I’m a housesitter based in San Francisco. This year for the holidays, like never before, I’m getting bombarded with housesit requests but what is weird is I’m getting requests from all over the United States, even places that I had no plans on visiting. I’m getting an average of up to 5 invites daily and I have to keep declining them. I get invites even though my calendar shows I’m booked. Why is this happening all of a sudden? I never received so many requests and from all over the U.S. like is happening now.
I’m encountering the same issue! I’m in Vancouver and getting invites all over Canada. Looks like there are a lot of Christmas sits advertised and perhaps not enough sitters to fill them.
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I wonder if its partly because with the political situation there that Brits and Europeans are now avoiding the US.
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I got one from California and I’m in Australia! Since I changed my profile heading to “sorry I’m not sitting over Xmas” they have dried up. As long as I remember to change it after 
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Yes, I do this. Change my heading to “Currently not sitting”. Certainly stopped the invitations which, of course, were always appreciated.
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Can you set your calendar to not-available? I got as far as a page that would let you set dates when you ARE, but since I’ve never tried to do anything with it one way or another…? 
When you say your calendar shows you’re booked, do you mean booked with sits or you turned off availability? Either way I guess it shouldn’t still be letting the system send you invites.
Guess that’s one of the smoother-experience gems the new booking fee will fix 
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I replied to a San Francisco owner who had posted her listing just now for a sit to start on the 18th! I said there were 445 Christmas sits listed for San Francisco area! Also just under 3000 Christmas sits still listed in US! That’s why you’re receiving invites!!
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The system still allows invites to be sent regardless of the useless calendar that serves no purpose. It was set up to supposedly help homeowners see if sitters were available but it is so clunky that no or very few sitters use it and homeowners don’t look at it anyway. Well, probably MOST don’t, just to cover my bases 
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That is a bit ridiculous; what’s the point of having it then. I can’t even look out of curiosity at dates of sits that come up and how many applicants they might have because “you’re already booked for these dates”, so THAT part works I guess, but it sounds like the other end of it is broken 
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It has been requested NUMEROUS times to fix the calendar, nothing been done. Maybe the new booking fees can provide a new calendar that serves a purpose and is user friendly
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Well I’m sure they will. Everything is going to be so much more smoother and happier and streamlined-er.
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When I joined four years ago, the calendar issue was as ‘hot’ a topic as today’s booking fees. It was discussed on a daily basis, with constant requests for improvements. However, over time, it all quieted down. I suspect members simply gave up on the hope of a functioning calendar and simply stopped using it. Four years later - nada . As far as I know, nothing has been done to improve the calendar’s functionality during past 4 years.
Functioning calendar, still requested by many, and still hot topic, appears to be much more urgent for members than tentative departure/arrival times nobody asked for
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@ABGM, perhaps such functionality attracts homeowner members or helps them to proactively seek ‘chosen’ housesitters. Sounds great in marketing terms. That it’s functionally ineffective; nonsense expectations; and unlikely to realistically secure a housesitter is perhaps secondary.