4 tips for paying your house sitter

Paying a house sitter well is a good way to say thank you for properly maintaining and securing your home. If you're a homeowner hiring a house sitter, read some helpful payment advice below.

Before you agree to hire a house sitter, agree in writing on a certain amount that they will get per day that they stay, or per week if you will be gone longer. This is a good way to ensure that they are paid fairly and equally for each day they spend out of their home and in yours. Make sure you ask potential house sitters their daily rate when you're deciding who to have watch your house.

You can expect to pay more for house sitters who have extra responsibilities. For example, if you're not only leaving your house in the care of a sitter but also your dog, you should expect a sitter to charge more than if they were just watching a home. Think about anything that might also be an extra burden for a house sitter and compensate them fairly for those challenges.

You should hold off on paying the house sitter the majority of the money upfront, but you can give them a small amount of it, for example, 10%, at the start, to thank them for displacing their own lives and staying in your space. You should also leave them some incidental money for unexpected expenses (repairs, etc.). When you get back from your trip, pay your house sitter right away as soon as you see that your house is in good condition.

In addition to any agreed upon fee you will pay your house sitter, you should also leave them a gift to say thank you for their hard work. You can choose to leave them something before you go that they can enjoy while they stay at your home, like a bottle of wine, gift certificate to a nearby restaurant, or food for preparing a meal. Or, you can bring back a souvenir from your trip, to express your gratitude for keeping your home safe while you vacationed.