I am curious if any of you have been able to secure long-term housesitters and what your expectations have been for someone staying that length of time and what your sitter’s expectations have been. I will be taking a sabbatical next year and have two dogs I need to find care for. I’d like to try and find someone who would housesit for three months so they will be more comfortable. But kind of unfortunately I am in Texas and our summers here are HOT! Is it remotely realistic that I might find someone wanting to spend three months living in the fiery pits of Dante’s Inferno? Or should I look into other options?
Do you have adequate air conditioning? I would state that you expect the sitter to use the air to maintain a comfortable living environment and that you are prepared to pay the utilities, as if you were still there. I would definitely post it. Also, something may like staying put during the hot months? You never know until you ask.
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We’re sitters, currently on a 6 week sit in 31°C, and I’d happily sit here for 3 months if the temperature remained at that level. There are quite a number on here that like it even hotter.
Make sure your profile clearly shows how you keep your home cool.
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Well good news! I do have a brand new central AC system. It’s typically over 37 Celsius during the summer here. For long stretches of time!
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I do! New AC last summer that works really well. I would never ask anyone not to use it of course. That would be cruel!
Glad it doesn’t seem an impossibility. Our backup plan is for my partner to join me for just part of it. But as I plan to spend all of it abroad it would certainly be preferable to have her with me all three months! 
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I’d happily do a 3 month sit in a location that’s regularly at 37 Celsius. Compared to Baghdad with no AC in July that’s positively chilly. 
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There are many nomads on here without a home base. They welcome being in one comfortable place they can settle into for a bit. If you have a pool I would put it as the profile picture. Is there a pool close by they can get membership at? I did a sit in Texas for only two weeks but joined the local Y for a month membership where I found the most gorgeous pool. The size was something I have never seen before. Everythings bigger in Texas!
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There are many sitters who actively search for long-term sits, as that makes the whole “get to know the house and the neighborhood and the pets” transition time so much simpler.
Some people love the heat, some people hate it. Many sitters are homebodies and won’t care how hot it is outside as long as your A/C works. Your BEST BET is to post way in advance for such a long sit, as most people will have to plan far ahead for that. And I would recommend looking for a couple or a family so that if one of them has a family emergency or something partway through, the other will stay behind and be available for your pets.
I recommend being very thoughtful about who you select and consider finding someone who has done a lengthy sit before or at least a lot of short sits so they really know what they’re getting into. As I mentioned in another post, one of my big regrets was agreeing to a lengthy sit when I first joined this platform, before I knew what I really wanted in a sit (I would happily do a three month sit now - but only for cats!)
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As it’s always said, there’s a sitter for every situation. Wouldn’t it be boring if we were all looking for the same thing!
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I’m in downtown Austin, TX right now. It’s 100°F daily (not today though… what a surprise and relief!). Could I stay here for 3 months? NO. Yet, I’m used to the heat, having lived in a desert for 8 years. Why? Because downtown Austin is completely dead and spooky during the day. Not a soul, not even any cars. Only homeless people scattered on the sidewalks, sleeping. The only time I, and everybody else can go out, is after sunset. But even then, it’s not very nice as all the homeless people are also on the move, and ask for money. So I am at home most of the time. It is a very lonely existence.
BUT, if you live in a lovely, secure neighborhood with grocery stores nearby and tons of coffee shops and bars where the sitter could meet people, a comfortable house or apartment complex with a pool and AC, friendly neighbors, then? MAYBE.
IMHO, it’s not just the heat, but as from my experience, the (potential) lack of social life could be a real deterrent - for some people.
So to answer your question … it all depends on what (other than the heat) you have to offer 
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Aussie house sitters are used to similar temps during our summer @lelynde so your listing might be attractive to them as it would be winter in Oz.
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I used to live in Leander TX, North of Austin and still have storage there. I’m doing a cat sit for a month this August to take care of some admin work. We return every year even though it’s hot. As long as you provide a good sit and good air conditioning, I don’t see why you can’t secure a sitter
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While this may be true, the probability of @lelynde finding a sitter from Australia legally authorized to sit in the United States is quite low. It is sadly not legal to sit on a tourist visa in the US and typically immigration enforcement in Texas is quite a bit more stringent than in other states.
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It must really restrict your travel to have to avoid homeless people. I appreciate your compassion about how they can’t escape the heat. You must be a very kind person. Hope your future sits work out well. There are many gated communities with AC available. Good luck.
I’m on a three-month sit now. Many sitters enjoy longer sits to get to know an area better and really bond with the pets. It’s also nice for those of us to travel full-time to slow down a bit and be in one place for a few months. As long as you can assure sitters you have good air conditioning so they can be comfortable in the home, I’m sure you will find a sitter. I assume the dog walking requirements take into account the heat.
I would recommend posting as early as possible. I often see long sits that look great but they are posted too late since I already have a shorter sit that conflicts. The sit I’m on now which goes mid-May to mid-August was confirmed in the beginning of December.
I see lots of sits in very hot areas of the US in the summer and they seem to get applicants. I don’t expect you’ll have trouble finding a sitter.
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You’ve made your point on the legality of pet sitting in the US very clearly on the Forum @KittySitter but it is up to individual members to decide whether they will continue to travel internationally to pet sit whether it be in the US or another country..
My comment to the OP was to say it could appeal to Australians as a positive for them. Not all sitters solely travel internationally to pet sit but actually combine it wth being a tourist or visiting family and friends.
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This thread is intended to help @lelynde, who is new to THS, find a sitter. I interpreted your post as suggesting that they should try to match with sitters from Australia (please let me know if I misinterpreted that). While your point about the summer in Texas being winter in Australia is a valid one, this will not help @lelynde solve the problem unless they first ensure that the sitter is legally authorized to do the sit.
It is not, in fact, up to individual members to decide whether an Australian can do a sit in the United States; it is up to border control. I am grateful to other forum members for raising issues about which I was unaware (such as nuances of the THS insurance). Paying it forward means that I help @lelynde be aware of this critical factor. If I misunderstood your post and you were not proposing matching an Australian citizen to a Texas sit, I apologize .
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I was in no way suggesting @lelynde invite an Australian sitter as invitations are rarely successful. More that there may be Australians who apply.
Yes, it is absolutely possible. I just spent 9 months on a sit in Phoenix (it didn’t start out that long, but because the owner had an emergency in another state, I stayed on). Not everyone is able to do a long sit, but those are definitely sought after by the sitters that have flexibility. As someone else mentioned, just post it early enough.
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