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How to Outshine Housesitting Competitors in BC

The idea of inviting a complete stranger into your home to take care of things while you are out of town is not super common in Canada, so finding a housesitting job can be competitive, especially if you are international. 

In order to find a housesitting job, you will want to be flexible about where you are willing to go to get it. If you want to stay in Whistler during ski season and spend the summer on the beach in Tofino, you’ll probably be disappointed. However, you don’t have to travel far to find a picture perfect view and outdoor recreational opportunities in BC. 

Understand Your Customer

In order to be competitive in the world of housesitting, it’s important to understand that you are essentially a businessperson even if you aren’t getting paid. Take the time to really understand the homeowner’s needs. Usually there will be a pet involved and its care and feeding will come first. 

Any animal care experience whether it’s your own or someone else’s will come in handy in convincing the homeowner that you are up for the job. Even if you have not cared for someone else’s pet, some animal care experience is pretty much an essential requirement for the job. Being familiar with animal behaviour will help you get along much better with your charges and handle any emergencies that come your way.

There are a lot of small hobby farmers in BC, so if you have any experience with farm plants and animals that would be a big plus. You could even intersperse your house sits with helping out on organic farms.

Have a Niche

A niche is a specialty that makes you stand out in a crowded market. For example, many people have experience caring for cats, but not many have experience caring for horses. If you do, you will definitely stand out when a horse owner is looking for help. 

A niche could also be geographic. If you always house sit in Canada, this can help your application because people will believe that you know your way around, can deal with snow and can find and communicate with service providers. 

A niche could even be catered to the homeowners’ preferences. For example, a lot of vegans don’t like the idea of visitors using their pots and pans to fry up bacon. If you share their values, they might choose you over another equally suitable house sitter. Many homeowners prefer non-smokers, so this should be mentioned on your profile. If you have some maintenance experience, that might be helpful, but be sure to not fix anything without permission. 

Work on Your Profile

Even if you don’t have a lot of housesitting experience include similar gigs such as babysitting and any type of job that included a high degree of responsibility. For example, in my customer service days I was often in charge of opening or closing the store by myself. Ask for references. Volunteering at a pet shelter is a great way to get a good reference and show your love for animals.

There are also some short and affordable pet first aid courses that you can take online or in-person. 

It can also help to let your personality shine through, so that potential clients feel like they know you better. Candid images are great for this. Try to also include some images of you interacting with pets. 

When your house sit is over, make sure you politely request a review (as long as you know you didn’t flood their bathroom, of course). 

Be Communicative

It’s a big leap of faith to allow someone into your home when you aren’t there. You’ll see more success if you respond in a timely manner and take any interview process seriously. Having a video conference or, at least, a phone call will help both of you when it comes to setting standards and expectations. 

Expand your reach

Use multiple platforms and follow them on social media. There won’t be hundreds of opportunities in BC due to the relatively small population, so it’s good to jump on opportunities fast (and do your due diligence, of course). 

Be open to last minute jobs

If you are already in BC, you might want to apply for the short notice positions that sometimes pop up on these sites, but be sure to talk to the client before agreeing to anything. Also make sure you can actually get there. Public transportation is poor to non-existent outside major cities and you should also be aware of road conditions if you are driving. For obvious reasons, short notice jobs have less competition. 

Consider the Canadian Holiday Season

Canadians are most likely to be out of town around Christmas and New Year, March Break and during the summer months. You will likely see more listings during this period. 

Use a Premium Site

Why should you pay for access to housesitting jobs when people post similar jobs for free on Craigslist and other non-premium sites? When you go through a trusted site, you’ll have an additional level of protection in terms of vetting and customer support. Also, you can see reviews left by other house sitters. These sites also guide homeowners through providing you with the information you need about their home, pets and location so you don’t need to ask all the questions.

If you house sit multiple times, you will accumulate (hopefully positive) reviews. This can lead to repeat business and homeowners reaching out to you. 

Another bonus is that once the homeowner has accepted your offer, the listing is closed automatically. This means they can’t cancel if someone they like more comes along. 

Finally, remember there are a lot of scams on free classified sites. If it seems too good to be true or they ask you for a deposit, say no. 

Typically, house sitters on premium sites do not get paid, but they do receive a benefit in free accommodation. Be flexible and explore this amazing province while meeting locals and pets along the way. 

Shella Gardezi

Shella Gardezi is a writer and editor living in Vancouver. She loves to travel and created this site to share her love of British Columbia.

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