How I lived rent-free in San Francisco for six months (house sitting)

Fresh off a cross-country road trip and strapped for cash, I arrived in San Francisco in July 2022 with one goal – to work and save up enough money to keep traveling. My income stream was all set, but I still needed to cut costs.

As a budget traveler, my food, transportation and most other expenses were already at a bare minimum.

I needed a way to cut down on my biggest expense, accommodations. Otherwise, staying in hostels or Airbnbs was going to quickly eat up my savings.

Enter: house sitting. A couple months before this, a friend mentioned she’d heard of someone using house sitting to reduce costs while traveling. It sounded like an ideal situation – free housing for weeks at a time, for minimal work.

After some research, I signed up for a house sitting platform and began applying for house sitting gigs. Long story short? I spent six months living rent-free in San Francisco – and I’m still doing it today. Here’s how that works.

1. What is House Sitting?
2. How To Start House Sitting
3. Essential Skills a House Sitter Must Have
4. What are the Pros and Cons of House Sitting?
5. Tips for Getting House Sits
6. Is House Sitting Right For You?

What is House Sitting?

House sitting, at its essence, is a fairly simple equal exchange between a homeowner and a house sitter. Homeowners want someone to take care of their home and pets while they are away (usually on vacation) and house sitters want free housing while they travel.

House sitting allows both parties to get what they want. Owners get free house and pet care, and house sitters get free accommodation.

More broadly, the act of house sitting typically revolves around pet care, and could also be thought of as in-home pet sitting. Most of the time, home owners are chiefly concerned with keeping their pets happy and healthy while they are away.

As such, a house sitter’s primary duties are to feed and exercise any pets in the house, and clean up after them. Sometimes, pets will have additional needs like medication or bathing. On top of that, sitters may need to perform daily tasks to upkeep the house such as bringing in the mail, keeping the place clean, and watering plants.

How To Start House Sitting

As a house sitter, you are basically running your own small business. You will need to market yourself, get clients, and provide quality services for those clients in exchange for housing. If you do a great job, you can use happy clients as references to promote your credibility and get new business. Luckily, online platforms make it extremely easy to do many of those things.

House Sitting Platforms

There are a lot of sites out there, but the two I use regularly and can vouch for are TrustedHousesitters and House Sitters America. The first is the biggest and has thousands of listings, both in America and internationally. The second is smaller and is US-only, but has an active community and even has some paid gigs (yes, you can also get paid on top of your free housing!).

Both of these platforms allow you to find clients easily by browsing listings and directly messaging homeowners already looking for sitters. Because of this, signing up for one of these sites is probably the easiest way to get started with house sitting. It’s how I got my start, and it’s what I still use today.

The premise for most house sitting websites is the same. You create a profile, populate it with photos of yourself and details of your relevant skills and experience, and apply to house sits like you would a job. Then, if the home owner likes your application, typically they will set up a call to discuss your qualifications and the responsibilities of the particular house sit. If you are both happy, you confirm the sit through the platform and book your travel plans!

Once the sit is over, you each have the option to review each other, which can help you build your reputation and make it easier to get new clients as you accumulate positive reviews. As with any business, getting your first client is the hardest – but if you can do that, it gets much easier.

These platforms each have a yearly fee. At the time of this writing, TrustedHousesitters is $169/yr for the “Standard Sitter” plan. House Sitters America is $49/yr. Both pretty much pay for themselves after the first sit.

Essential Skills a House Sitter Must Have

One of the great benefits of house sitting is the low entry barrier to getting started. All you really need to begin is internet access, money to pay the fee for one of the major platforms, and to pass a simple background check.

However, to find lasting success as a house sitter, there are several things you will need to cultivate:

People Skills

The foundation of your house sitting business is your ability to build and maintain relationships. You must be able to sell yourself and quickly establish your trustworthiness in the eyes of prospective clients. After all, they are opening up their home to you, and putting the lives of their beloved pets in your hands.

Digital Communication Skills

Many times, the only communication with your clients after confirming your house sit is through text or email. They will expect regular photos, video and updates about how the sit is going. Being proactive, consistent and detailed in your communications before and during the sit will create a sense of professionalism and assure them their home and pets are well cared for. It will also dramatically increase your chances of getting a positive review and repeat business.

An Ironclad Sense of Duty and Responsibility

For the duration of the house sit, you are completely in charge of security for someone’s home, and the health and safety of pets who their owners consider members of the family. Do not take this lightly. While having fun and exploring the area you are in is great, the house sit comes first and you must build your schedule around its needs.

A Genuine Love for Pets

This one should be obvious. If you don’t like pets, you will likely struggle to build a house sitting business. I would argue that even just liking pets isn’t enough. To really succeed and make house sitting a part of your travel lifestyle, you need to genuinely love pets. Not only will you enjoy the job more, but clients will notice and appreciate a kindred spirit.

What are the Pros and Cons of House Sitting?

House sitting can be a great way to lower the cost of your travel, but it also has some limitations that make it not ideal for all situations. Here are some things to consider before jumping on board:

Pros

• Free accommodations – This is the most obvious benefit, and it is a game changer for budget travelers. Think of how much further you can stretch your budget if your cost of accommodations was literally $0.
  
  
• Ideal for exploring a city or small region – House sits are generally flexible enough for you to be able to explore for several hours at a time, and sometimes all day (as long as you are home at night).
  
  
• Living like a local – If you prefer staying in a home rather than a hotel, house sitting is a great option. In that sense, it’s like Airbnb, but free!
  
  
• The company of pets – Nothing beats the unconditional love and attention that pets can give. Having their company while you travel is a nice benefit.

Cons

• You have responsibilities – Some people like to be completely free from obligations while on vacation. If you have a house sit, that’s not the case. Most house sit duties are easy and quick, but they take priority over your travel plans.
  
  
• Less flexibility than a hotel – You are at the mercy of your pet’s schedule. You will need to be home at certain times every day, and you will have to spend every night there. That likely means no long day-trips or 8-hour hikes during your house sit.
  
  
• As a lifestyle, it can be unstable. It is absolutely possible to use house sitting to stay in one general area (i.e. a city) for months at a time, rent-free. However, be aware that you will still likely be moving homes every couple of weeks. That level of transient living can be stressful for some types of people.

Tips for Getting House Sits

When attempting to get new clients on one of the major house sitting platforms, you typically have three chances to sell yourself and make a good impression.

1. Your profile
2. Your application
3. Your interview

Here are some tips to nail each of those opportunities:

Your profile

Your profile is essentially your resume. On it, you’ll list any relevant experience you have caring for pets or homes and post photos or yourself (ideally with animals). It will also include any reviews or references from clients as you complete house sits.

Designing your profile is a chance to build a positive image of you in the mind of prospective clients, and should therefore be as detailed and well-crafted as possible. Try to show the client your professionalism and trustworthiness, while touting any experience you have. However, this isn’t Linkedin! A totally dry profile with no personality may not be attractive. This is pet sitting after all, not corporate finance, and pet lovers will want someone who absolutely adores pets and is not afraid to show it. Try to strike a good balance.

Your application

Your application is akin to a cover letter. It’s a way to hook your client in to viewing your profile and, hopefully, requesting an interview. Like any cover letter, you’ll want start by looking at the posting you are applying to. Read through the details carefully, then explain how your experience and skills are a good fit for their sit.

Once you get a hang of things, I recommend creating a template for your application that covers the basics, then tweaking it 10-20% based on the particular sit you are applying for. Also, don’t be afraid to submit a lengthy application, as long as the content is relevant to the client. You may think a long application may put off a client from wanting to read it, but in my experience they will appreciate your thorough attention to detail.

Your interview

Your interview is an opportunity for you to reinforce what the home owner read on your profile, showcase your trustworthiness, build rapport and let your personality shine. Talk about your experience with animals, gush about your favorite pet, ask questions about their home and pets, and answer any questions they may have. With proper preparation and a little luck, you’ll get the gig!

Getting your first house sit

Getting your first house sit is the hardest, but once you do, it quickly becomes much easier. Here are some quick tips to help you book your first house sitting gig:

• Apply early: The early bird gets the interview in the house sitting world. Check the platform frequently for new listings so you can be the first person to apply. Being first will dramatically increase your chance of getting an interview. Use the “saved search” feature to be notified of new postings in the area you want.
  
  
• Take a local sit: The easiest way to get that first positive review may be to apply for a sit in your hometown. In my experience, many home owners prefer someone who knows the area, and that can offset your lack of experience.
  
  
• Apply for last-minute sits: If a homeowner needs a sitter on short notice, they will likely be stressed out and desperate to find someone quickly – and may therefore be more willing to take someone with no experience. If you can alleviate their stress and nail the gig, they will also likely give you a glowing review.

Is House Sitting Right For You?

If you’re looking for budget travel hacks to fuel your wanderlust, house sitting is one of the best out there. Free accommodations in exchange for an hour or less of work per day is a pretty sweet deal.

As we discussed earlier, however, there are limitations. It’s not for everyone, nor every genre of travel. But if you do decide to try it out, or even make it a foundation of your lifestyle as I have, it can open up a lot of doors that would otherwise be closed.

Happy sitting!

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