Thank you @JulesandBadger for your positive feedback … it’s appreciated by both the support and moderation teams 
We are also very pleased to hear that you have had two applicants! Yay!! It’s lovely to see the power of the community here advising and helping fellow members! Please keep us updated with how things go and enjoy your Christmas !! Not long now 
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Your sit looks lovely and I see you’ve now got 2 applicants. Hopefully you’ll get more and you’ll find someone great.
Good Luck!
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I agree, the dark photo doesn’t look appealing but from photo 2 it looks amazing.
This is a great thread! Exactly what I was looking for.
We are in the same boat for a sit near the holidays, but ours starts the day after Christmas and goes through into the new year. I haven’t gotten any applicants, just a lot of saves. I know it’s an odd time to sit and there’s a lot of competition. I’m waiting to use my boost, but time is already getting short.
I dread the thought of starting to send out lots of invitations to sitters since I do personalize all the invitations. It’s a lot of work and time. It used to be so easy to get sitters. Glad to hear it’s working out for some!
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@Spaceboy don’t fret yet, we need exactly this type of sit, although we are in Europe, not US. Our one housesit ends on 26 December, so we need something with your exact dates. See, everyone has different needs 
I really do hope you find your match before having to fire off invites, your pets look adorable.
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Thank you for your comments! I figured our sit might work out for a sitter coming off a Christmas sit. Hopefully we find the right person. Too bad we’re so far away from each other because it would be a great fit.
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@Spaceboy or someone might spend Christmas day with their family, and then start housesitting afterwards…
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I became a full-time nomadic cat sitter since Dec 2021. I tend to confirm sits well in advance - at the moment I am basically booked out until 23 June 2023. This might be the way that many full-time nomads do it too?
It might be better in future to list dates with your listing, but also note that the dates are flexible. That way the dates will latch on to some sitters’ preferred dates in their saved searches.
I tend to save searches based on the dates I need to fill. I also have marked many as favourites but I can hardly ever apply for them as they usually appear after I have confirmed sits for those dates. There are obviously pros and cons with setting up a schedule many months in advance, one being the chance to make (or not make) advance train ticket bookings (I do not have a car). Usually at the 6-8 week point when dates are unfilled I start to look at airbnb accommodation because it is hard to book last-minute hotel or airbnb rooms.
One example: In Jan 2022, I accepted a sit for 5 weeks from late November 2022 to early Jan 2023 but the sit was cancelled in June because sadly, the elderly cat died. (It had been ill for some time). I have managed to find replacement sits for most of that period except 20-23 December and I might start to look at airbnb accommodation for those dates soon because I am guessing most home owners probably will not be travelling in that week right before Christmas.
I think you have now found a sitter - congratulations!
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@cat.tails - we are similar to you except that we always leave it until 7 days before looking for an Airbnb. This way we often pick up last-minute sits and if we don’t we are last-minute enough to be able to ask for a discount on our Airbnb accommodation.
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that’s good advice but it sounds a bit risky for me - I am afraid there might only be high-priced airbnbs available at the last minute?
@KenandMary1998 - Without exception, we always ask. We book late and ask politely. Explain that we like their place but that it is above our budget. We probably have well over 50 reviews so they know they are getting good guests.
We don’t normally suggest a price, just ask them if a discount is possible - I would say 95% of the time they agree, 4% say sorry they can’t and the remaining 1% get a bit stroppy that we have the cheek to ask.
Almost everything has a sell-by date and Airbnbs are no different. A weekend to sell at £200 next month is only worth £150 if it is still empty a few days before the date actual date arrives…and the Airbnb host knows that it will be worth nothing the day after the date arrives!
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Are you being open to new sitters? Ive been applying to so many and i dont get so much as a response, assuming because im new.
Hi Emily,
Yes I’d be open to new sitters, but preferably if they had a character reference. I have a sitter booked in for Christmas and even though she has excellent reviews she has also sent me things like her linkedin profile information when she applied so I could get a feel for her as a person and the type of attitude she had. I hope you find some sits soon and use the forum, everyone is very friendly and the administrators are very helpful.
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We are in exactly the same position. Listed for Christmas and not one response. We have a lovely home in the French countryside and are experienced in looking after our sitters, giving them an evening meal on their first night, providing them with lots of local information, booking restaurants etc. 15 outstanding reviews except for one lady who seemed to think covid was my fault so marked me down a bit. It cant just be because of the financial situation in the UK because we have sitters from other European countries.
I have heard a rumour that some homeowners are asking for money towards heating and electricity. What a cheek - if you sit for me you are saving me around €300 in cattery fees, we both win.
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If you embed your listing in your profile here, people can see it and perhaps suggest ways to make it more attractive to sitters.
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Thank you for the advice Lassie. We have already had admin take a look and they changed just the title. I dont know how to embed my profile, so if you can help out there.
Hi @frenchlife. I have added the link in your forum profile, so the forum members can now see your listing.
Thank you Karen.