Beginner’s Guide to Housesitting: Why housesit?

Over the past few weeks we've talked a lot about housesitting. We've defined what housesitting's all about, delved into making a great profile and applying for assignments, and discussed best practices for a successful assignment.

What we haven't talked about in much depth is why housesit in the first place? The benefits of housesitting are numerous and lend themselves to many more.

In no particular order, here are our top #7 reasons to housesit.

1. Save on accommodation

From a financial perspective, housesitting can save you a considerable amount of money on accommodation expenses. Hotels usually make up a significant portion of a travel budget. Imagine not having to worry about that expense and funneling all of that cash into things you want to spend your money on?

2. Save on food

The financial benefits are not limited to rent or hotel bills. Staying in someone's home, you have use of a fully equipped kitchen. This means you can save a lot on eating out and you can prepare what you like, when you like, without needing to worry about sharing the space and facilities with others. And if you love cooking and buying fresh produce from local markets, this is a great chance to sample all of those interesting and delicious-looking things you've spotted at street stalls.

3. Save on incidentals

There are lots of little costs we incur while travelling just because we don't have access to the things we do back home. Doing laundry, for example, can be quite the expense at a hotel and coin laundries aren't always a cheap option either; not to mention, the inconvenience of having to spend a couple of hours at the laundromat. Having access to things like a washing machine saves money and hassle.

4. Stay longer and better

With all the savings, you can afford to stay in your destination longer, which means a longer break for you! Plus you get to stay in a much nicer, homely environment with everything you need, preferable to a hotel, in our opinion, even if you can afford it.

5. Live like a local

Taking care of a property in places where locals themselves live is a great way to experience a destination in a whole new way and see and learn about things you probably would have missed if sticking to the tourist trail. Even learning about the different recycling systems around the world is interesting to us. On a housesit in Germany we learned that the round domes we had been seeing on the street were for glass recycling and the reason there are always three is because the glass is separated by colour: brown, green and clear!

6. Make great friends

Taking over someone's house and looking after their pets while they are away is a big deal. You'll likely have quite a bit of contact with the homeowner both before and during your stay. It's a great chance to get to know people. Do a great job and you'll make friends for life all around the world.

7. Make friends of the furry and feathered variety

One of our favourite and most rewarding reasons for housesitting has to be the awesome pets you get to look after. It's a lovely position to be in to be the person or people who can give comfort and company to them while their owners are away. You become great mates too as you get to know each other.

Check out some of the gorgeous friends we've looked after recently.

Jack says we should go this way.

Jasmine: Can I have some of your dinner?

It's snowy in Berlin! Bennie performs a site inspection on the igloo (AKA snow trullo) we are making for her and her brother on the balcony.

Bungle guards the trullo and waits to pounce on Bennie.

Cuddle time.

Tucker loves being brushed on the head.

Come on! Let's go play!

Have we convinced you yet?

What kind of housesit would you most like to get?