out there.
Check out places you’ve never been! There won’t always be the perfect sit available in your dream destination, but I’ve gone to a few random cities I’ve never heard of and had a great time exploring! You never know what kind of hidden gems you might find.
All that to say, it’s totally legit, it’s totally safe, and it’s totally possible.
As someone who’s been using it for travel and full-time housing, I’m happy to answer any questions you have about Trusted Housesitters! This thing has just made such a huge impact on my life and I want more people to know that there are ways to travel on a budget.
If you’ve been looking for a cheaper way to get out and see the world (while making furry friends) this is it! I absolutely recommend signing up today!