house sitting

Our employers will be out on a weekend or for an extended time out on business or pleasure. Having been hired to house-sit will mean considering several things that we might overlook. One aspect are the pets. But there are more. Keeping up with bills, taking phone calls, making sure the house is clean by the time the clients arrive are prime considerations. But most importantly our house sitters are professionals who will make sure the general well-being of the house and its contents are well-kept.

what we do

Hiring a house sitter can help a client guarantee coming home to a safe, clean, and pleasant surroundings while our clients are away on business or leisure. Moreover our house sitters can maintain home upkeep as well as do agreed-upon tasks such as taking care of the pets and doing groceries and much more.

how we do it

N&N makes sure all the details are covered. Considering all the requirements of our
international clients we do a strict and rigorous vetting process to make sure that we
provide a staff that can deliver the best professional service possible.

why choose us

Our mostly filipino candidates are the most qualified, well-vetted professionals in the areas we serve, having passed a rigorous process of screening before being part our of pool of experts. The wisdom the N&N founders gained over the last 15 years in the household staffing business enables us to find the best candidates more efficiently, saving you time, hassle and risk.

how to prepare

Once you’ve found the perfect house keeper for your family, it is time to explain all the specific rules, like screen time guidelines, or show how everything works — like your complicated old dishwasher? You can’t be over-prepared when it comes to the care of your children.

Use this checklist below to make sure you and your home helper are on the same page before she gets started and over the first few days of work. She’ll thank you for all the specifics when something unexpected pops up. If it helps, print out this page and check items off as you complete them to ensure peace of mind and a successful start to this journey with your new home helper.

CONTACT AND PERSONAL INFORMATION

Exchange contact information. This includes things like home address, phone numbers (work and cell) and email for your house sitters and for all members of your family. Determine the best way to reach each other during the day or in case of an emergency. For your paperwork, you may need his or her license number and taxpayer ID number.

Make important numbers easy to access. Write down numbers a close friend, family member or neighbor, and keep them in an easy place to find in case she needs them.

Keep signed copies of your house sitter contract on hand. You and your house sitter should each have a copy of the signed work agreement. This should include the agreed-upon pay, days and hours for work and any extra things, such as agreed-upon housework, cooking, etc.

TRANSPORTATION

Update your car insurance. Your car insurance plan should be updated to cover your house sitter, if she’s going to be driving your car.

HOUSE RULES

Make sure the house sitter has necessary access. Your house sitter needs her own set of house keys at least.

Explain all housing operations. Make sure the house sitter knows how to operate the heat/air conditioning, TV, washing machine, dishwasher and any other household appliances he or she may need to use. If you expect him or her to be answering the phone a lot or taking messages, make sure he or she is aware.

Lay out kitchen rules. Explain which dishes and kitchenware are OK to use if he/she is going to be doing any cooking.

Notify your your house sitter of expected visitors. Be sure your house sitter is aware of any visitors you’re expecting each day. That includes pool cleaners or any other maintenance workers who may be around the house.

Detail all pet care. Does your house sitter needs to let any pets out to go to the bathroom, walk them or feed them? Is there any weird behavior to look out for, such as digging under or jumping fences or excessive barking?

DAILY ROUTINE

Have a written protocol. For the first week, write down protocol until you get into a routine: Grocery days, expecting pool or on-call maintenance guy, important guests, what time to cook for dinner to prepare for your arrival, keeping track of the bills, calling or doing gardening, and others. With proper communication the most optimum results in house-keeping will be achieved.

Create a collaborative calendar. Consider making a calendar for him or her (and you) to refer to and encourage him or her to add to it as she gets more comfortable. On the calendar, schedule regular check-ins with your house sitter to go over any concerns that come up.

SAFETY AND HEALTH

Discuss allergies and intolerances. Remind your home helper of any allergies or particular issues your children or any family members may have.

Go over cleaning chemicals and how to store these properly. You may need to go over the inventory of chemicals and detergents and make sure these are properly stored and used only as appropriate.

Agree on scope of the job once it is lifting weights is an issue. There will be certain limits that anyone can do the job if safety and health are compromised especially in the question of lifting weights. It will be much safer for both parties if some heavy jobs are delegated to other service providers.

SPREAD THE WORD

• Let everyone know about your house sitter. You will expect guests and you need to notify them to expect someone to accept them on your behalf. Moreover he or she will be around the neighborhood and may ask them for help in case of emergency.