What to Ask a Homeowner Before You House Sit: The Complete 2026 Checklist

Breadcrumbs: Home > House Sitting Guide > What to Ask a Homeowner Before You House Sit

Article updated on: February 2026

Some links in this article are affiliate links. If you sign up through them, we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps us keep the site running and create more free content for the house sitting community. We only recommend platforms we have personally used.

📊 Quick Facts

On our early sits, Konrad asked almost nothing. The excitement of being chosen, the eagerness to seem easy-going: dates, a pet name, an address. That felt like enough.

And honestly, most of those sits went absolutely fine.

After 15+ sits across 9 countries, we have had great experiences without asking the majority of these questions upfront. That is because a good in-person welcome tour, where the homeowner walks you around, introduces the animals, and shows you where everything is, will naturally cover most of what you need to know. If the homeowner is present when you arrive, you can ask things as they come up. That is often more natural than working through a list on a video call.

That said, having these questions in mind makes you a more prepared sitter. Some are worth raising before you confirm. Others are perfectly fine to leave for the welcome tour. A small handful are worth asking early because the answer might change whether you take the sit at all.

Think of what follows as a reference. Pick the ones that matter for your situation, ask them when it feels right, and let the rest come up naturally.

10 useful questions to have in mind before a house sit:

Stage 1: The Video Call Is a Vibe Check, Not a Questionnaire

The first video call is not the time to work through a list. It is a chance for both sides to see whether the personalities match, whether the sit feels right, and whether there is a natural ease to the conversation.

We start with something easy: their travel plans, where they are going, what the animals are like by name and personality. People relax when you are genuinely curious rather than running through a form. If the conversation flows naturally, it will touch on most of the important things without effort.

The more specific questions come later, once the homeowner has indicated they want to move forward and before either party confirms on the platform. That is the moment to fill in any gaps that were not covered naturally on the call.

Dates, Logistics and Handover

Arrival and departure times are worth confirming before you get there. TrustedHouseSitters now shows dates and times on the listing. Even if it is displayed on the platform I would definitely ask again to double check if it is correct and if there is any flexibility with those times.

As of 2026, THS has introduced per-sit booking fees for Basic and Standard members. Confirming dates in writing on-platform is now more than just polite: it is financial protection. If a sit is cancelled or dates shift significantly, having that paper trail makes getting your booking fee refunded by support much easier.

Dates sometimes shift and that is usually fine. Since we travel by campervan, we tell homeowners in our application that we are flexible and can adjust to their schedule. It has become one of our strongest selling points. Homeowners have asked us to arrive a day early and stay a few days later, which suits us well. A day or two either end is rarely a problem. A significant shift weeks out is worth raising with THS support and keeping in writing.

In-person handovers are by far the best. You meet the animals while the owners are still present, ask things as they come up, and pick up the small details that never make it into a Welcome Guide. If the handover is remote, asking for a video walkthrough in advance is entirely reasonable.

The one end-of-sit question worth asking: washing or basket? We do not ask homeowners how they want the house left. Our standard is to return it in the same condition or better, and that approach has earned us consistently strong reviews. The one thing worth confirming is whether they would prefer us to wash the bed sheets and towels before we leave, or strip the bed and leave everything in the laundry basket. Some homeowners arrive days later and would rather load the washing themselves: freshly washed linen sitting in a warm house, especially in summer, can lose its freshness before they even get home.

A useful one to keep in mind for longer sits: is there anyone nearby we could contact if something comes up and we cannot reach you? We do not always ask this upfront, but knowing there is a neighbour or local contact who knows the house can make a real difference if the homeowner is mid-flight and something needs attention.

Essential Questions About Pet Care and Routines

One worth raising early: how many animals in total, including any outdoor ones?

This is the question that changed after Kefalonia. We now mention it on every sit. Most recently the homeowner laughed and said: one dog, two cats, and some neighbourhood cats that occasionally pass through the garden, but no obligation to look after those. It was a relaxed thirty-second exchange. Good homeowners do not flinch at it.

The Welcome Guide usually covers the care routine, but it helps to know what to expect. Feeding amounts and times, medication schedules, walking routine, behavioural quirks: a good guide answers all of this without you needing to ask. The best one we have received was in Cortona. Every animal's routine was detailed, with restaurant recommendations for the area and dietary variations included. That level of thought means you can run the sit without messaging the owners over things they already covered.

If the Welcome Guide does not cover something important, the welcome tour is the right moment to ask. Not a pre-sit interrogation, just a natural question when you are being shown around.

The alone-time limit is now shown on THS listings, so a quick sense-check in conversation is enough. A homeowner who entered a number in a hurry may be perfectly fine with a full day out if you message ahead. Thirty seconds of confirmation prevents a day trip from becoming a sore point. For a fuller picture of what a typical day during a sit actually looks like, see our guide on what house sitters usually do.

For longer sits, it is worth knowing what to do if food or medication runs out. Does the homeowner have a card on file at the vet, or would you pay upfront and request reimbursement? For anything over a week or two, knowing the answer in advance saves an awkward mid-sit exchange. Under THS terms, homeowners are responsible for vet costs, but the practical logistics of reimbursement are worth agreeing upfront.

Vet and emergency details are ideally in the Welcome Guide. If they are not, the welcome tour is the time to cover it: who is the regular vet, is there a 24-hour emergency option nearby, and is the pet insured. You do not want to be searching for these answers in a stressful moment.

Access, Security and the 2026 Camera Policy

It is useful to know if anyone else will be coming by during the sit. We have had a friend of a homeowner arrive unannounced while we were out to give one of the cats a flea pill. We do not think they entered the house, but our laptops were on the table and our belongings were visible. It was not a problem, but knowing in advance would have been better. Cleaners, gardeners, family members, maintenance workers: if any are expected, a quick mention from the homeowner means no one gets a surprise on either side.

Cameras are worth a direct question. We have arrived at sits with outdoor cameras, which is entirely normal. One had a camera on the balcony, which felt slightly uncomfortable to walk past. At our Swiss sit, the homeowner had a camera monitoring the garden, and before leaving he visibly turned it off in front of us. The blue light switched off. That was reassuring and professional.

Per TrustedHouseSitters terms, all internal cameras must be physically disabled or removed before a sit begins. Doorbell cameras and external security systems are permitted but must be disclosed in the listing. If you find an undisclosed internal camera during a sit, this is a breach of the Member Protection policy. Contact THS support immediately, document the camera with photos, and do not approach the homeowner alone about it first.

From reading community accounts on forums, there have been cases of sitters discovering cameras in rooms where they were getting changed. If you discover a camera in a private area like a bedroom or bathroom, this is a legal matter in most countries, regardless of whether the footage is deleted. The recording itself is the issue. Document it, leave the property if you feel unsafe, and contact both THS and the authorities immediately.

Key logistics are easy to confirm in a message. How will access be provided: physical keys, a lockbox, a smart lock? And how should keys be returned at the end? Confirm before you arrive, not on departure morning.

House Rules and Homeowner Expectations

Most house rules come up naturally in conversation or are covered in the Welcome Guide. A few are worth knowing before you arrive to avoid any awkwardness.

Smoking and vaping: if relevant to you, worth confirming whether it is permitted anywhere on the property including outdoors.

Visitors and overnight guests: every homeowner has a different comfort level. If having visitors matters to you, it is better to know the policy before confirming than to have that conversation mid-sit. Our full guide is at Can House Sitters Have Visitors?

Restricted areas: some homeowners have a home office, a studio, or a personal space they prefer to keep private. These usually come up during the welcome tour. If not, a simple question about whether there is anywhere they would prefer you not go covers it.

Practicalities, Wi-Fi and Property Quirks

Most of this comes up during the welcome tour. A good homeowner will walk you through the property and mention the quirks as they go.

Wi-Fi: for most remote workers, a connection that handles a video call will handle everything else. We only raise it if the connection during the video call seemed poor. If you genuinely need fast speeds for your work, asking for a Speedtest screenshot or having a personal mobile hotspot as a backup is sensible.

Parking: if you are arriving by car or campervan, confirm off-street parking and whether any permit or code is needed. We ask this every time.

Property quirks: sticky locks, temperamental boilers, washing machines with specific cycles. A homeowner who forgets to mention these during the tour is not being unhelpful, they have just lived with these things long enough to forget they are quirks. A prompt of "anything about the house we should know?" during the welcome tour usually surfaces them.

Garden and plants: on longer sits this is worth discussing specifically. What needs watering, how often, and whether there is lawn mowing involved. See our cleaning and etiquette guide for how to assess whether garden duties are reasonable within the exchange.

The Dealbreaker Questions

Most homeowners answer everything with ease. But occasionally a response tells you what you need to know. These are the questions where an evasive or concerning answer means we personally decline the sit.

"Are you comfortable with me having the vet's emergency contact information?" A homeowner who hesitates here is not prepared to give you the tools to care for their animal properly.

"Will you be reachable by WhatsApp or email throughout your trip?" We do not need daily contact, but we need to be able to reach the homeowner if something happens. If they cannot commit to basic availability, the sit carries unnecessary risk.

"Are there any internal cameras that will remain active during the sit?" A hard no for us. Any owner who answers yes, or who becomes defensive when asked, is not a sit we will take. This is non-negotiable on privacy and legal grounds.

If a homeowner struggles with any of these three, trust that response. There will always be another sit.

Bonus dealbreaker: If a homeowner mentions that a friend, family member, or Airbnb guest will be staying in a guest house or separate room during your sit, check the listing carefully and consider walking away. THS describes sits as private domestic arrangements. Having unknown third parties on the property during your sit is at best a grey area, and at worst a genuine safety and privacy concern. We always decline these regardless of how the arrangement is framed.

The Complete Pre-Sit Reference Checklist

You do not need to tick every item here to have a great sit. Think of it as a reference: things that are good to know at some point, whether before you arrive, during the welcome tour, or when they come up naturally. Items bolded are worth knowing before you confirm.

Dates and logistics

Animals

Access and security

House rules

Practicalities

Konrad and Caro 🐾🚐

DM us @housesittersguide if you have questions — we answer everyone!

FAQ

• Do I need to ask all of these questions before a sit?

  No, and in practice Caro and I did not ask most of them at the start of many of our sits. A good in-person welcome tour will naturally cover the majority of what you need to know. Think of this list as a reference, not a script.

• Which questions are actually worth asking before you confirm?

  At minimum: the exact arrival and departure times, and how many animals are involved including any outdoor ones. Everything else can come from the listing, the Welcome Guide, or the welcome tour.

• Should I ask about security cameras?

  Yes, and it is an entirely reasonable question. Under THS terms, internal cameras must be disabled during a sit. If you notice cameras on the property that have not been mentioned, raising it is professional, not paranoid. A responsible homeowner will confirm the situation without hesitation.

• What should I do if someone enters the property unexpectedly?

  Stay calm and document it: note the time, take photos if anything seems off, save any related messages. If the person was known to the homeowner, let them know it happened. If anything appears missing or damaged, photograph everything, notify the homeowner and THS, and file a police report. Insurance claims for theft almost always require a police report as supporting documentation. Without one, most insurers will reject the claim.

• What if the homeowner wants to change the dates after confirmation?

  A day or two either end is usually fine and we accommodate it where we can. A significant change is worth raising with THS support and keeping documented in writing on the platform.

• What makes a good Welcome Guide?

  One that answers the questions you would have on day one without needing to message the homeowner. The best ones we have received covered each animal's routine in full, emergency contacts, property quirks, and local recommendations including restaurants. A thorough guide means the homeowner can actually relax on holiday.

Related Guides