Can new homeowners have off site reviews posted on their page? I have seen many new HOs with their first listing which off course would not have a TH sitter review on there. But are they promoted to leave personal reviews the same as the Pet sitters? What do you feel about being the first sitter?
We’ve sat for quite a number of THS newbies, but I’ve always had a really good connection with them right from the start. I think everyone whether they are sitters or HO’s should just trust their intuition.
However, the one thing I would say is that all of our THS newbies have lived within a 1.5hr drive of our home town, so we typically share a similar way of thinking, rather than things getting lost in translation, or expectations being different.
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I’ve been the first THS sitter for a few newbie hosts, in the U.S. and U.K. I flew to all of those sits. They were all gracious and whatever minor issues I had, I dealt with them. They all gave me five-star reviews and I did likewise.
Note: I give factual reviews and don’t gloss over, unlike some sitters. I knock down stars for anything significant.
When any host gets a good review from me, it’s credible.
One pair of the newbie hosts were the most hospitable of all my 18 sits, by far: Who's on a house sit now? How's it going? - #2648 by Maggie8K
I screen hosts carefully to make sure we have a strong mutual match.
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In the many years I have been been doing this, I have sat for many first-time homeowners and I can’t recall any sit that I felt was different in any way compared to one for a host who has done this before.
Being a good host is not something that requires any specialized skill set or knowledge, so that lack of experience doesn’t concern me.
While there are certain things that may not occur to a first-timer that would to someone who has done it before, they will most likely be small things that wouldn’t have a majorly negative impact on the person’s stay. And they are the same things any seasoned host could possibly do as well.
I am not quite sure what type of reviews a home owner would put up? References for sitters are understandable since they are providing a type of service and these references can show they are experienced with animals, trustworthy,etc…
Hosts take on a much bigger risk in this equation than sitters without a doubt. They are inviting total strangers into their home while they are away, relying on them to provide proper care for their home and pets, two things that are very precious to most people.
The fact that hosts do not provide any sort of references on their profile does not strike me as any sort of imbalance.
If a sitter is concerned someone that is new might not be aware of important aspects of this arrangement that would contribute to a positive experience for the sitter, they can ask the relevant questions. If certain things are important to the sitter, if they have certain deal breakers, then again, ask questions.
If for any reason someone would not feel as comfortable sitting for first time hosts, they can simply not apply to those listings. There are certainly enough members on here who have used the service multiple times so it wouldn’t make a serious dent in the number of opportunities available.
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We have also been the first sitters for a numbers of new hosts. Some have been amongst our favourite sits.
We have recently confirmed another sit for hosts who have become friends. We were their first sitters in February this year. February 2025 will be our 5th time sitting for them.
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I’ve definitely been the first sitter for multiple HOs and it’s mostly been fine. One nice thing about being the first is that you get to set the expectation standard of how things should be. As long as you’re not ridiculous and entitled that can be beneficial for everyone involved and the sitters to come.
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I’ve done a number of sits for first time HO’s on here. I think as long as the communication is honest and open they’re no different to long term THS HO’s. I’ve had many great sits with new HO’s. I stress to them how important the welcome guide is from the start and the more info they fill out the better for both of us. Many have asked me questions which I’m happy to answer.
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We’ve done a lot of sits for first timer homeowners on the site. We received over the top reviews from these homeowners as they weren’t sure what to expect in comparison so all said we exceeded their expectations. They didn’t know what questions to ask or what we expected so we helped them with that. One of our first sits went so well that the homeowners never asked anyone else for the eight years we’ve been members and would only schedule a vacation if we were available for the sit. We’re still great friends despite their beloved pet passing away this year.
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No, HO’s don’t have an opportunity to add references to profiles. I’m sure grateful to the sitter who took a chance on us as newbies! She became a repeat sitter until she moved too far away, but we’re still friends on Facebook 
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Absolutely Wrong. Sitters take on equal risk. It doesn’t matter what is listed or what you see or ask on a video chat. The Sitters don’t know what the experience will be like until they spend 24 hours in the home with the pets. You have obviously not lived through a week or a month in dire circumstances to state this.
Of course sitters can run into all sorts of problems, some quite serious, but I don’t see the risk as being totally equal. Hosts risk theft, serious damage to their home and having their pets harmed from improper care. We will have to agree to disagree.
And no, I have not found myself in any dire circumstances in the decade I have been sitting. Of course there are no guarantees and anything can happen to even sitters who do the most diligent vetting of sits. But that I have had such a good experience for so long cannot be chalked up to mere luck.
For any sitters having bad experiences, I hope they have learned something from them that reduces that risk in the future. And I would hope those finding themselves in that bad of a sit would make the decision to leave. And if they feel they have no other choice but to stay–most likely for financial reasons–that is unfortunate. Having had financial issues in the past I empathize. But sitting is completely voluntary and people need to take responsibility for their choices.
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I agree with you. Yes, sitters take on some risk, but they can also walk away relatively clean if things go badly. HOs invite relative strangers into their home and trust that nothing dire will happen when, in reality, sitters could do anything from robbing them blind to burning it to the ground. HO risks are FAR higher than the relatively small financial risks sitters take.
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If the circumstances are so dire, then leave. You’re a volunteer house sitter, not a prisoner.
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