I see some kind owners have mentioned that they would happily cover the sitter’s ‘booking fee’. A generous offer, for sure. But how would that be done? Just pay cash when the sitter arrives to cover the payment the sitter had to make?
I can’t see any way that the HO could do it at the point of confirmation of sit.
Cash, Paypal, Venmo, Revolut, you name it.
No different than any other transaction.
We would pay a sitter’s fee if it made the difference between getting a quality sitter or not, however if a sitter insisted they be paid the fee in order to sit it would be a hard pass.
We’ve been sitters and HOs on THS for four years.
As sitters, we will pay our own booking fee. As kind as it is, we would graciously decline an offer to have it paid by the HO, as we are already saving so much in costs for accommodations.
As homeowners, we would also pass on a sitter if they told us that accepting our sit was contingent upon us paying their fee.
Offering to pay the fee should be offered freely by HOs, without prompting. It should not be expected or “hinted.”
oh yes, I agree, I would never ask for it. I was just responding to a number of HOs that have mentioned that they would happily pay it.
I would pay them cash or Venmo but only on arrival as I wouldn’t want to deal with getting it back if there was a cancellation. I would hope they could front the $12 at booking time.
I would pay the fee on arrival also.
me too………. more dots added to make the required characters 
I knew this would happen. This is going to create an environment of financial transaction between sitters and HOs. While I see lots of longtime sitters who would not accept it, I think newer sitters will skew toward expecting and even demanding it.
I would balk at a sitter who insisted I pay it but I’d gladly leave cash to cover the fee, maybe without mentioning it so the sitter could decide for themselves whether to accept. It could be part of the petty cash/ incidentals we leave for sitters and I wouldn’t ever need to know.
If someone IS going to do this, logistically, it makes sense to pay it on arrival. Can be cash or a transfer through any of the methods available. Otherwise, if the sitter ends up not coming, it gets complicated.
Are we really discussing ways of making the booking fee work? Unbelievable
Yes, members are discussing how to deal with the new booking fees that will impact future sits to maximize their continued success on the THS platform.
(Edited to meet the Forum Guidelines)
So here’s an interesting thought HO’s on premium compared to sitters? Just wondering the ratio…..
I’d think it weighs heavily in favor of sitters.
There is no good financial reason for HOs to have a Premium membership. The only benefits Premium offers HOs is sitter cancelation “insurance” (hiring paid services capped at a discretionary $1500 courtesy reimbursement after a $150 deductible), 2 lounge passes worth $60 combined (if I’m being charitable) and the no booking fee saving $12 per sit. At $90 to $130 for upgrading to Premium, HOs would need 5+ sitters per year to start penciling out. I suppose the value of the cancelation courtesy payments up with the number of sits per year but that has not been a consideration for us at 2 or 3 sits per year.
My long winded way of saying it is a poor value for hosts. But I can see the case for sitters.
A ‘quality’ sitter would not sit for 12 quid that they don’t even get anyway - it goes to THS. That’s less than one hour minimum wage and they don’t even get it. I would never demean myself by taking 12 quid from a pet owner. A professional wouldn’t show up for 12 quid, never mind spend a week or two at the property. This used to be an exchange of sorts - now you book a room in a house with pets - and they book your services. With everyone booking everyone for a fee, it’s not an exchange anymore. I want nothing to do with it.
Upgrading to Premium solves that problem and it may be worth it given the extra perks, especially for quality sitters that do lots of sits each year. Maybe think of it as a membership price increase which many seem to feel would have been more acceptable than a per booking charge.
Putting the emotions and hurt aside fir the moment, THS is a successful operation, there’s nothing close to it out there, and it will probably continue to flourish even if the member base is a bit smaller.
If more sitters leave than hosts, sitters who remain may very well see greater opportunities.
I am not hurt by this decision, but I am surprised and angry by the utter contempt THS has for its members. It seems untruthful that this new roll-out is for support. Dos that mean that currently there is no support? That inspires no confidence in me as a paid-up loyal member. If you think that paying multiple booking fees is going to attract ‘quality’ sitters, I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed. Quality people know their self-worth and don’t like being exploited.
I totally get it. I felt that way during my divorce 20 years ago. “How could she do this to me!? All I’ve done for her why can’t we just work things out and make a deal and go our separate ways? “.
Once I started looking at the failed marriage as “strictly business” and my ex wife as a former business partner, it allowed me to approach it in an effective, non emotional way. It made all the difference in the world.
Whether your ultimate goal is to stay on THS or moving to a different platform (or both), taking offense to how THS is now being run and expecting it to be as it always was, is counterproductive. Adapt or die.
Given that the fee doesn’t start until the renewal which could be a long time away for many sitters, and sitters would have the option when they renew of getting premium which would eliminate the fee. As homeowners face the same dilema it feels unfair to take the fee onto homeowners. I can understand that some sitters use the site more than most homeowners so they’d be paying more, but if homeowners had to pay twice – their own fee and the sitters – they’d be paying a lot.
I understand that some sitters don’t want to pay the fee on principle. I don’t get why they think that principle doesn’t apply to homeowners unless it has to do with feeling that the exhange is unfair or not a good value, which frankly I find a bit insulting as a homeowner. I also get that some sitters may be in finacial difficulities and not be able to afford the $12 or the upgrade. That’s not any of my business, but if they don’t have the $12, I’d be a little concerned about their ability to buy food or pay subway fare or generally enjoy visiting my city.
If the sitters somehow feel that paying their fee is the least I can do, then we aren’t well matched.
I would guess that many more hosts than sitters have paid for the Premium upgrade (as have I) and here’s why:
It’s probably safe to suggest that generally speaking -with exceptions-, that most hosts, being property owners and having the resources for long vacations for which they require pet care, are in better financial shape than most sitters who care for their pets and property primarily to save money, take vacations and stay in places they otherwise could not afford,.
Therefore the jump to a Premium membership isn’t the hardship that it might be for a large number of sitters who simply don’t have the means.
I’d imagine that had the new booking fee been directed only at hosts it would have been much better received. I would have shrugged it off even if I didn’t have Premiun and was exempt. Especially given how much money hosts save with unpaid care versus the costs of a paid sitter or kennel.
Yes, THS is making money off the new fees, possibly a lot of money. And hosts and sitters who remain are getting a great value from their memberships. Well, most of them. Those that are savvy and figure out how to utilize the site in an effective way to maximize the benefits.