Home > Blog > Splitting Up as House Sitters
| Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Who keeps the account? | Whoever originally set it up. On most platforms, that's just how it works |
| Do reviews split between two people? | No. There's no mechanism for this on platforms |
| Can you have two profiles? | Yes, but it means starting over for whoever doesn't keep the original |
| Our honest take | If you're unsure where a relationship is going, consider keeping separate profiles from the start |
| Is this common? | More than you'd think. You'll occasionally spot reviews that quietly reference a couple no longer being together |
A real question came up recently in the house sitting community: what actually happens to years of shared reviews when a couple who sat together splits up? It's a genuinely hard situation, practically and emotionally, and there's a clear, if unwelcome, answer.
We sit through TrustedHouseSitters ourselves, and if you're building a profile of your own, a 25% discount on membership is available here. This question came from someone in the community who had been house sitting with their partner for a few years, building a strong review history together, when the relationship ended. They were left wondering whether they'd need to start entirely from scratch, and whether it was even possible to run two profiles on the same platform.
How This Actually Works Across Platforms
Most house sitting platforms run on a single membership per household, not per person. You can typically add a co-sitter to your profile so both people appear on applications and sits together, but none of the major platforms have a built-in mechanism for splitting that shared history if the relationship ends. Whoever created the account keeps it, along with everything attached to it, reviews, referral credit, all of it. The other person is starting from zero.
This isn't a hidden rule or a loophole specific to any one platform, it's simply how account structures work across the board, and it's worth knowing before you're ever in this situation, not after.
What This Would Mean for Us
To make this concrete: I hold our TrustedHouseSitters membership. If Caro and I ever separated, I would keep the profile, the review history, and the years of referral credit we've built together. She would be starting again from zero. That's genuinely uncomfortable to think about, because that history isn't just sentimental, it represents years of accumulated trust with homeowners that takes real time to rebuild from nothing.
It's also worth knowing this situation isn't rare, on any platform. Browse enough profiles and reviews and you'll occasionally spot the signs, a review that quietly references a couple who are no longer together, or a profile that was clearly built by two people and is now being carried on solo. Relationships end, including the ones built around a shared love of travel and house sitting, and this is simply a real, recurring consequence of that.
Our Honest Take on Who "Owns" the Reviews
There's no getting around the fact that this feels unfair to whoever doesn't keep the account, and there's genuinely no official process, on any platform, for dividing a shared history fairly between two people.
Our honest advice, if you're currently in a relationship and unsure where things are heading long-term, is to consider keeping two separate profiles from the start, rotating who books each sit under their own account. It's more admin, and it means neither profile builds quite as fast individually. But it protects both people if things don't work out.
If you're already deep into a shared profile and facing this exact situation right now, our view is that there's little to gain from fighting over who keeps it. Whoever built the account built it, and pushing hard against that rarely leads anywhere good, especially right after a breakup. Our solo vs couple house sitting guide covers the practical differences between sitting alone and sitting with a partner, worth reading if solo sitting is genuinely new territory for you.
Starting Over Is Frustrating, But It's Not the End
If you're the one without the account, our honest suggestion is to start a new profile and begin rebuilding rather than trying to hold onto or contest the old one, or hope the relationship resolves itself first. It's not a satisfying answer, but waiting to see how a personal relationship plays out before making a practical decision about your travel plans tends to just delay the inevitable. Peel the bandage off and start fresh.
The good news, genuinely: solo house sitting works. I've done it myself, and while it can be quiet at times, it's a real, complete way to keep this lifestyle going on your own terms. Our guide to loneliness and solo house sitting covers what that actually feels like and how to manage it well.
Every experienced sitter with years of reviews started with zero at some point, and some people start over more than once in their house sitting life. That's not a reason to give up the lifestyle, it's just the honest cost of building something with another person and having it not work out.
Conclusion
There's no clean, fair way to split a shared house sitting history when a relationship ends, and pretending otherwise wouldn't be honest. The account holder keeps the account. The other person starts again. It's a genuinely rough part of an otherwise good thing, two people building a life and a travel history together. But starting over doesn't mean starting worse. It just means a new chapter, possibly solo, possibly with someone else down the line, built the same way the first one was: one sit at a time.
Caro and I have completed 20 house sits across 12 countries, driven 19,000km across Europe in our 1998 VW T4, and saved over $26,500 in accommodation costs over three years of house sitting. If you're navigating this yourself right now, DM us @housesittersguide, we answer everyone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I split my TrustedHouseSitters reviews with my ex-partner?
No. Reviews and account history stay with whoever holds the membership. There's no formal process on TrustedHouseSitters, or most similar platforms, for dividing a shared history between two people after a relationship ends.
Can two people who used to sit together both have profiles on the same platform?
Yes. Anyone can create their own separate account at any time. The person who doesn't keep the original shared profile will be starting with no review history, the same as any brand-new sitter.
Should couples keep separate house sitting profiles from the start?
It's worth genuinely considering, especially early in a relationship or if either person feels unsure about the long-term picture. Running separate profiles means slower individual growth, but it protects both people's review history if the relationship doesn't work out.
Is it worth trying to negotiate keeping a shared profile after a breakup?
Generally not. The account belongs to whoever set it up, and there's little to gain from contesting that, particularly right after a breakup. It's usually more productive to start a new profile and begin rebuilding.
Is solo house sitting worth starting over for?
Yes. It's a genuinely complete way to continue this lifestyle on your own, and every experienced sitter with a long review history started at zero at some point. Some sitters rebuild more than once over the years, and it doesn't diminish the experience.
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