I’m considering buying a condo that would require my pet sitter to complete a short application and a background check for the condo association. Has anyone ever had this situation occur and were sitters OK about completing the application for the condo association?
I don’t sit in the US so unlikely I would come across this, but from a sitters perspective, personally it would depend on the length of the sit. If it were only a few days it would be too much hassle, two weeks or more and an otherwise desirable sit then I would probably do it.
There are lots of sits going unfulfilled so it would depend how much you rely on THS and how much you love the condo.
From a sitter who has not experienced this situation : I personally would have absolutely no problem with this but I would request that you pay any fees needed to fulfill the requirement.
@lis, we’ve completed a good handful of condo housesits and have never been asked to complete such a form.
The impact is likely dependent on your condo, location, pet care and housesit. If it’s a beautiful Paris condo with an easy pet you’ll not struggle to secure applicants.
While there’s nothing inherently bad about such an ask then it may narrow your candidate pool. Some potential applicants may, for various reasons, decide not to apply.
In some jurisdictions then privacy legislation may impact the collection, storage and use of such collected data.
I’ve never experienced this from the sitter side. If I really wanted to do a sit and this was part of the requirement, I probably would be OK with it. Though I do find it odd. I own a condo in Illinois and that is not part of the regulations.
Unrelated to THS, i recommend you carefully read the by laws, rules handbook, declarations…If this rule is is off putting, inconvenient, limiting….. Where do they draw the line on background checks? What about visitors? Partners? Family members? Workers? Cleaning people? Seems overly invasive IMO that you cannot have a sitter come into YOUR home freely to do whatever you want within legal limits behind Your closed door. (I’m on our HOA board and currently revising our community handbook so this stuff is really fresh in my mind. Apologies for going off topic 
)
Never had a full background check when sitting. Have sat a few condo/townhouse/planned ‘communities’ that required my full name and home address which I’ve not had a problem providing.
OTOH, I recently sat in a senior community and the pet parent was even able to give me his meal points to use in the dining room or for takeout. (And the food was surprisingly good.)
If you buy this condo and list sits, I suggest including upfront in your listings that this application process is needed. That way, you save time by letting people self-select whether they’d want to do such for your sits.
Personally, I wouldn’t want to bother, unless a sit were standout location wise. There are so many sits, all else equal, why bother. And I say this as an American who’s already been background checked. I’ve also done sits where they asked for a copy of my driver’s license, so the hosts could get me privileges to use a bunch of amenities in a resort-like community, and tap in through driveway gates.
I wouldn’t do it for a sit unless it was 3 months or longer. Be aware that there will be a charge to do a background check as the condo will not pay for this of course. The sitter will not pay and it can cost you over 100 dollars. Then what happens if the sitter or you cancel. A background check is not done in a day. The condo can say we need at least two weeks. They may say it will be delayed another week and you are planning to leave before that.
Would your cousin need a background check if they came to stay and watch your pets. If so find another condo. I wouldn’t want to live like this.
We have never been asked to do a full background check but we did once have to provide a copy of our passports when we stayed in a high-end apartment block in central London.
The block had a 24-hour concierge, and if you weren’t on his list, you weren’t getting in!
I don’t quite understand why they would need an application and background check for you to have a guest in your home. THS sitters aren’t paid professionals, we are more like guests. What is involved in the application/background check process?
I had a condo in Chicago for years and we didn’t have any requirements like that. And I’ve done many sits in condos as well as gated communities and have never needed to do that.
I would probably pass on a sit like that, there are plenty of other sits. I recommend clearly stating this requirement in the listing so you only get applicants from people willing to complete a formal application and background check. Also, you would probably be limited to sitters within your own country for the condo association to be able to complete the background check. I would state that limitation in the listing too, so you don’t get applicants from other countries.
Friends live in an HOA community that requires this. It’s a massive pain. The sitter has to fill out the forms, and then the HOA board has to meet, which can take up to a month, and some of the board members just think animals should be boarded so they don’t have nonmembers on their private roads. Run away.
The HOA my friends live in, yes. If a nonmember is coming in while the HO isn’t there, background check. In practice you can just ignore it, but if you have even one nosy neighbor who’s a stickler for the rules, things could go very wrong.
My son’s building subscribes to a tenant/guest screening service, each tenant is allowed a number of guest screenings per year, once they reach the limit, additional guest screening is $25 and the results are emailed to everyone within the same day. The application process took me less than 10 minutes to complete and it is only required once per guest.
Yes, for this condo anyone staying over 2 weeks while the owner is not present, needs approval.
And if the committee don’t approve - what happens ?
I don’t know where you are, but most condo HOA’s provide for guest access for up to 14 days without any notification. This condo association requirement sounds too restrictive.
As a potential buyer, you can have your agent reach out to the Board and clarify whether they actually enforce this for pet sitters. If they do, I would not buy such a place as it’s simply too much of a hassle.
The board would be fine with 14 days but my sits are 6-8 weeks long.
Do you really feel like you own the property if you have to ask permission to have people in your home. To me homeownership is freedom, away from landlord rules. I bet there are other rules as well around the complex development that will get you a notice in the mail. You will be giving the sitter a list of rules that are not allowed there. I can see the review now. Dog was adorable, hosts were lovely but all the rules around there restricted our enjoyment.
Honestly as a host it’s very competitive to get sitters. If this location is stellar, beachfront with amenities, then maybe it can work out with THS. Or find a good sitter that does in home boarding at their home. But if your plan is THS than I would think twice about this property.