I’m going to be moving home in December, and about 5 weeks later going on holiday for a week. Normally I’d be looking to get a sit booked around now - but all I have is estate agent pics of my new home!
Looking for advice on what to do in this scenario - keep my listing as it is and explain the situation to anyone who applies; update my listing with some estate agent pics and explain the situation; or wait until I’ve moved to take some new pics (with boxes!) and hope to book a sit last minute.
I should add that my new place is in the same city, not too far from my current place
Have you had sitters before? If so I’d reach out to them and explain the situation and invite them back since they’ll already be comfortable with you and the type of home you have. As a sitter, I would not accept a sit in a place that didn’t have accurate pics and pics with boxes would just be a turn-off. 5 weeks should be ok timeline for finding a sitter assuming it’s a good location/time/pet. I’d suggest moving in and staging each room without boxes to get box-free pics up ASAP then explain that you just moved in so it looks a little barren but that you can send pics of your old place to show what it would generally look like once they arrive.
If you want to get the booking sorted now i would use the estate agent external pictures and internal pictures of rooms that won’t change much like the kitchen and bathroom and add pictures of the pets. That should give a good idea of what the sitter can expect.
You can then add photos of other rooms as you sort them.
You can explain in the listing the situation and that you will ensure that the living and sleeping areas for the sitter will be box free for when they arrive.
Don’t keep it ‘as is’ it’s not accurate. I’d use the estate agent pics, as those are the more accurate ones. But write in your profile what’s going on, and stress its 5 weeks later that you are moving, so that potential sitters don’t panic about whether or not you’ll get the keys on time, and give up to date photos to your chosen sitter as soon as you are settled.
Bet that gives you huge motivation to get your new place sorted quickly.
I’d be cautious of using photos that have been taken by an estate agent of someone else’s home, for a THS listing - if anyone were to spot them and object, I’m not sure where you’d stand regarding copyright and GDPR. And it’s probably against THS terms as well to advertise a sit in a house that isn’t actually yours – yet!
I would also be cautious of confirming sitters who would need to book flights/trains etc. to get to you at this stage, or those who would be taking annual leave, or doing the sit as part of a series of sits. What if your moving date changes, and this has a knock-on effect on your holiday plans?
Sitters will almost always want to see accurate photos of the home that they will be staying in, so you really need to wait until you’ve moved in to show those. If you’re keen to get going and gauge interest, you could take some that reflect the local area, or places to visit, along with cute pet pics, of course.
Just explain in your listing that you have a proposed moving date of xx, and that you will be posting more photos then. I think that editing your listing at this point would also bump it up to ‘new’ in the listings, so if you haven’t already found a sitter by that point, it’s a good way of giving the listing some extra exposure.
Hi @jen23
I’ve sat for HO’s that have moved house prior to me sitting. The best thing is to list your sit but make it clear on the listing that it will not be in a new location. List things about your new home the sit will be in. Good luck.
Similarly, a host posted a sit and noted that they were moving. They showed me photos of the place they were moving to and their current home. Everything was transparent.
I would’ve probably accepted the sit, except that another host and I video chatted in the morning (while the moving host had selected a later time to video chat). So I accepted the sit that was offered to me first. The fact that the other host was moving wasn’t an issue — the homes were in the same area.
Thanks folks for the responses! After thinking about it I think it’s in the sitters’ interest that I lead with full transparency - so I’ll reach out to past sitters and see if they’re interested, and if not I’ll wait until we’ve moved so that we can take some accurate pictures and avoid any potential anxiety or confusion. I’m sure 5 weeks will be plenty of time to get a sitter
