Advertise sit before or after house move?

I’m looking for a long-term sitter (3 months) for next spring/summer (May to July-ish). Ideally I would put up an advertisement now, but the complicating factor is that I’ll be moving home in January. So any property photos currently on my profile will no longer be accurate.

What would you suggest? Advertise it now with a note that the indoor photos are of my old/current property? Or wait two months and advertise the sit once I have moved and include updated photos?

I know sitters(especially one staying for a long period) would like to see the photos of the property. I do have some photos of my new property, but I don’t think a selection of empty rooms look very appealing/it’s difficult for a sitter to imagine what it will look like when furnished. At the same time I’m worried that if I wait until January that I won’t be able to find anyone…

Hi Breev,
As a sitter, I’d be fine with photos of empty rooms. Some prospective sitters might find it helpful if your description indicates the size of the bed and that there will be couches, etc. Other than that, interior photos of empty bathrooms and kitchens are fine since they’ll likely show all the necessary fixtures. Oh, and it would be great to have interior photos of the windows and their views outside.
Cheers, Max

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Hi. I would post it now, even with pics of empty rooms. As long as you explain that you are in the middle of a move and that your place will be furnished by the time of the sit, you should be fine.
Especially for longer sits, sitters like to schedule in advance. And as @M.a.x said below, sitters like to know the bed size too. It’s not everyone’s top priority, but for those of us that sit as a couple, it makes a big difference.

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Hi @Breev Welcome to our Community Forum and to TrustedHousesitters … I see you’ve had some positive feedback already. This is a great opportunity to get creative and stand out, for instance you may be moving home but will you not be moving your existing furniture as well?

You could explain in the copy about moving, new house, empty rooms BUT here is one we prepared earlier and use all the image uploading capacity. …

Sitters are looking for clean, comfortable and welcoming and if that is what they can look forward to at your new home, it will be coming from your existing home, just in a different setting … so share what your current home looks like and say the new one will be even better …

There are some great articles on the website Blog to help create a great listing too and you can upload your listing link to your Forum profile that way other members will be able to view and offer feedback … this link will explain how it’s done … How to add a listing or profile link to your FORUM profile

Good luck and happy moving day.

Angela and the team

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Agreed with the others. There’s no harm posting before you move. Just clarify in the description. Showing photos of your current place—at its best—is a great idea. For me, the sit is more about the HO than the HO’s house. A tidy HO in one place will be a tidy HO in another place. It’s like that study about dorm rooms: You can tell a ton about a person just by seeing inside their home. Those insights about you will still be true after you move.

Some sitters will understand that, and some won’t. You can still appeal to those other sitters after you move and update your listing. But I suspect you might have some great applicants already!

If you also link to your listing and consider the feedback you’ll get from people on this forum, of course. =)

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