House sitting and home exchanges are becoming more and more popular these days and for good reason.   They are a cheap way to explore a new destination, you have the creature comforts of a home, and you get to live someone else’s life for a while.  What’s not to love?   Here are ten reasons to give it a whirl.

1.) Test Drive a New Location

If you’re looking for a new place to call home and want to try out a destination before signing a lease, house sit for a week or so to check things out.  Meet the locals and ask them what it’s like to live there, talk long walks around the city, eat at the restaurants and frequent the kinds of places you enjoy.

2.) Meet New People

In a new town, you can meet all sorts of interesting people.  Get out and meet people, invite them over for dinner,  and ask them to house sit for you sometime.  If you end up really liking your house sitting location, you’ll have instant friends when you  decide to return.

3.) Get Your Creative Juices Flowing

Being in a new place can really spark your creativity. New surroundings and new people stimulate fresh thought.   If you’re in a scenic location where it’s quiet, writing is a great way to explore your thoughts.  Bring a journal and jot down anything that comes to mind.  Not a writer?…take a painting, pottery or tango class in town.

4.)  Indulge Your Wanderlust for Free

For those that just can’t get enough travel, house sitting is a cheap way to live in a new location without having to pay rent.  It’s the ultimate in rent free traveling. You can even hop around from one location to the next if you so desire.

5.) Experience a Different Life

Living in another person’s home let’s you look at life through their viewpoint.  It shows you their habits, their daily rituals, favorite past time, books, music etc.  Living in their home and seeing these things may spark a change you’d like to make in your own life.   A couple of years ago, I house sat for some friends for 3 months.   They had a pool table and a house full of orchids  that had to be taken care of.   I managed to keep those delicate orchids blooming and by the end of my stay, had acquired a faint green thumb.   I also became a pretty decent pool player!  Who knew?

6.) Heal and Renew

If you just had your heart broken or experienced something traumatic, sometimes a little quiet time away from the situation can help you heal and gain perspective.   In the case of a breakup, I’ve found that out of sight, out of mind really helps the grieving and healing process along.  If quiet time alone makes you think too much,  you can go out and about in your new city, keep your mind busy with new activities and people, and have so much fun that you realize life is short and dwelling will not help.

7.) Rent Free Living

If you are unemployed and need to save your rent money, house sit while you job search.  While you’re there, investigate ways to make money on the road so that you can travel as much as you like.

8.) Practice Location Independent Living

For those wanting to be location independent and start a business that can be run anywhere in the world, house sitting is an inexpensive option, especially when starting out.   Having a rent free place to live while working takes some stress out of starting/running your business and it can let you experiment with that lifestyle to see if it works for you.

9.) Get Some Peace and Quiet

Sometimes you just need a break.  Loud  city living, work stress, roommates, etc.  can make you crazy.  House sitting in a peaceful location can allow you some quiet to rest and rejuvenate.  By the end of your stay, you will be re-energized and ready to jump back into the world.

10.) Travel Writing Ideas

For all you travel writers out there, house sitting is an inexpensive way to get to know a place while writing about it.  You can explore and research a place better while living there than just visiting giving you plenty of material to write about.

My previous article, How to Travel Rent Free ,  has more information on house sitting and lists reputable house sitting web sites.

Have you ever done a house sitting assignment before?  What was your experience?  I’d love to hear about it.

Other Articles You May Like:

5 Personal Growth Lessons Learned While House Sitting

Housesitting and Petsittng FAQ’s

Related posts:

1. Travel the World Rent Free
2. How to Travel without Leaving your Hometown
3. Travel Therapy
4. Becoming Location Independent
5. Re-energize with a Mini Break