- In 2017, Marius Schmidt sold everything he owned and left Münster, Germany to travel the world full time.
- Schmidt used to stay at an Airbnb, but in 2020 he found himself sitting at home, and his stay is now free.
- He detailed how travelers get started, including asking clients for reviews for added credibility.
This essay is based on a conversation with 34-year-old Marius Schmidt about what he’s learned over the past two years as a house sitter.Schmidt uses sites like Trusted Housesitters and nomads those who follow in his footsteps Know the visa rules of each country you are enteringThe following has been edited for length and clarity.
I’m from the university town of Munster, Germany.
I started traveling full time in November 2017. He sold everything in the house and traveled with only two backpacks. I’ve been traveling ever since — I’m homeless.
Then I had COVID-19 and returned to Germany.
My ex-girlfriend told me about this thing people sit at home for other people. I thought, “How does that work?”
When COVID started to settle in Europe, I sat at home and thought I’d see if I could actually do it myself.
I have been sitting at home for two years now.half a year27 sit-ins in Dubai, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Germany, Bulgaria and elsewhere.
I usually go out and explore every day. This life is no different than when you travel with Airbnb.
Schmidt said he mostly sits with his cat because he doesn’t have much work to do.
Marius Schmidt
You can just live for free. It’s always a deal. The host will tell you that you can take all the food with you, or even take your car with you as they don’t. But usually no payment is required.
99% chance there is an animal. It’s rarely a big compound, so it’s hard to care for gardens and pools, but usually I’m always with animals.
Tip 1: Be selective
From the beginning, I am very selective. don’t go to all.
Basically, you choose where you want to visit and how long you want to visit. This usually keeps you in a few houses.
Being selective will make your experience better because you’ll end up liking the house more if it’s what you’re looking for.
Schmidt finds time to explore while sitting at home.
Marius Schmidt
a little difficult at first I want to get reviewsInitially, I started doing many short sit-ins, such as a week or a few days, to put up reviews.
With reviews, getting long-term housing is easy. Most of the time I stay long term, a month or more, preferably 2-3 months.
Tip 2: Treat it like a job application
One thing you can do is post your Airbnb profile on your house sitter’s page. Airbnb already has about 40 reviews, which is very helpful. It shows that you are a more trustworthy person. You can also include a nice LinkedIn profile.
Otherwise, it’s important to be very open about everything. What you do, what you offer them, and what you have done in the past, your experiences with animals, etc. Mention as many things as possible to appear credible.
A profile is basically like a resume that you create for yourself.
Schmidt with destinations around the world.
Marius Schmidt
It’s usually a good idea to have a video chat with the host beforehand and ask questions to get an idea of what the house is like and what it’s actually like.
I’ve heard from a few other house sitters that sometimes their homes are really messy or not very nice.
I recently had a bad experience. There were people who commute by car every day. She still lived there, but she needed someone to stay with her during the day.
I don’t do it anymore They need to go and I need to be there alone. It was an important lesson.
Ask lots of questions about what is and isn’t allowed. And if you don’t feel right about a host, don’t be greedy and embrace it.Sometimes I feel weird about a host and then decide not to take it.
And what a lot of people don’t do is ask for reviews at the end. It’s important.
Tip 3: Constant communication is key
For the hosts, I try to do everything I can to make them feel very taken care of when they are gone. There is a lot of communication and it makes me leave the house more than before .
If I find something that can be fixed, I will fix it. If it can be cleaned, clean it.
Every weekend I send him a video of the whole house so he can make sure everything is ok. Then I usually take videos and pictures of my cat every day whenever I play with it.
Marius Schmidt
I only choose to sit with my cat because it’s so easy compared to dogs or anything else.
For cats, feed them breakfast, give them water, and play with them in between. that’s it. Dogs are more needy. In fact, at a certain time he should go out 2-3 times. There is no freedom to travel freely while answering the phone. With a cat, you can always go out and do whatever you want.