A post was merged into an existing topic: Conclusion Of Pausing Application Test - Updated Post
I guess itâs a matter of perspective because I feel like the only thing on this site is London/UK sits 
Iâm really fed-up with the availability of London sits. Iâve been looking for solo sits in London just so I can have a couple of rest days away from my home (I live in London already and I just want somewhere close by).
By the time I get an alert, it has usually already been paused to review applications. This means I canât even see the dates that were originally posted, so I donât know if I could have done it or not. The only reason a listing will still be available is because it is actually nowhere near London at all, and THS will not force me to apply to Sussex, Kent, Surrey etc instead.
I have cancelled my automatic re-subscription as I am just not getting the service that I signed up for last year. I also donât feel comfortable recommending THS to friends any more, as I just donât think itâs fair any longer.
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uk_american You can ONLY croll down and see âReviewing Applicationsâ or âNot Accepting Applicationsâ if you donât have any filters on. It used to show more info. Seems they keep making the system less and less user friendly!
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Actually you can filter by pet type if you want to see the ones you miss out on. So when I filter by âLondonâ and âcatâ I see the ones in ''reviewing" status with cats.
(Not sure that it actually helps to see the ones that arenât available, but it was to answer the question of where the London house sits have goneâŚthey are there but in review status.)
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One problem for those searching for âLondonâ sits, is that it doesnât show sits that are in London, but where the HO lists a more specific location. For example, I just saw a sit for Islington, but if I search for âLondonâ sit, the Islington sit doesnât show.
Presumably this happens for other locations.
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Randomly, I have noticed that âGreater Londonâ in the search filters brings results that I would consider âLondon properâ ie within reach of a tube (and Iâm a Londoner) and âLondonâ brings up sits that definitely encroach into Greater London ie the Home Counties and could be as much as an hours journey out of London 
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My house is a little further out and not on the tube, but rail links mean that central London is only 20 minutes away! It took me longer to get there when I lived by a tube station in Zone 2! 
The sits that are an hour out, I find very disingenuous to list as London. The HOs may be happy to commute for an hour each way to a job in the city (for example), but for a sitter, thatâs a long, expensive journey. If youâre a sitter whoâs hoping to have a couple of trips into central London to look at Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, or some other tourist site, you might not be able to make that work if youâre caring for a dog and have a full 2 hours of journey time.
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not to mention the length of time youâd be leaving the pets alone just to go and see the sights. If I want to see London, agreeing to look after a dog in Woking, for example, is crazy. By the time youâve travelled 45 minutes into Waterloo, have a quick walk around and travel back, you are over the time you can leave a dog alone.
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I have a lot of hosts for cat sits in London set as favourites and I see notifs come in for new sits almost daily. As many have mentioned, the sits are not always marked as London but by suburbs or boroughs of London.
Some locations are quite handy for getting to/from London by train (say 1 hour or so). I did sits in Tunbridge Wells (Kent) and Brentwood (Essex) and did day trips to London during the sit to see plays/theatre. For locations that I am not familiar with, I often do a query on https://www.thetrainline.com/ to see how long it takes to get to London from the sit in question. However, I rarely buy tickets from them as I find that some other sites are cheaper, eg https://www.gwr.com/ and https://www.lner.co.uk/
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Just looking for an Easter sit in London and very surprised to see NONE! In fact I canât find a single sit in London - if I type in London I get areas around London, but not in London. Does anybody know whatâs going on? It seems inconceivable that not one member is looking for a sitter over Easter.
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I agree they are few and far between. I have been looking (not for Easter but for later April / May) and generally there are around 15-20 in what I would term London âproperâ rather than the Cambridge, Colchester etc that also appear until you focus in the search map although not necessarily for Easter. I think it is related to the change in the application process (sits closing after 5 applications have been made) as the difference has certainly been very marked since that was introduced. I was actually very fortunate to be looking at the weekend and was the first applicant for a two and a half week sit in London which within, 2 hours or so, had 4 further applicants. It then closed to âreviewing applicationsâ and I had a video call last evening and was offered the sit. So, it seems it is very much luck - I donât rely on notifications on the app to tell me when new sits appear but just check into the website regularly when I am looking for sits. Itâs cumbersome but given the new process appears to be here to stay it seems the only way to have any chance of securing sits in popular areas. By the way I took a look after reading your message and there are a small number of London sits which cover the Easter period being offered as of this morning. So good luck - I hope you find something.
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@LizBCN I totally think and agree with you that the new five rule has a HUGE bearing on why there are so few London sits showing. I have noticed the dramatic change myself since the introduction. They may have been advertised but after the five was reached they disappear. Absolutely wrong the whole five thing.
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Welcome, @segdef!
London sits will go fast, due to the 5-app rule. Also, many PPs will have already made Easter plans and posted them a while ago. You can make a saved search on the app and watch as new sits will pop up, but they may hit the 5-app pause very quickly. Thatâs why you wonât see them on a normal search. I guess itâs a case of supply and demand.
Best of luck!
I see several nice London sits available today. Unfortunately I wonât be applying because I have other travel plans or plans at home. Or the dates are peek travel dates and airfare is high. When I saw previous sit opportunities that met my travel budget, I didnât see them in time to apply. Sometimes what make a sit appealing is that it fits my budget.
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I think Italy has the same problem as London - itâs a popular place with fewer sits in general. Weâve been looking for housesits in Italy all winter and havenât seen a single one on my saved search for September. I suspect itâs because when the email is sent out around noon (my time), the few sits that are posted, are already filled.
Every once in awhile, I get a notification in the morning that shows one that Iâve favourited but obviously when I click it, itâs reviewing applications. I often take a screenshot when this happens. We have booked an apartment in Lucca for September which have to confirm by July 31 if we canât find a housesit.
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At the end of January, I confirmed two London sits for April.
I think that in general the London sits get to the âreviewing applicationsâ stage very quickly. Many Easter sits for London will already be all confirmed but there are likely to be new ones turning up - the so-called âlast-minuteâ ones?
Good luck - you will need to move quickly when you see a London listing at any time of the year!
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I just saw what I would call a London sit for Easter hols 4-11 April in Orpington - 20 mins by train to London Victoria
Edited to meet community guidelines
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