Hello @Leoandme I now notice your profile shows you are in Shellharbour. I did a few months of sits across Australia a few years ago, including Shellharbour, and really enjoyed the area. I see you later say perhaps there’s little interest in the east coast, but I doubt that’s the case. I think it’s more about so many changes in our world and lifestyles over the past two years.
I was able to view your listing, based on the information you’ve provided. I would encourage you to review Angela’s top 10 tips. In particular, sitters are looking for photos of all living areas (include kitchen and bathroom), and the suggestion of not listing all your dates. Hopefully her tips will help you tweak your listing.
Hi @Leoandme try inviting sitters from your area. There are quite a few sitters near you, some look new, and would probably jump at a local sit to get their sitting journey kick started.
As a sitter with some more time, I have been looking at offers for a few weeks now. As car hire is difficult to even hopeless in some areas and periods, I notice that several sits in wonderful areas in France get no replies. Probably because of the “sitters need car”. I have now applied for 2 additional sits. One is a week in Switzerland, mentioning public transport etc and i know from experience you can get anywhere by bus or train in Switzerland. Another in Germany, where again public transport is mentioned and the use of 2 bicycles. If no one is applying, please try to offer some alternatives to the car. You could also mention you are willing to pick up the sitter at the closest airport or railway station? You could investigate if there are car share options or bike /e-step options.
Hi all
I find it difficult sometimes to find sitters, we have had some lovely sitters in the past, but struggling to find sitters, anyone else struggling at the mo, maybe as we are demanding mum and dad to our 2 sphynx babies lol
Hi
Is it just me or are people finding it hard to find sitters at the mo, I must of sent 10 today, saying they ate available on my dates, but just decline, I just want a holiday
It’s to look after my 2 very spoilt sphynx babies, in July, any help appreciated
Janine x
Hi there, I’ve been a TH member for several years now, and we have had wonderful experiences with the sitters we’ve had. In the past, I would post a sit, and within days I had multiple inquiries and I could sort through them and find the right fit for us. This time around, I’ve had one inquiry that was odd and reluctant to tell me anything about themselves, another inquiry where a woman was using her mother’s profile and she had a young toddler, which I say in my listing is not a good fit for my little chihuahua. Is it just post covid and not enough sitters out there? or is there a problem I’m not aware of ?
Vicki
Hello @vlarrick and welcome to the forum. By joining the forum, you will be able to keep current on what’s happening and how things are trending. As you know, we’ve been through a couple of trying years. Many world events are affecting all those in house-sitting communities; not just TrustedHousesitters.
There’s no simple answer to your last two questions. I’d suggest you read through a relatively recent post on sitter/owner ratios, and in particular, Angela’s excellent tips.
We recommend you add your listing to your forum username/profile. This allows members to view your listing and also give constructive feedback. Sometimes a few tweaks can make all the difference.
There are many posts on watching for ‘red flags’, and I think you’re doing just that in being cautious about the applications you have received. Certainly someone using another person’s profile is not appropriate. When in doubt, connect with membership services or direct message a moderator (click on their username). You’ll find the moderators listed under the About tab.
Once you add your listing to your username, I’ll be happy to try to give you more specific answers.
I thought it would be hard to secure multiple back to back sits in & the US in the North American ‘fall’ season but not so. First US sits for some very lovely furry folk & their humans.
Hello, I am a new sitter travelling in the UK this summer and the category ‘sitter needs a car’ is an issue for us internationals, espacially with those rental prices I am lucky and could secure 3 sits in July with public transport options…so much fun
So dear HOs, if you have any possibility to provide your car or maybe know a local car dealer who rents out cars for an affordable rate, please go for it…it would mean a lot to us who would love to care for your peaceful coutry side homes
Hello Francine,
Thank you for taking the time to respond to me. I have added my listing link to the community forum profile. Or at least I think I did.
I think my listing is fairly thorough, but I appreciate any feedback. Thanks, Vicki
Has this been going on a while or is it recent for 2022? Last year we posted a sit around Sept/Oct '21 for a month-long Feb '22 sit and after 45 minutes active I had to shut off the listing because we were inundated with REALLY good applicants (well, mostly, a few of the 20+ people never bothered responding to me so they were easily eliminated). It’s took me almost two weeks to whittle down the number of applicants to 3 finalists.
@jaumais There’s no easy answer to your first question. Some locations are more popular than others, and some world factors are as recent as 2022. For example, the invasion of the Ukraine has had an economic ripple effect that is far-reaching. The airline industry is facing complications that are affecting flights and scheduling. That is not an exhaustive list, but rather just some examples.
You haven’t specifically said whether you are facing a different scenario to the one you experienced last fall. If you have a listing that is not receiving the same response, you may want to embed a link to your listing in your forum username/profile..
Hi there! I have saved your listing.
I live in another part of Australia but I do get to Sydney and surrounds when I can (due to being massive footy fans). I wish we could help on the occasions you have listed but unfortunately cannot. Plus, we are cat lovers.
I thought it would be hard to secure multiple back to back sits in 
I am lucky and could secure 3 sits in July with public transport options…so much fun 
