How Much Do You Pay for House Sitting?
 

How much do you typically pay for house sitting and what does the sitter take care of? Are there different prices for visiting the house daily and/or staying in the home for the duration?

In suburban Philadelphia we pay $35 per day and the sitter stays at our house (we have a dog). They are allowed to eat whatever's in the fridge or pantry and order movies on PPV. It doesn't get out of hand.

It varies, but right now we have someone who is looking after our 2 cats for just over 3 weeks. She lives in, is watering the garden and generally keeping the place going. We're paying her $400 total. We also have somebody else coming in on a daily basis to give one of the cats his medication; the house-sitter wasn't comfortable doing it so we made special arrangements. That's another $8/day.
We've had varying results with people living in, so we're depending these days on people we know who are looking to make a few extra bucks. We had a horrendous situation last summer when the sitter called us regularly to tell us everything was fine. When we got home we found the house in a total shambles, and the cat who needs meds clearly hadn't been given any. It's a long story, but we ended up getting most of our money back and the agency that supplied the sitter is no longer providing live-in pet sitting. The total cost that time would have been over $600 for about 2 and a half weeks if we had ended up paying full price. Please choose your sitters carefully!

Hi Statia,

I would say it totally depends on what other responsibilities the house sitter will have, such as caring for pets, etc. And yes, I think the prices should vary depending on duties and duration.

I haven't had anyone in a few years, but I paid $50 a day, that was basically for house sitting and care of my little dog (not Sophie, this was years ago). She had a kitchen stocked with food and I did not expect house cleaning, just upkeep of the already clean house presented to her.

Now, I would even go higher for the right, responsible person.

The last time I had someone house sit, it was the 20 year old daughter of the friend that I invited to Maui with me. All my friend had to pay for was her airfare, everything else I had anlready taken care of. The daughter had parties at my house, and my poor little dog was traumatized, one whole door scraped by her nails when they locked her in a room.) She repaid the money I paid her (of course, at the 'urging' of her parents, they were mortified.)

That said, I would trust again, a grown up this time, no one even close to "party" age, lol. I know there are plenty of irresponsible adults, but I would say the odds go down considerably past those hormone teen and early twenties years, lol. And NEVER again with someone's kid, employment and friends don't alwys mix, although my friend handled the situation exactly as I would have, but it could very easily had gone the other way and affected the friendship. Luckily it did not.

If you need someone to house sit for ya down in the Carib, my DH and I are available, we have great references, lol. :)

Hope you are having a a great day, Statia!

((H)) Tiff

Thanks so much for the responses! Keep them coming.

We have two horses, two cats and a dog.

We pay $40 per day, and the person stays in the house.

She cleans the stalls, feeds and waters the horses, and lets them out for an hour once per day.

She feeds the cats and dog, and checks the auto litter box daily and empties the daily receptacle every few days.

We go on trips that vary from 4 days to more than 2 weeks, and if we come back from a long trip and everyone is OK and the house is intact, we tip anywhere from $75 to $125 extra.

We're paying $60 day when we go to Alaska next month. Officially she is a "pet sitter" for our two dogs (walking 3 times/day, feeding, taking to the park), but she also brings in the mail, waters the plants and just generally takes care of the house. We do not provide anything except DVD's (we have Netflix) and a guest bed w/clean sheets and towels.

Personally, I would never hire anyone except an adult professional after some of the horror stories I have heard. Although, when I was in my teens and early twenties I would have never abused the situation. It depends on the person, but I'd rather be safe than sorry!

I'm struggling with the same issue.

Finding an appropriate person has also been a problem. I finally resorted to placing an ad on the bulletin board of a local bible college. The religion of the college does not condone drinking or premarital sex, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that will help reduce the chances of finding our house trashed. We live in a town of only 20,000, so there is a limited choice of trustworthy people willing to take on the responsibility.

I do have family nearby who will be able to "oversee" things while we are gone and who could help in an emergency. However, my family is not willing to take on the responsibility of my 3 cats for 2 weeks. Ideally, I would like to leave the dog at home the entire 2 weeks also.

Like you, Statia, I'm wondering what the appropriate wage for cat care and/or dog care would be. No mail, no newspapers, no housekeeping. Food negotiable. Use of the car negotiable. Truthfully, I'm simply looking for someone to take decent care of my animals. As a college student, I would have thought I'd died and gone to heaven if someone would have let me have their house and paid me for it too!

xxxx, Why would you let someone use your car?
Wouldn't you worry about the cost of it being damaged, as well as your potential liability?

I pay $25/day. We have one cat that needs to be fed once a day. Usually a HS or college student.

Orcas--Sure, I'm worried. But 2 thoughts come to mind. First of all, if I am to trust the person with my home and pets, why not the car? Secondly, there is no public transportation in our town. She would need a way to get to between college classes and our house.

I didn't mention in my reply that our sitter is a mature woman who works nearby.

We used to have some younger folks from my wife's office sit but they don't seem interested any more. The funniest story we heard is that one of the guys we had house sit wanted to see if the electric fence for the dog actually worked and put the collar around his neck and walked through the field. Now, that was interesting but the fact that he actually told someone he did it was hilarious.

We pay $50/day for a 2-3 day weekend situation or somewhat less for a week or more... I guess because it seems like more of a hassle for the housesitter to come over for just a couple days. Also we send our dog to 'dog day care' every other day and the day care folks will pick her up/drop her off for $10/day if the house sitter doesn't want the dog in her car.

House sitter can eat whatever is in the house. They get the mail, feed the dog, and hopefully leave the house in similar condition to what they found it in. Pretty easy job.

xxxx,

It is really a matter of your comfort level with this and your options. We had a house sitter once who used his bike to get to work. We decided against leaving him the keys to the car. We didn't want to have to deal with the downside if he had an accident. I'm probably particularly sensitive to this as my father was paralyzed in a car accident years ago.

I'm not an attorney, but I think you'd want to be careful to verify the person's driving record, if you can, at least.

We just left our 18 year old daughter in charge of our house in our absense and came back to big burn marks on our kitchen table where a friend of hers had set down a hot pan without thinking to use a trivet. From the stories I am hearing from other parents, I think maybe we got off light....

When we have a housesitter, we have paid between $25 to $30/day, to look after two cats and get mail and paper, and water plants. We provide food and a clean house with clean sheets on the bed. We give a bonus if all is well on our return.

For short trips, we pay a neighbor kid between $5 and $10/day to visit the house daily to bring in mail and paper and feed the cat. Usually these kids are early teens. Last time, the kid inadvertenly shut the door to the kitty litter and the cat peed on our couch....Suffice it to say, you have to keep your perspective and remember that your relationships with your friends and neighbors are more important than venting.

I don't have first-hand experince with house-sitters but I have a neighbor with a cat who uses a pet-sitter. She visits daily for about half an hour. I think the vet office recommended her.

I also wanted to share my "horror" story of another neighbor who used college students as pet-sitters. She had 2 loud dogs and the sitter would come in around 2 a.m. to let them out and the whole neighborhood would wake up due to their barking. I finally had to go out and explain to the sitter that some people like to sleep at that hour.

When we lived on Kauai I paid a pet-sitter recommended by the vet $15 a day to come once a day for about 20 minutes to feed cats, bring in mail, etc.

Here in CA I pay a 12 year old neighbor kid $5 a day for about 10 minutes of watering and a quick check on the cat who has an automatic feeder and an electronic cat door. I stop the mail, newspapers, etc. This has worked well, even for trips over 2 weeks long.

Cats are much easier than dogs to leave for extended periods. I really dont like the idea of paying someone to live in my house while we are gone, it would be so aggravating to come home to a big mess.

Why do people have to sleep at your home? Can't they come in, get the mail, feed the cat, take the dog for a walk and then lock the house and leave!
I put my cat in the kennel once we pass three night trips. I stop the mail for more than a couple of days and I turn on the house alarm.
I would not give a teen or college kid a key to my home or a stranger. My good friend and neighbor has a key for emergencies and she has come in to turn off our alarm when it went wacko one time.

Thanks so much for the responses. Very interesting price ranges. The reason I asked the question is that my recently retired mother has been asked to house sit for several people (strangers, not friends) and she has no idea what to charge when they ask.

I often look after various friends homes when they are away, including feeding pets, watering plants, skimming the swimming pool, etc. and I've never charged a dime. Maybe I'm in the wrong businesses with my day job. :D The same friends look after my house and pets when I'm gone, though.

I'm curious why so many people hire someone they don't know well, rather than just have a friend look in on things?

I pay $25 a day which includes taking care of my five dogs, watching the house, watering the plants. My house sitter is a vet tech. I do not leave food or authorize PPV movies. She does enjoy the pool.
She has been doing housesitting for me for about nine years and over time we have pretty well worked out the ground rules. I dread the day she says no. As our house is rather remote from neighbors I do prefer someone stays in the house with the dogs.
If Tiff and DH are tied up, I am available to housesit for you, Statia. I am too old to be a risk of unbridled drinking or partying. A Caribbean treat...

I live in So Cal and hire a friend's daughter from down the street, she is 25. I pay her between $20 for a regular sit and $25 or more if there were any hassles that she had to take care of (last time we were gone our kitchen flooded and she turned off the water and called the plumber).

She feeds the two dogs, brings in mail and paper and basically makes sure that the house looks lived in.

In return, she gets to stay at our house, enjoy the house, satellite TV, DVD's, pool and some glasses of wine and Lean Cuisine all she wants and to make herself comfortable. Seems to be working out OK.

She gets time out of her parents house, gets a little money before she goes off to grad school and we get the security of knowing our house and dogs are not suffering while we are away.

Now I am worried. Is this enough?

Tiff and cmcfong, I'll have to keep you two in mind. You'll have to take care of your own airfare, though. ;)

I'd like to be on Statia's housesitting list too!

I don't like the idea of a stranger either. But, we've found ourselves between a rock and a hard place. The people who were once available to us no longer are.

I can bring myself to kennel the dog for a week. I don't like the idea of her being kenneled for longer than that. The dog is relatively young and needs supervision and attention. Simply having someone to walk and feed her would not do it.

My only consolation is that my parents are nearby and will check on the house. Any misuse or abuse of the facilities would be found out quite soon. They could then take over care if they had to. (Parents are able to do it in emergency, they just prefer not to regularly)

Although we love to travel. it's always a headache getting someone to take care of our farm. We have two dogs, a cat, plus sheep and chickens. If it's a weekend trip in the summer, we just have a neighbor come over and let the dogs in and out, and feed them. For an extended vacation, especially in winter, we get a house sitter who is experienced with farm life, and they usually get $30 a day. Since we live in a small community the sitter is always someone we know, or someone recommended by a friend. So far all of our experiences have been good ones.

We never had to hire or depend on strangers until the last couple of years. The neighbours across the road had older teenage kids who were very responsible and since the parents were so close by, we felt comfortable leaving the house and the cats in their hands. The kids were happy to have the money and the independence. However, the kids grew up and the neighbours moved, and a few years ago we had to find an agency to supply us with a sitter. The results were mediocre at best and that's not really good enough when it comes to our cats, so we worked a little harder to find friends and acquaintances who were willing to do it. Right now we're in good shape, with a former colleague of mine who lives in a high-rise apartment building and is delighted to have a nice quiet house and garden to herself for a few weeks.

We have always asked neighbors, but it is a lot to ask and I worry about overextending their hospitality. So, we started driving the dogs to my parent's house 2.5 hours away which is less than ideal, especially now since our new dog is not the best leash walked dog in the world.

After reading this thread, I called my husband and we are going to find someone to come and house sit/pet sit! While it will cost a little more than free, it is well worth it. I feel pretty darned liberated! The magic of fodors!

Wow, I guess I'm getting off cheap. I live in Chicago and have used a professional pet sitter for the last eight years. She charges $13.00 per visit (she also gets the mail). I only have one cat, and I have her come every day. I think, however, she probably stays around 15 minutes to make sure he is fed and brushes him.

My sister generally moves in (including this weekend). We have a dog. I give her $25 a day, plus credit card for food and a car with a full tank of gas (and these days, that's expensive!).

"Why do people have to sleep at your home? Can't they come in, get the mail, feed the cat, take the dog for a walk and then lock the house and leave!"

This would work for cats, but not dogs. Dogs need to be let outside more than once in a 24-hour period, 3 times minimum (morning, evening, and before bed). We have a large dog - too big for a dog door. Also, she would not like being left alone 23 hours per day. We pay our house/dog sitter $25 per day plus some kind of bonus - usually a gift certificate. After reading this, I think we might need to pay her more. She does a great job and is totally reliable.

Wow...can I come house sit for all of you. I do this on regular basis for family friends to help pay for college and I don't get near what some are paying!
I think that having the house sitter actually stay in the house is nice for the dogs. Allows them to kind of keep their routine;i.e. walking, eating, going out. One of my families has three older girls now, and they all want their friends to watch the house and four dogs while they are gone, but mom isn't comfortable with it.
I think that rates depend on what exactly they are doing and how much you are comfortable paying them. I think my folks were paying their housesitter about $20 a day. :)

We pay our dog sitter $12/ visit and she comes three times per day ($36) when we're out of town. She brings in the newspaper and mail, waters the plants and turns lights on in the evening and off in the morning for security.

The main thing is to match up with someone you can trust. There are many responsible retirees and travellers who are more than happy with receiving rent free accommodation only in exchange for housesitting.

I recommend the site below where you can browse hundreds of sitters by location, age - photos etc

<a href="http://www.housecarers.com/search_re...;>Directory of house sitters</a>

Since most of this post is from 2005, I am curious what rates have done since then - since we recently hired a day 'dog walk/play/feed" and a person who spends the night (from after work until morning) with the dog and wondering what rates are elsewhere. I pay $15 per hour visit during the day and the overnight charges $ 25 from around 6 or 7pm until she leaves for work at 8am.

We pay $20 per day for someone to come in twice a day and feed/play with the cats.

We pay $30 per day for someone to live in when we travel for extended periods of time.

These are both in the Seattle area

I am in the process of hiring a petsitter in the central New Jersey area. I found a website called Care.com I joined for one month $35.00 dollars to place my "ad" for what it is I need, a sitter from 5/30- 6/9 to sit for 3 cats. They will come once daily and give a pill to one cat every other day. Clean litter, feed, fresh water and keep there bedding clean. I will be paying $15 to $20 per visit. The ones I have interviewed asked for $15 per visit but I think they are asking too little.Care.com runs a background check and will even call references for you and you get to look at everyone's profile. I think it is a great service so we will see how it goes. I think I found someone I like and will hire. I will see how it goes.

Hello Reader,

I really would appreciate someone's input on how much I should be getting payed for stay in house sitting plus animals.

So I watch two untrained shih tzu one still has accident in the house. They don't really listen unless I have a treat in my hand but they still really don't listen. One very old cat that meows all the time and always want to sit on my lap if Im sitting or laying down. Also 13 chickens.

I wake up at 6am to feed all. Then dogs go outside to take care of business. Note they have there own very big yard with not fence in the middle of the woods with neighbors. If I don't stay out with the dogs they wonder off in neighbors yards. When the weather is walkable we go outside and run around, hike, walk, and play if not we play inside. They both are still in there puppy years so that's all they want to do. I take care of litter as well. The chickens stay in there coop until dawn they go in there haut on there own unless other wise all I do is lock the doors. I clean up after myself and they have a cleaning ladie who comes once a week and does her normal routine. They have no cable or DVDs that I'm intersed in. Which doesn't really matter. They only eat fresh so there's really no food only fresh eggs. I have to buy my own food with my personal money. Also I water planets once a week and flowers in the summer.

I do not throw party's or do anything to harm the house or there loved ones. That's just not in my nature. I do invite people to come over and keep me company from time to time(really scary at night by myself). They have so much Liquor and I have house sit twice and yet to touch any of it. They alway say help myself to there liquor. I don't think I would unless I have someone over but nothing wild. I am a quite kind of person that wild stage has passed. I am 27 so people may think that's all I do but that's the last thing I would do. I am a very honest and respectable person. I treat others how I want to be treated.

I think I should be getting paid more then they pay me. I just Recently house sit for 17 days and I got paid $350. That's $20. A day! I thought that was a portion but didn't get anything else when they returned. I just think I am being took an advantage of more so because I know that he has the money to pay me right. I have been reading up and people who do the same as I and I have yet to see anyone else say $20. a day. It really makes me sad that I didn't do the research before hand so I would haven got paid fairly.

What would you pay someone like me? I need help thank you as soon as possible. I may be house sitting sooner then later. Thank you some much for your time.

Sorry to bother you Statia but don't see other way to aks you a question. Saw that you were thinking of renting the Piguna Apartment from Rental in Rome some years ago and I am too. Did you ever stay there?

I want to respond to Meg785 since no one else has.

I was recently asked to house sit for the first time ever and asked what I charged. I live in the lower mainland of B.C., Canada and am 25 years old. Upon my search I found this forum and decided to charge $25 per day for watching over an indoor cat and spending the nights (for one week in total). Shortly thereafter I was asked to house sit again but for a dog and a cat and for a different home owner. I still charged $25 and am actually staying in the house right now :) But I didn't know the dog was going to poo and pee in the house every day....! I love the pets but am here for 3.5 weeks and am not please about the bathroom business. Perhaps the owners will sympathize with me upon their return and give me a small bonus but I'm definitely not expecting that.

Word has gotten out that I'm now available to house sit so I've already got 2 more gigs lined up and already quoted $25 a day. But after rereading all of the posts above and having experienced house sitting, I will now charge $30 a day. If there aren't any pets then I will charge $25 a day, but if there's 1-3 cats/dogs then I will charge $30. If there are more than that then I will charge $35.

But you described so many duties, like looking after chickens?! I would suggest charging $40 a day, at least. Only because I read a couple posts above that said even $50-$60 a day! I would feel confident in asking for $40 a day to that particular owner if he asks you to house sit again in the future. And if he says it's too much then say okay your loss! He sounds cheap and you deserve more, put yourself first because no one else will! Best of luck in the future :)

Meg785
Yes, you probably are being taken advantage of. At minimum, I strongly suggest $40.00 to $60.00.You are not just staying in their home. Your time is no longer your own,you are basically on lock-down, a servant to quite an assortment of animals--which is something your employers may not have taken into consideration.

Also, you are doing a great deal of work, most sitters including myself charge per animal.

And, the peace of mind your client experiences having you at the helm is ---priceless.


Perhaps, you could chalk this up to getting experience-- ask your client for a reference, telling them you are going pro; and be sure to send them notice of your new rates.

Personally, I use a contract.Once I know the clients needs,I can customize a contract (you can find them online). The contract should detail your duties, the duration of the assignment and compensation and above all else be fair to both you and the client.

And lastly, the client may have offered up his liquor stock, etc. But, I would caution against actually accepting. Provide your own food, sheets, towels, etc. Leave their animals well cared for and their home the way you found it or better. This includes no dirty dishes or laundry. I most often provide my own cleaning supplies including a vacuum cleaner.

Sorry about your experience and the short pay, most of the time house sitting is great fun.