Hi @birdieandgil
I am a homeowner and joined in August last year. Just a few days ago we said goodbye to our second sitters and tonight I am going to have a video call with the third couple, who I will probably confirm for July. So far our experiences were great and to us it’s definitely worth it.
Here’s the thread about my experiences: First time we had a sitter was just perfect!
We live in Germany and so far I haven’t had any lack of applications. I read on the forum, however, that many HOs from the UK, don’t seem to get enough applications. So I think it depends on where you’re located and how you set up your listing.
Think of it as an advertisement of your home and pet, you want to get the attention of potential sitters with. Good pictures of the pets and the areas in the house that the sitters are going to use, a detailed description of the house and needs of your pets and information about how to get there.
I looked at many other listings before I created mine and I try to stand out from the others to attract sitters…so far I was successful 
We used to have just neighbors popping in to feed our two cats while we were away, but this didn’t work as good as we wanted. That’s why we thought of asking someone to stay in the house during our absence and it made all the difference! I know that the first time having strangers staying in the house feels awkward but seeing the cats behaving relaxed when you get back, you don’t want it any other way. Unfortunately our sitter passed away a few years ago and we had to look for others to sit. In August I stumbled across THS and instantly joined, because for us it’s just perfect.