The difference between house sitting and home swapping

Imagine experiencing a new city and a new type of lifestyle without a huge home investment. While visiting the surrounding city and cultural offerings, you don’t have to worry about paying for utilities and amenities. Imagine no electricity bill, no internet bill and no house payments. Could this be the perfect vacation? Or, could this be a great way to experience a new place to live before you move? While both experiences involve keeping someone else’s home, experiencing a new city and community, and maintaining a semblance of “room” for the home, there is a difference between housekeeping and a home exchange.

A home sitter is an experienced person who occupies a homeowner’s property while the homeowner is away. The nanny is often left with simple jobs to get them to keep the house on a simple level. These tasks include simple cleaning, taking out the trash, and keeping track of mail and newspapers. While the owner is away, for example, on vacation, the caretaker maintains a “room” semblance to the home, helping to deter potential crime or property thieves. The caretaker can live in the house rent free and experience the life and community of this new place until the owner returns.

A home exchange is the opportunity to find a home in a city you are thinking of moving to and live there for a while. Instead of reading forums and community posts to get a feel for a new city, you can experience the city firsthand. Two homeowners can sample each other’s lifestyles and lifestyles with the potential opportunity to trade property fairly. A home exchange is a very intimate look at a home and the lifestyle involved without a large investment. Experienced house sitters often do well with home exchanges. Creating such a relationship can often lead to beneficial negotiations between two potential owners.

The easiest way to learn more about home care and home exchange is to visit a local community site or a regional home care and exchange site. You will often find listings and profiles of sitters to learn how these two businesses work. To learn about the industry on a deeper level, visit the forums dedicated to discussing the two practices. The best information on home care and home trading will come from people who have experienced trading first hand. They will have the knowledge and information to fully educate someone looking to get into the house sitting or trading.