House Sitter vs House Manager: Property Management

While most people use the terms House Sitter and House Manager interchangeably, they are fundamentally different. When it comes to property management, hiring the right property caretaker is an important decision, and it's advised that you use a professional household staffing agency to assist in the search. 

What is a house sitter

A house sitter is exactly what you would expect, someone to "baby-sit" your home while you are away. There are several reasons a homeowner may want to do this:
  • To deter burglars
  • To collect the mail
  • To watch over pets
If you're going on vacation for a week and hire a trusted neighbor to watch over things, it's usually just fine. But homeowners who have a substantial property with a lot to lose should consider hiring a household staffing agency to source an experienced professional. 

What is a house manager?

A house manager is a career professional who manages estates for high-net-worth families. They are sometimes called Estate Managers or Property Caretakers. These career professionals are fundamentally different from a "house sitter" that you may hire on a website that does "matchmaking" for property owners. 

The people that watch your home for free in exchange for accommodation while you are gone are typically "backpackers," so they aren't the same type of vetted professionals that are career-minded, like the candidates you would get from a professional agency.

Is it safe to hire a house sitter from a website?

We strongly discourage homeowners from using websites to find someone to take care of their home while away on vacation. It's, essentially, the same as using a dating site in the sense that the candidates aren't vetted. Do you want to trust your most valuable asset to a complete stranger?

​Even candidates who come with "recommendations" can't be trusted because when you call the phone number to verify the reference, you could be talking to the person's friend who is posing to be a previous client. Again, we advise using a professional household staffing agency to hire a vetted, career candidate. 

Which websites are popular for house sitters?

There are quite a few websites that people use to hire property caretakers. The following list are the most common, but please be advised that we aren't "recommending" them, we are just referring to them:

The downside to hiring a free house sitter

Hiring a free house sitter who isn't a professional House Manager has downsides. In this video, the couple who are taking care of this French chateau are hanging out and making videos inside the homeowners dwelling, probably without the estate's permission. 

When using a domestic staffing agency, it's the recruiter's job to vet the candidates to make sure they are tried-and-true private service professionals, which means they understand discretion, and they don't take photos or make videos inside of the homeowner's dwelling.

Hire a house sitter, estate caretaker, or house manager

If you would like to hire a professional house sitter, estate caretaker, or a house manager, contact us for a no-obligation consultation: