Have you heard of house sitting in Australia? It is becoming more and more popular, and with sites like Aussie House Sitters the process of finding exciting and beautiful house sits is made easy and fun. Basically – house sitting is looking after someone’s home in exchange for free accommodation. There may also be general home maintenance and pet care involved too.
We’ve been on the road in Australia for 18 months now and as we are travelling full time we are always on the lookout for ways to save or make money on the road.
One of the biggest expenses was accommodation, until we started to find places and ways to live rent free. You can read about our weekly budget and how much we spend on the road here. A priority for us was to reduce the amount of money we were spending on rent – so when we heard about house sitting we jumped at the chance.
House Sitting in Australia
House sitting in Australia is a fabulous way for families to holiday for free – whether you’re after a weekend away or in it for the long term. In the 6 months that we have been members of a house sitting website we have spent 6 weeks looking after a farm in NSW, a fortnight in a house by the beach on the Central Coast, 6 weeks near Coffs Harbour and a long weekend in a house in Hobart.
How it Works
After signing up with Aussie House Sitters we were invited to set up our profile. It’s important to write a really good profile description so homeowners can read about you and decide if you would be suitable for their sit. Below is what we wrote – making it clear that we love animals and are also homeowners ourselves so really care about property maintenance. Once your profile is set up homeowners can view it and message you with available jobs. Or you can search for your own house sits and contact homeowners through the secure message system.
Animal Lovers
Many people searching for house sitters also have beloved pets who need taking care of. The resident fur babies are quite often the main reason people search for sitters – many pet owners want caring people in their home while they are away to care for their fur-family. We’ve looked after dogs, goats, cows and sheep – and we’re looking forward to caring for a horse on our next sit. Having a love of animals is definitely a bonus – although a quick search on Aussie House Sitters for stays with no pet care required gave me over 50 results instantly. If you’re happy to care for animals you’ll find lots more jobs – from rabbits to goldfish. Having your own pet is also welcomed at some sits – we have taken our dog Bobby with us on 2 house sits and she’s enjoyed making some doggy friends too!
What to Expect
Each house sit we have done has been completely different. The homeowner will place an advert that will give you lots of details on what they need from a sitter. Pet care, garden maintenance or farm work may be included – or you might get lucky and be left to Netflix for a fortnight!
Tips to a Succesful House Sit
Good communication is essential. Make sure you chat to your hosts lots before arrival so you know what to expect, and what is expected of you, when you arrive. We try and arrive a day early (after checking with the hosts) so we are not rushed and have time to be shown everything properly. It also gives us plenty of time to get some local knowledge of what to see and do, as well as a bit of time for the pets to get used to use before their owners leave.
Benefits of House Sitting in Australia
As well as saving tons of money on rent, you’ll also get to really live like a local – experiencing some great locations from an insider view. If you’re travelling like us then having some home comforts is super exciting! A bath! Luxury. There is almost always wifi internet, paid TV and Netflix to enjoy – a real treat for us travellers. If you stay in a family home it’s also great as the kids have toys to play with – and the hosts will have great ideas of what to do in the area with little ones.
Aussie House Sitters
Aussie House Sitters have over 10 years experience matching sitters to homeowners and have the highest number of listings in Australia. If you have friends or family who might be looking for a house sitter send them over to Aussie House Sitters to sign up – it’s a free service for homeowners to find their perfect sitter. Who knows – we may end up on their doorstep!
Aussie House Sitters gifted us our annual membership to write an open and honest review – we were not paid for this post and all thoughts and opinions are our own.
*This post contains affiliate links.
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