How to Get your First House Sit: The 3 Keys That Got Me Picked Every Single Time

“But how do I get my first house sit gig if no one is going to pick me because I don’t have references?” My friend, I feel you. I really do. But this post is being written by someone who started from scratch on TrustedHousesitters twice and still managed to get chosen—and super fast at that. In fact, I am housesitting right now at this very moment in Thailand, taking care of Taco, a short, chubby Corgi whom we absolutely ADORE.

But let’s get back to the post.

How to Get your First House Sit without references

If I had to rank the questions I get asked the most about housesitting, this one would probably be number one. When you open platforms like TrustedHousesitters or Nomador and see profiles overflowing with five stars, dozens of reviews, and people who seem to have pet-sat halfway across the world, it’s completely understandable to think you’ll never be a priority against that kind of competition. But let me repeat: I started from scratch not once, but twice, with zero references on the platform and no track record to prove I could look after someone else’s house or pet. Yet, here I am, housesitting at this exact moment.

And even though I know you, and I know you’d love to find an excuse to justify your fear, no, it wasn’t because I got lucky or because some magical force enlightened me. It’s because I take the time to write applications that build trust and stand out.

Over time, I realized that most people make the exact same mistake: they write trying to convince the owner of why they need that accommodation, when the focus should actually be on the other side.

The Mistake Almost Everyone Makes (and How to Fix It)

Before we talk about strategies on how to get your first house sit, you need to understand this: when you apply for a housesitting gig, you are not asking for a favor. You cannot put yourself first instead of the person/pet you are writing to. Put yourself in their shoes. Imagine you have to leave your pet with someone and the message you get says things like: “This opportunity would be great for me because I love that city and want to explore it slowly; this housesitting would help me out a lot because it allows me to save on accommodation and have my own space.”

Because even if all of that is true, it doesn’t change a single thing for the homeowner. In a few days, that person is going on vacation, traveling for work, visiting family, or dealing with an emergency, and there is something they care about way more than you: their pet, which in many cases is equivalent to a son or daughter. And not only that, they are also leaving you their home. I mean… do you really think the first thing they want to know is how badly you need a place to stay? The first thing they want is to feel like they can leave with peace of mind.

That is the mindset shift that takes an application from being just another one in the pile to standing out: you are not asking for help, you are offering a solution. While it might seem like a tiny difference, it completely changes the way you write. If you are writing from a place of personal need, trust me, it shows. Instead, you need to write about how you are going to make that person feel at ease and trust you.

Do This Before Writing a Single Word

Before you type a single line, read the entire application description, paying special attention to how they describe their pet. How do they describe them? What is their personality, what do they like, what is their routine? How long can they be left alone? Do they have any special needs? Are they a hyperactive dog or one that sleeps twenty hours a day? Is the cat social or does it need its space? What are their favorite toys?

Why do I recommend doing this? Because that description is the map that tells you exactly what that person needs to hear. And here comes another very common mistake: some people write generic applications, change the owner’s name, make just a couple of tweaks, and send the exact same message to twenty different listings. While this might work for a distracted owner, the reality is that someone leaving their pet in the hands of a stranger usually notices right away when they receive a copy-and-pasted message. The point is, if you didn’t even bother to spend a mere five minutes reading the description… why would they trust you to take good care of their dog? What kind of trust are you building?

How to Get your First House sit Without References:

Key Number One: Make the Pet the Main Character

Here is something I do that is super cringe, I know, but I swear it works for me. It just came naturally to me and I think it adds an extra touch… *twitches eye and cries tears of secondhand embarrassment, but for myself*

When I write an application, my greeting isn’t usually addressed to the owners first, but to the pet. I swear. For example, for the housesitting I’m doing right now, my application said: “Dear Tuco (and Sophia):”. Tuco is the dog and Sophia is the owner. I SWEAR. I SWEAR I DO THAT.

The point is what that message communicates: right from the get-go, I am focusing on the pet and the main purpose of housesitting, not on myself.

Respond to the Description, Don’t Give a Speech About Yourself

After that greeting, I introduce myself in one sentence. I just state my name, age, where I’m from, and what I’m doing at the moment. And then, the first paragraph is all about the pet. For example: in the listing, Sophia mentioned that Tuco is a pretty independent dog, that he loves cuddles, but sometimes he needs to hide under the couch to have some quiet time. She also explained that he uses interactive feeding toys because it keeps him entertained. Instead of ignoring all that information and writing a generic message saying I love dogs, my first paragraph addresses those exact details:

“Aww, it melted my heart to read that Tuco is half-dog, half-cat. I love that he respects his own boundaries; I’m super clingy with dogs, but if I need to give them space, I absolutely will 😛 I also thought using interactive toys for his meals was such a great idea. I’ve never seen that system before, and it seems like an awesome way to stimulate him while he eats.”

This adds a thousand times more value than any generic phrase like “I’ve loved animals since I was a little girl.”

Because, who hasn’t? If we didn’t like animals, we wouldn’t be housesitting. Or at least WE SHOULDN’T BE.

Always put yourself on the other side; think about what you would like to read if you were about to leave your pet in the hands of a stranger.

Key 2: Talk About Yourself… But Connect It to the Pet

Once you’ve talked about the pet, only then is it time to share who you are. And I say only then because this is another mistake I see all the time:

“Hi, I’m an engineer, writer, I do yoga, I love to travel, I speak four languages, I love cooking Italian food, and I’ve been working remotely for three years…”

Great. So what? What does that have to do with the seven-year-old Labrador that needs to be walked twice a day? Nothing. Everything you share has to answer one single question:

Does this information give the owner more peace of mind? If the answer is yes, keep it. If the answer is no… out it goes.

For instance, I could tell you that I’m a writer, a women’s coach, that I live a nomadic lifestyle, and blah blah blah, but what does that have to do with the pet? The only reason I would mention it is if the owner said something similar in the description, because then I could connect with her. If she is also a solo female traveler, of course I’ll mention it, because we could be buddies. But that’s it. Or, for example, if the description says the dog can be left alone for four or five hours a day, then you can say something like: “I work from home and I’m also studying at the moment, so I spend most of the day indoors. Tuco can rest easy knowing I won’t be away for long stretches of time.”

Even though the information is practically the same, what changes is the angle: I am framing it around how it serves the owner, explaining why my lifestyle benefits their pet.

Stop Thinking About Selling Yourself Without Thinking About What the Owner Wants

The owner isn’t looking for a cool traveler (or they might be, but that’s just a bonus). They want to be able to step onto the plane without worrying every thirty minutes: “Did they take the dog out for a walk?” “Did they give him his medication?” “Did they remember to lock the door?”

That is what you need to generate in your application: Peace of mind.

An Application Is Not a Job Interview

I think we often fall into this trap because we treat it like job hunting. Mass-sending resumes, copying cover letters, trying to prove we are responsible, proactive, organized, resilient… But housesitting doesn’t work like that. On the other side, there isn’t a Human Resources department; there is a regular person probably sitting on their couch, with a dog lying next to them, reading your application while wondering if they can truly trust you.

Don’t Apply to Just Any Housesitting Gig

I know it’s tempting, especially if you’re trying to save as much as possible on accommodation, but you need to read carefully what each request entails, because you won’t always want to commit to everything they require. For example, in my case, if I read a housesitting listing that says the dog cannot be left alone for more than an hour, I don’t apply. It gives me anxiety to feel like I can’t leave the house for at least that long. Generally, when I housesit, I like being cooped up inside (lol), but I need to know that if I suddenly change my mind and want to go out, or feel like spending three hours reading at a café, I can do it without any issues.

Because if you accept a housesitting gig that doesn’t fit your travel style or personality, it’s highly likely the experience will end up being frustrating for both sides. And you can’t just pack up and leave halfway through. I mean, technically you could, but you absolutely SHOULD NOT. It is your responsibility to read in detail what you are committing to before doing it.

How to Get your First House Sit Key 3: Offer a Video Call Before They Ask For It

There is a phrase I hear a lot when someone tells me they can’t get housesitting gigs: “They probably don’t pick me because I don’t have references.” And while it’s true that references help, it is not indispensable to have them to get chosen. How to get housesitting? You are hearing it from someone who started from scratch twice, and here I am in the middle of a housesit. For me, a key factor is that since you don’t have references to back you up, the least you can do is show confidence that you are a real person, and you do that through a video call. In fact, I also do it to check out the owners’ energy because, again, even though saving on accommodation is awesome, I don’t want to end up in a place I’ll later regret.

The Structure I Always Use to Write My Applications

If I had to summarize this entire article on how to get housesitting into a list of practical steps, it would be this:

1. A greeting addressed to the pet (yes, the pet first).
2. A one-sentence introduction of yourself.
3. First paragraph: exclusively about the pet.
4. Second paragraph: talk about yourself solely in terms of what that pet needs.
5. Last paragraph: offer a video call.

Now that you know how to get housesitting gigs and write amazing applications, I hope all this info was useful to you. If you have more or other questions, please, I beg you, write to me—because what I want most is for you to finally take the leap and travel once and for all!

A big traveler hug, Angie

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