With last nights news of a second national lockdown, how are other housesitters coping with organised sits being cancelled?
Our next two sits booked through to mid-December have cancelled due to the owners overseas trips now being off which leaves us a bit stuck as we don’t own a home and have nowhere to go. Hotels look as if they will be for workers only so it could be extremely tough. May need to find a friends floor to sleep on for a few weeks but even that is difficult as it’s effectively not allowed.
@Jon-JWalking I felt the need to respond, hitting the “like” heart seemed inappropriate.
This latest lock down will present problems for many but especially full time sitters without a base, we are in that category but fortunately have a solution, thanks to our daughter’s Airbnb.
We will of course try and do all we can to help support our community.
It will no doubt be tough again for people. We went into lockdown in France last week and 3 consecutive sits we had booked had to be cancelled. One for a lady having an operation and she’s been waiting ages. Travel restrictions make it impossible for us to do the two split sits and stay somewhere for the 5 days in-between. If anyone is close to Poitiers do let us know so we can put you in touch.
In response to @Provence we have no home, but have the financial resources to buy one again if necessary in future. We are avoiding property ownership again in such uncertain times and have instead invested in a campervan which has helped us remain flexible … but nothing really works except being in a property during lockdowns. We are fortunate we have a 2nd home to stay in… we keep it safe for the owners through the winter months as they aren’t able to get to it themselves. We’ve always believed that you shouldn’t become full-time house sitters if you aren’t financially independent and if you don’t have plan b, plan c etc., for reasons just like this pandemic occuring. You never know what’s around the corner. @Angela_L is living proof that age is immaterial … health is another issue though.
We are exactly the same, no home but hopefully investment to help in the future but no concrete plans. We don’t have a long term plan and never wanted one. What we love about our lifestyle is the uncertainty and the lack of structure. The future is completely blank which is just the way we like it. @HousesittingMag Nowhere to safely sit out the winter though, that’s a real bonus in these difficult times isn’t it?
We are the same. We love the lack of certainty and the freedom our lifestyle allows us. Keeps us stimulated and young and open in our outlook (we think anyway!!). It is a bonus to have a lockdown property though. Gives us space to work and earn some money teaching until things ease up again. Stay safe and happy in your world!!
Thankyou @Provence. Unfortunately it is the sit in Poitiers that we’ve had to cancel, so I was hoping other sitters might be close by to help this lady.
We used the “tolerance” and the “declaration of l’honneur” (!) that permitted us to get to our final lockdown destination in Burgundy. They allowed people to travel back home with this who were on vacation due to the Toussaint break. We are looking after a 2nd home here through winter for home owners unable to get here.
We have all our online attestations to the ready for venturing out shopping and for exercise - it’s quite a procedure isn’t it. Thank you so much for your offer - it is really appreciated… but we should be fine now until lockdowns are lifted. Stay safe in your area.
I’ll certainly bear you in mind @Provence when we can finally travel freely as I’d like to housesit and explore France and other parts of Europe. Despite the fact you’re on our doorstep I really don’t know France very well at all! Thought I’d leave it to my dotage and go further afield meanwhile but think I’m changing my mind (although I have done lots of travelling ‘further afield’!)
By ‘on our doorstep’ I just mean that France is near the UK. I didn’t mean I would necessarily be your housesitter (I speak better Spanish than French but could improve) but that I could maybe rent your room that you mentioned earlier in between housesits.
It is a real benefit having somewhere to head to during lockdown and hunker down. The whole housesittyand travelling world is so unsettled now though isn’t it?
Hopefully not @Provence but this virus isn’t going away soon. We all just have to put our long term travel plans on hold and enjoy our own surroundings when we can and do the things we’ve been putting off. Just imagine how wonderful those trips will be when we can get back to some semblance of normality…I feel most sorry for the younger generation especially those who have just started out at Uni and aren’t getting the experience they should be. As you say, there are people far worse off than you and I!
As full time sitters we were in this position in March when the first lockdown hit. After moving around between parents and friends and feeling like a burden, we couldn’t cope with the uncertainty. We managed to use the money we saved while pet sitting for two years to put down a deposit on our own flat! So with some regret I can say the pandemic has caused us to given up on our nomadic pet sitting lifestyle dream, but also huge relief that we’re in a stable position now - and pretty much all thanks to THS!
Sorry, not a very helpful story for you. In the first lockdown when almost no sits were advertised on THS, I was scouring Facebook and found some posts from people who were stranded abroad and couldn’t get home, and were looking for sitters to look after their house until they got back - or whose sitters needed to leave early. That could be a good option, and I’d check THS religiously for home owners in that position again now.
@Rosie Hi, if we’ve not welcomed you before … welcome to the forum! Thank you for sharing your story, it’s such a positive one in so many ways, you must have many wonderful memories and connections from your two years of pet and housesitting … (and LOTS of pet photos!!)
Now that you have your own lovely home you may decide to get a pet, especially since you know first hand how happy they are with sitters and engage sitters while you enjoy house and pet sitting, once we find our “new normal” and you don’t have to travel the world to have the very best stays with adorable pets one could be in your very own “backyard”
Hi Rosie, sorry to hear that your nomadic travelling life had to stop but it’s given you a base and security hasn’t it? We live exactly that life and are struggling to find somewhere to live currently but hopefully things will work out.
Hi guys, I am new to the forum and just catching up on some of the old conversations. I was just wondering @Jon-JWalking how you are getting on during lockdown? Did you find something long term? We are full time sitters and like yourselves have no place to call home. We travel in our car and in normal circumstances try and fill most of our time housesitting supplemented with some Airbnb. We had all our November and December sits cancelled so we are currently renting an Airbnb until the end of December. We then thought we had the first couple of months of 2021 covered but have just found out today that our January sit has been cancelled. Feeling like we are running out of steam a little bit. So difficult to plan anything.
@SP80Welcome to our community so happy you have joined the conversation.
It’s been a terribly difficult year for everyone and full time sitters in our community have found it incredibly challenging.
Like you I am a full time sitter, of no fixed abode, with all my 2020 international and national sits cancelled, fortunately I have a daughter with an unoccupied AirBnB cottage which I’ve been in since March 27th. … hoping I will get family rates:))
We talk about always having a plan B but this pandemic needed more, it has been something no one could have planned for, fortunately as time goes on we adjust, adapt and find solutions.
There are other sitters on the Forum in the same situation as you and I have no doubt you will receive great help and support here.
Enjoy the conversations and making new and lasting connections.
… health is another issue though.
