Hi Pierce,
I have a actually ahd home owners who I have sat for before asking me to sit again without going through THS which I have done.
THe difficulty is that house sitters will be extremely reluctant to do short sits if only a couple of nights, as they factor travel costs and the extra fee into all this.
The best thng is to go through past reviews when deciding.
I’m taking sits off platform because I object to being fleeced. The difference between standard and premium is £70. That’s 8 sits per year and I don’t do that many, the so called benefits of premium membership are of zero interest to me, 2 lounge passes and a very iffy cancellation policy. If there were 50,000 non-premium members and they each did 1 sit per year that’s the best part of £1,000,000 (£18 per sit). What improvements have members seen that justifies that additional profit? It’s an entirely one sided transaction.
I am new to this website and I have finished my second sit, and I’m scheduled for five more. If I was a homeowner I would definitely talk to the person and explain that you appreciate their time however you feel much more comfortable and protected by staying within the parameters of this website. If they don’t like it then they will find somebody who does or they’ll understand that they need to follow in line with how it all works.
Only some sitters who apply bring this up. I didn’t choose any of them. Thankfully I usually have other choices. Plenty of sitters are willing and even prefer to stay with booking the sit through the platform. I find myself relieved when I tell them I prefer it this way and they concur. It just feels right as compared to a sitter who prefers to do the sit off platform or even insists on it.
Ok the way you said that Premium members will be subject to booking fees made it sound like you were stating a fact. I understand that a Premium badge means nothing other than the member paid more. That much said, I would expect that a member who pays more for Premium is more committed to the process and likely does more sits, therefore will have more experience and a longer history. I’m not saying this is fact either, just my opinion and generally when I look at sitter histories that’s how it plays out.
To clarify. I’m not “new” as in I’ve been on THS for about a year with a half a dozen on platorm sits. I’m new to the forum although I’ve been “lurking” a while.
I didn’t mention reviews as a reason for wanting to keep the sit on platform because they are not a priority. We have found that from day 1 we get plenty of sitters applying even with no reviews, and most of them are established with great review histories and are willing or preferrable to staying on the platform. It’s just that when we come across a sitter who is determined to stay off platform for the sit that it makes me uneasy and that is what prompted this post.
In all fairness to the sitters to which this applies, they don’t see it as a big deal or an unreasonable request. To them there’s nothing wrong with it and they don’t seem to mind giving up the protection provided by the platform or the lost opportunity for a review.
But as mentioned by others it just doesn’t seem right to use this platform to connect with another member and then try to circument policy by going off platform. Either pay for the service or don’t use it.
I didn’t say will.
I can only speak for myself and as a sitter with a legacy membership since 2013 I am very committed. I have 50+ five star reviews. I have never cancelled a sit and even travelled to a sit on the day a family member passed away.
I have done many more repeat sits and no longer ask for reviews.
Three of my regular hosts are no longer on the platform and arrange their dates around our availability.
An interesting dilemma. And probably one that wouldn’t exist (to the extent that it’s likely to) had THS not decided to introduce booking fees.
I can totally understand why established sitters and hosts might want to take the sit off platform. I’m doing just that, by mutual agreement, with two couples who have both sat for me before; we know and trust each other and a personal bond exists (my sits are usually a minimum of four weeks with an overlap at both ends).
But I certainly wouldn’t go off site (nor would I suggest it) with sitters I didn’t know, regardless of the number of fantastic reviews they might have.
For hosts, when real problems occur, there seems to be very little THS can do - whatever your level of “protection” - because, as has been mentioned so often, it’s nothing more than a matching site. And once the sit has been agreed, it’s really between host and sitter to deal with any issues that might arise. Just look at the recent post about a host whose car and dog disappeared along with the sitter. There’s very little (probably nothing) that THS can actually do
Just for the record, I only have basic membership and I have no intention of paying more to THS for no real additional return. On my listing I offer to pay the sitters’ booking fees should they not have premium membership because I simply don’t agree with the introduction of the new costs , and especially not for sitter.
@Pierce sorry, I have to disagree with this statement. The level we are on does not impacted our commitment to home owners and their pets, one iota.
We have 100+ sits all over the world with 5-star ratings. We’re on a legacy level that is NOT the equivalent of Premium. And yet I (and every Home owner we’ve sat for) would consider us among the best and our reviews say so.
The only reason we’re still on this platform after the introduction of the fees is because we have years left of free months due to of the number of people we’ve referred to the site. Therefore we are not impacted by the fees at all. I might add those referrals were prior to the implementation of these fees and the 5-application pause changes which I strongly disagree with.
Hence, we no longer refer people due to those changes in particular and the sloppy way they were communicated with no regard for member input.
As many have said, its not about the money. We can readily pay for accommodation, but enjoy staying in homes rather than hotels, with the company of pets.
We are upset about the way it was introduced and the fact that those of us who’ve been here for over a decade have seen only a degradation in service and performance rather than the promised improvements. And, we are pretty sure that this won’t be the end of the money grabbing behaviour.
By the time I have to renew our membership, we will have established ourselves on one or more of the competing platforms and be off like a shot. If home owners want to do sits off the platform before that to save on fees, we’ll happily do them if they meet our usual due diligence criteria.
I agree with the whole of your post. Equating premium membership to commitment is nonsense, my reviews completely contradict this. I do not want premium membership because I don’t feel there’s any extra value for me. Two lounge passes, whoppy do. I don’t need THS, I use it because travelling and taking care of dogs is fun. I already have all the sits I need and want to do lined up for the next 13 months. Three were booked through THS before my membership expired and the HOs are quite happy to proceed and understand my reasons for quitting. I have another 5 that are either repeats, or referrals.
I agree. I’m a sitter and actually changed from standard to basic when my renewal came up because, after a year’s membership, I couldn’t see the advantage of having standard and, for the number of sits that would incur the booking fee, I was going to be no worse off. Finances, fortunately, were not the prime motivator in my decision.
My approach has been to share my 25% discount code with everyone/everywhere that I sit… I now have a renewal date March 2029! As the £9 fee only comes into play after renewal I’m good for the time being remaining as a Basic member.
To those who might be critical/judgemental, I’m only sharing the discount code in locations where I go to sit on a regular basis, so in this way I’m building a base of HOs at specific locations.
In fact I think renewal date should show up automatically on your Profile.
Hi @anon52083843
I agree with most of what you posted but as I posted a number of months ago THS accounts are public record and show a loss every year since THS started. The most recent accounts the losses run to multi million pound losses.
@richten1 all the more reason to get established elsewhere as a backup up, just in case they do go bust!
I don’t think that’s necessary, unless membership expires during a sit. In that case, both parties should be warned.
No, you don’t understand the financial data that’s in the public domain. THS is most assuredly not losing money.
TrustedHousesitters is currently running as a profitable and rapidly growing business as of April 2026. Following a major management buyout in late 2023, the company has transitioned into a highly valued global marketplace.
## Financial Status (2024–2026)
* Profitability: The platform reached profitability in 2023 while operating on minimal external capital.
* Valuation: The company was valued at over $100 million in December 2023 following a buyout by [Mayfair Equity Partners](TrustedHousesitters finds new $100m home at Mayfair Equity Partners | Mayfair Equity Partners).
* Revenue Growth:
* 2023 revenue reached $53.4 million, representing massive year-over-year growth.
* Estimates for late 2024 and 2025 suggest revenue may be scaling toward the $250M–$500M range as the community expands.
* Market Scale: The platform now facilitates a new sit every two minutes and has handled over 16 million nights of pet sitting to date.
The reported net losses in TrustedHousesitters’ annual financial reports, including losses of over £2m and £4m in recent years, are primarily attributed to high reinvestment for growth and specific accounting treatments rather than a lack of operational revenue.
High Growth Investment: A significant portion of revenue is directed toward advertising and global marketing to expand the user base.
Acquisition Costs: The company was valued at over $100 million following a management buyout by Mayfair Equity Partners in 2023. Public accounts show outstanding amounts owed related to this purchase.
Heavy Reinvestment in Infrastructure: The company employs a large team (over 200 people) and invests heavily in its technology platform and B Corp sustainability initiatives.
Accounting vs. Cash Flow: Reported losses often include non-cash expenses like depreciation and amortization from tech investments or the buyout, which reduce accounting profit on paper without necessarily impacting daily cash flow.
THe difficulty is that house sitters will be extremely reluctant to do short sits if only a couple of nights, as they factor travel costs and the extra fee into all this.
That’s still location dependent. A short sit in a popular area is going to get hits. A short sit in a more remote area involved travel expenses even before THS added a $12 fee to “book a sit” for both parties might have problems.
There are hundreds of thousands of sitters. I live in a big city and sit part time. A short sit in the country within 4 hours driving time works out great for me. Those sits when I find them are relatively easy to get if I apply quickly and a previous sitter doesn’t grab them up. Also because my spouse now has to go to his office and can’t get much “remote” time, we don’t do sits of more than two weeks in most cases. There are many part time sitters with non-remote jobs in such a position or people like teachers who may have a long summer break but are not able to do long sits during most of the year.
You are stating this as a supposition about the future “will be” and the effect of the new booking fee. However, there are many new sitters coming on board for whom this is normalized or who might have joined or decided to upgrade to premium to avoid the fees. There are also many sitters who whether they have premium or not have used the discount codes to extend their membership and won’t face booking fees for a very long time.
I do think with the fees and travel expenses in general, it is a great idea for homeowners generally to make their listing as clear and as attractice as possible, and to respond quickly to suitable sitters. BUT I also feel strongly that any sitter who read my listing and saw everything my sit offered who then told me that I needed to pay their fee to put more money into the pockets of THS because they don’t think they should pay it in principle but they think I should pay possibly double depending on my tier in principle is not going to get my set because we have a serious difference of opinion.
That was obvious to me.