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Guidelines to Confirm Alignment for Home Stewardship Services
Guidelines to Confirm Alignment for Home Stewardship Services
My firm belief is that transparency is key to any successful partnership. A "Good Fit" is vital to ensure the best quality Stewardship for your home, pets, and green spaces while you are away.
To ensure a good fit for both parties, I ask that you please carefully consider the Frequently Asked Questions resource plus the Guidelines to Matters of Concern below, which will help you determine if we would be a good fit to work together for your house sitting assignment.
My primary commitment is to provide high quality Home Stewardship Services for assignments aligning with agreed upon professional standards and integrity.
Service Standards: The Foundation of Our Partnership
Service Standards: The Foundation of Our Partnership
Professional Home Stewardship is built on a cornerstone of mutual respect and absolute transparency. My commitment to you is to provide a service that transcends simple house sitting; it is the diligent care of your home sanctuary — your house, your pets, and your green spaces.
To maintain the highest professional standards, I operate under three core pillars:
▪️ Integrity of Care: I treat your property with the same meticulous attention to detail as my own, ensuring security protocols and maintenance schedules are strictly upheld.
▪️ Proactive Communication: You will never have to wonder about the status of your home. I provide clear, consistent updates so you can enjoy your time away with total peace of mind.
▪️ Health and Safety Excellence: I maintain a high-standard, chemical-free, and smoke-free environment to ensure the wellbeing of your pets and the longevity of your living spaces.
By aligning our expectations from the outset, we ensure a seamless experience that prioritises the safety of your home, the happiness of your animals, and the health if your indoor plants and green spaces.
Determining What A Good Fit Looks Like
Determining What A Good Fit Looks Like
We MIGHT BE a good fit if ...
We MIGHT BE a good fit if ...
▪️ You value high-level accountability: You aren't just looking for a "sitter" to sleep on the couch, but a professional Steward who manages the security, maintenance, and integrity of your primary asset.
▪️ Pet wellness is your priority: You have a clear routine for your pets and appreciate a provider who adheres to strict health and safety protocols (including medication schedules or specialised exercise).
▪️ Transparency is a core value: You prefer detailed updates and professional-grade communication rather than vague check-ins.
▪️ You maintain a clean, chemical-free, and safe environment: Your home aligns with standards for air quality (non-smoking/vaping) and physical safety (secure parking and functioning alarm systems).
▪️ You treat this as a professional partnership: You appreciate a formalised agreement that protects both your property and the provider’s professional standing.
We MIGHT NOT BE a good fit if ...
We MIGHT NOT BE a good fit if ...
▪️Internal surveillance is active in private areas: I maintain a "Hard No" policy regarding hidden internal cameras or monitoring in private living quarters (bedroom/bathroom). Professional stewardship is built on mutual trust, not covert surveillance.
▪️ The home has unresolved maintenance or health hazards: If the property has severe dampness, active mold, or lacks functioning climate control (A/C), my health standards require me to decline the assignment.
▪️ You require personal care or NDIS-type services: My expertise is in Home Stewardship (property and pets). I do not provide aged care or personal assistance services for individuals living in the home.
▪️ Security protocols cannot be guaranteed: If there are multiple unarranged third parties (contractors, neighbours, etc.) entering the home without prior agreement, I cannot take full accountability for the property's security.
▪️ The environment includes indoor smoking or narcotics: To maintain professional integrity and personal health, I exclusively serve households that are 100% smoke-free and vape-free indoors.
Guidelines to Matters of Concern: In Detail
Guidelines to Matters of Concern: In Detail
The following has been developed to ensure my personal health and safety is respected and protected as collated from my memoirs of home stewardship service residencies in 2017-2018, together with experiences providing pet sitting via AirBnB and home stays, and from anecdotal evidence discussed with peer experts, both face-to-face and within online house sitting communities.
Recent Flea Fogging treatments / household insecticide treatments / chemicals.
Recent Flea Fogging treatments / household insecticide treatments / chemicals.
Shilst recognising that maintaining a healthy living space sometimes necessitates pest management treatments, I do prioritise low tox / chemical-free living environments to protect my health and ensure safety for long-term residency sits. This means that recent treatments (within the previous 4 weeks) may cause a spike in a health condition that I am otherwise usually able to manage quite well.
If treatments have occurred in the four (4) weeks prior to the expected commencement date, Hard no, sorry.
Category: Safety; Health
Vape / Smoking / Narcotic households.
Vape / Smoking / Narcotic households.
As a non-user with strict health standards, I require an environment free of these substances to maintain air quality and personal integrity. If you are a predominantly outdoors smoker of nicotine, that is probably ok; more discussion required. Otherwise ...
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Integrity; Health
Hidden internal security cameras / technology-facilitated monitoring.
Hidden internal security cameras / technology-facilitated monitoring.
My professional agreement requires mutual trust; surveillance of my private living areas or my electronic devices or my motor vehicle or any aspect of my business, or those of my family members and friends, at any time before / during / after the sit compromises that trust and privacy and violates basic human rights.
Privacy violations will be reported to the relevant authorities.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Trust; Privacy
Insider trading and unreadable communications.
Insider trading and unreadable communications.
Consistent with my background in management consulting, I maintain strict adherence to legal and ethical standards. I do not engage in nor facilitate any activities that compromise personal privacy, data security, or professional ethics. A foundation of mutual trust and legal integrity is a non-negotiable requirement for every assignment.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Legality; Trust; Privacy
Personal care and assistance services.
Personal care and assistance services.
Apart from routine tidiness and upkeep, I WILL NOT provide any form of personal care and assistance services. You should seek assistance for those services via appropriate NDIS or Aged Care or other service providers.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Integrity; Professional Standard
Other people independently entering the house during the sit.
Other people independently entering the house during the sit.
Consistent with security protocols, I must be the sole point of access and accountability for the property's security during the assignment. Should access by anyone else be required, it must be pre-arranged unless there is a clear and active emergency in progress.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Security; Accountability
Mold and mildew contamination / severe damp problems.
Mold and mildew contamination / severe damp problems.
For health and respiratory safety, I must decline properties with known or suspected or visible mold, mildew, or severe damp issues.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Health
Expected to sleep in my vehicle.
Expected to sleep in my vehicle.
My value exchange includes a secure, private, comfortable internal bedroom and bathroom for the duration of my live-in, professional care commitment. For mutual health and hygiene peace of mind, and whilst I personally do not harbour any transmissible diseases, I recognise that such conversations are sensitive and private. This, I bring my own bedding and Manchester to sits to ensure everyone's comfort and peace of mind.
Category: Professional Standard; Health; Hygiene
Lack of air conditioning.
Lack of air conditioning.
Fully functioning, adequate climate control (A/C) is essential for maintaining a safe and comfortable environment at all times, but especially during extreme heat, for both me as the sitter and for your pets. Cooler seasons, on a case by case basis, provided fully functioning heating is available.
Some Flexibility: across seasonal variations there may be flexibility; let's discuss.
Category: Comfort; Pet Safety
Lack of alarm system.
Lack of alarm system.
As a standard professional practice, I require a fully functioning alarm system to effectively manage and maximise the home's security protocols during your absence.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis; open for some discussion.
Category: Security
Lack of secure parking.
Lack of secure parking.
Secure, off-street parking is necessary for the safety and protection of my vehicle during my commitment to your home.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Logistics; Safety
Additional and unspecified duties not agreed to prior to commencement of the sit.
Additional and unspecified duties not agreed to prior to commencement of the sit.
My service scope is based on a pre-agreed contract; managing excessive unforeseen or extra duties not disclosed prior to commencement risks compromising the care standards for the agreed-upon tasks.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis, subject to the scope and nature of additional requirements. Unforseen emergencies not included.
Category: Scope of Work
Dirty house, infested, excessively untidy, dangerously cluttered, or overgrown property.
Dirty house, infested, excessively untidy, dangerously cluttered, or overgrown property.
I require a clean, tidy, insect free, and safe working environment to focus on the home's security and maintenance, and to prevent health hazards. Overgrowth does not necessarily apply to rural properties where appropriate fire-break and flora management has been implemented.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis and if your home is under renovations (for example your ensuite is being renovated while you are away), but otherwise safe to inhabit without excessive disruption to my WFH business then let's discuss options.
Otherwise: Hard no, sorry.
Category: Professional Environment
No mobile broadband access or ecesssively slow. Low speed internet or wifi.
No mobile broadband access or ecesssively slow. Low speed internet or wifi.
While I do carry my own mobile broadband for my WFH business, reliable, high-speed internet is highly preferred for efficient communication and streaming.
Some Flexibility: Assignments lacking adequate high-speed access are accepted only on a case-by-case basis after detailed discussion to ensure work continuity.
Category: Business Operations
Excessive workload exceeding one hour per day to care for the pets, house, and green spaces.
Excessive workload exceeding one hour per day to care for the pets, house, and green spaces.
My stewardship model focuses on high-quality oversight rather than high-volume domestic labour. To ensure I can provide focused care for your property while maintaining my professional WFH business, I cap active house and pet management tasks at approximately one hour per day. This allows me to remain a vigilant, present steward without compromising the service standards of the agreed-upon tasks.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis; let's have a discussion.
Category: Time Management
Paying utilities or other costs for the house sits.
Paying utilities or other costs for the house sits.
In the value exchange model, accommodation and utilities are provided by the homeowner in exchange for my professional care services.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Value Exchange Model
Too many pets.
Too many pets.
Limiting the number of pets to domestic animals, with maximum numbers adhering to local government by-laws, ensures I can provide meticulous, high-quality, individualized care and attention to each animal.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis and subject to local government authority regulations and reauired let registrations, which will be checked and confirmed.
Category: Focused Care
Large animals and animals requiring heavy exercise.
Large animals and animals requiring heavy exercise.
Unfortunately, I am unable to offer assistance for large breeds of dogs that require great physical strength to manage on the regular. However, large breeds that tend to be gentle and cooperative are absolutely acceptable.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis; if your animal is large but otherwise easy to manage, let's have a discussion.
Category: Focused Care
Pets sleeping on beds.
Pets sleeping on beds.
Consistent with my high standards for home hygiene and cleanliness, I must maintain an environment where pets are restricted from sleeping on my personal bedding.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Hygiene
Sick pets or complex health care needs.
Sick pets or complex health care needs.
I must ensure the safety and suitability of the assignment. Complex veterinary health care needs or contagious cases fall outside my general expertise and are better managed by a dedicated veterinary professions house-sitter or verterinary hospital.
Some Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis; in an emergency, or if something arises unexpectedly during the Stewardship assignment, provided that I am adequately briefed and shown the how to's by a qualified veterinary professional, I will provide a short interval of interim care up to a maximum of 24 hours for your unexpectedly sick or injured pet, until a veterinary clinic stay is arranged for the ailing pet.
Otherwise: Hard no, sorry.
Category: Expertise; Pet Safety
Unvaccinated and Un-desexed pets.
Unvaccinated and Un-desexed pets.
For the safety of the sitting assignment and to mitigate health risks, all pets must be fully current on core vaccinations and required treatments, and fully desexed.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Health; Risk Management
Untreated pests (fleas, ticks, worms).
Untreated pests (fleas, ticks, worms).
I require a pest-free environment; managing active pet infections or household infestations (fleas / ticks / worms / other pests) is a preparatory task for the homeowner, not me as the sitter.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Hygiene; Health; Prevention
Reptiles and exotic animals.
Reptiles and exotic animals.
My experience is limited to common domestic pets and urban avian livestock (chickens, quail); specialised care requirements for exotic or non-domestic species are beyond my scope of competency, and I must respectfully decline all sits involving them.
Some Limited Flexibility: Each sit is on a case by case basis, and some exotic animals might indeed be ok; open for discussion.
Otherwise: Hard no, sorry.
Category: Expertise
Rodents (rats & mice).
Rodents (rats & mice).
My experience does not extend to the husbandry or handling of pestilential rodents, except rabbits and guinnes pigs, and I must respectfully decline all sits involving them.
Otherwise: Hard no, sorry.
Category: Expertise
Australian native fauna.
Australian native fauna.
Care for native fauna requires specialist permits and expertise which I do not possess, making it inappropriate for a routine assignment.
However, I do know how to handle a rescue, what not to touch, and have contacts for the appropriate agencies to step in should a situation occur on your property during my stay.
Hard no, sorry.
Category: Expertise; Legality
Your Next Steps: From Alignment to Assignment
Your Next Steps: From Alignment to Assignment
If you have reviewed our Service Standards and the Good Fit Criteria and feel that my professional Home Stewardship Service is the right match for your household, I invite you to begin our onboarding process.
To ensure the highest quality of care, I follow a structured approach to every new assignment:
▪️ Step 1: The Initial Enquiry
Please complete The Enquiry Form Contact Request form with your dates, location, and a brief overview of your pet and property requirements.
▪️ Step 2: The Discovery Call
We will schedule a 15-minute video or phone consultation to discuss your specific needs in detail and ensure our values align.
▪️ Step 3: The "Meet & Greet" Protocol
For all new clients, I conduct an in-person or virtual walkthrough of the property to familiarise myself with your home’s unique systems and your pets' personalities.
▪️ Step 4: Formalised Agreement
Once we both confirm the fit is perfect, we will finalise the Home Stewardship Agreement to secure your dates on my calendar.
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