If you are looking for ideas for a small business that you can start from home,this business idea may be just right for you.
The only skills you need are dependability and the ability to be organized, along with being perceived as professional and trustworthy.
And you do need to have reliable transportation too.
Many pet owners want their pets watched over when they go on vacations, but people going on business trips or vacations want their house watched over as well.
They may want their mail checked, newspapers picked up, plants watered, or just have an extra set of eyes to make sure their home and belongings are safe.
House sitting really can be an easy and profitable business idea to start.
Many people go away on vacations or for business purposes and have to run all over prior to their trip to arrange for the common household duties that need doing on a daily basis.
Some of these arrangements could include booking and taking a pet to a kennel, finding someone who can water their plants, finding another person to grab their mail and newspapers, or finding a person to simply check on their house now and then.
You could provide these people with a convenient one-stop source for all of the above tasks in the simple business of house sitting.
Just as for pet sitting, if you are good with people, pets, gardening this opportunity could be what you were looking for.
In general, most people do not like to place their family pets into a kennel for any length of time.
Often times a pet has become so used to a routine set forth by their owners, and they will become extremely upset when interruption of this routine is caused by their family's vacation or business trip.
This is why people generally love the idea of a house sitter.Their pet is able to remain within their comfort zone and maintain its general every day routine.
You will have to be responsible for keeping the pet supplied with water and food and exercised regularly, following the guidelines provided by the homeowner.
Additional responsibilities may include bringing in their mail and newspapers on a daily basis to ensure they do not pile up in an unsightly mess, or give an obvious sign to an intruder that they are probably out of town.
It would be a good idea to stack these things neatly on a desk or some other designated place, so that the homeowner can easily access them upon their return.
You may also be required to water their plants (indoors and outdoors) or tend to their garden while they are away.
Be sure that you carefully follow all instructions given to you by the homeowner in regards to how often, what times of day, and any other actions taken in caring for the plants or garden.
It will be your responsibility to keep a general eye on the entire home, keeping it safe from intruders and any maintanance problems.
Do not take this opportunity to make yourself at home and make use of all the homeowner's things. Bring your own food and thoroughly clean all dishes or items you use throughout your stay.
You should also put everything back in its place and ensure the home stays just as clean as the owners left it.
You could charge for this business by the hour or have a set fee per job.
To determine a set fee you will have to figure out how much you would like to be earning per hour and then calculate about how many hours you will need per job to provide the service.
For example if you are hired to watch a house for two weeks (14 days) and you estimate that it will take about two hours per day to do everything you need to do to service the home (and pets if there are any,) than you would know that you need to charge a fee based on about 28 hours of your per hour rate.
Be sure that you include transportation time in your calculations, and set you hourly rate high enough to cover your mileage and any other expenses you might incur.
A set fee would be more attractive to homeowners, then they would know up front how much the service will cost them, and they won't worry that you might inflate your time and take advantage of the per hour rate.
But the drawback of course would be if there were any unforeseen problems that required more of your time to take care of, so you should find a way to add a contingency to your fee structure that says you will be allowed to charge extra for any unforeseen or emergency services not covered in the service plan the homeowners agreed on with you.
You will of course have to market your services to get this business idea started.
It's always good to have a professional looking brochure and business cards. You could post them in any public spaces that you could find such as public bulletin boards, etc., and you should take them to any travel agencies in your area.
Advertising in the yellow pages or on internet directories may be a good idea too.
Starting a house sitting service will allow you to make money while providing a much-needed service to people who will likely need it while they are on vacation or away on business.
