Should a Pet Sitter be charged Rent/Utilities?

[pearlieq]

What a nutter.

Honestly, even if she did reconsider on the rent, I wouldn't take her up on the offer. Who wants to be involved with someone who obviously has a screw loose? Heaven knows what she would come up with? Maybe she'd try to pressure you for money afterwards? Or try to charge you an outrageous amount for utilities? Or claim you broke or damaged something and want you to pay up?

She doesn't sound like a stable, upstanding person I'd want to deal with.

 

[Beca]

My pet sitter would laugh and laugh at this!!!

We pay her to come by and check the animals for a few minutes a day. Last time we left, there was a bad thunderstorm. She was so worried about my dogs freaking out that she spent the night with them. I paid her $50 extra just for that night.

 

[horseshowmom]

Personally, I think the lady needs to decide which she wants - to sublet her apartment or to hire a petsitter.

I think it's ridiculous to hire a petsitter and expect them to pay the utilities (and she was fortunate that you agreed to do so). But it's even worse to decide after the fact that "oh yeah, I want rent too".

 

[horseshowmom]

That's exactly what I thought also.
She told me she had someone coming in to see the place for the reduced rent but he did not know she had a cat she wanted the renter to care for.

You've got to be kidding. She's got somebody coming to look at the place, and she didn't even mention the cat?

No doubt about it, she's not all there.

 

[FergieTCat]

You've got to be kidding. She's got somebody coming to look at the place, and she didn't even mention the cat?

No doubt about it, she's not all there.

Oh no, she's "there" all right.

Rather than pay for a cat sitter (which would cost HER money), she's trying to get someone to pay rent and utilities for the month. Not only would she make money (or at least not have rent and utility expenses for a month), she'd get some free cat sitting thrown in.

If anyone falls for that, I have a nice bridge I'd like to sell them.

 

[Imzadi]

I do not know her.She was advertising for a pet sitter and I answered her ad.We spoke on the phone and she sounded very nice and she seemed to be very impressed with me.
I offered a background check and references.
Then she called back a short time later and said she was rethinking the "no rent" thing in exchange for caring for her kitty and she needed to charge rent/utilities.

You didn't happen to give her personal info already, did you, before her second call? Like social security number, banks you use, previous addresses, stuff that you would give out for a background check, which she now could use as identity theft?

This may have been a total scam all along. Setting you up to think that her calling back with a totally unreasonable request for rent money may make you not even think she was only after your info to begin with.

 

[debden]

You didn't happen to give her personal info already, did you, before her second call? Like social security number, banks you use, previous addresses, stuff that you would give out for a background check, which she now could use as identity theft?

This may have been a total scam all along. Setting you up to think that her calling back with a totally unreasonable request for rent money may make you not even think she was only after your info to begin with.

No she did not get any personal info at all.All the background check says is that my social security number has been verified and that no past criminal records were found.
I would never give a stranger personal info about me.
And we didn't even get to the personal reference part.Which I was going to give her the name and address of my veterinarian who's been caring for my own cats for 19 years.
The other references would not have been given until I got to meet with her.

 

[Imzadi]

No she did not get any personal info at all.All the background check says is that my social security number has been verified and that no past criminal records were found.
I would never give a stranger personal info about me.
And we didn't even get to the personal reference part.Which I was going to give her the name and address of my veterinarian who's been caring for my own cats for 19 years.
The other references would not have been given until I got to meet with her.

Oh, good. The only background checks that were ever done on me were as part of job applications, in which a lot of the info I talked about had to be included on the allpication. I didn't know what info is included or left off of a personal background check.

 

[raysnkaysmom]

Just to answer the question at hand.... No....they should not be charged rent and/or utilities. That's insane to me.

Now, if you are gone for an eXTENDED period of time and THEY asked you to stay, then I could see asking them to pay the utilities.....

But, overall, no.

 

[maccagerl]

I hope you said...


NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Darsa]

Very interested to hear what happens with this; I'm with the majority in thinking that that lady is nuts!

 

[debden]

Well I don't know if I would call her "wacky" or "insane".
She sounded fine on the phone.A very nice person in fact.I think she just switched her focus as to why she wanted someone in her home in the first place.
I did not take the job.I told her if she changed her mind about the rent part that I would come over and take care of her kitty and her home.
But I was not looking to "rent" a place....just pet sit.

Thanks again for all the great replies!!

 

[Lib E]

We pay our college student pet/housesitter about $250 a week. We're usually gone longer than that though, so she ends up with $300-$350. We have one dog, who does need to be walked, and a goldfish. I cannot imagine charging someone to take care of my home and pets.

 

[JPN4265]

I cannot imagine charging someone to take care of my home and pets.

If you saw my Golden's, you would pay me to take care of them.....

 

[hellokitty86]

I don't know.Maybe it's just me but when you are hired to perform a service,in this case Pet Sitting,I don't think they should be charging you for rent and utilities.
I answered an ad for pet sitting someone's cat for a month while they were not going to be home.The person originally just wanted me to pay utilities while they were gone and I agreed.
Then they called and said they would need me to pay $500 month plus Utilities!To come to their home and cat sit for them at their request!!
Is it just me or is something wrong with this picture??
Any comments on this are welcomed.

It's not just you. That's pretty crazy!

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Tell her you you can't afford to have her hire you. This is very weird, where would anyone even come up with this idea?

 

[Imzadi]

She sounded fine on the phone. A very nice person in fact. I think she just switched her focus as to why she wanted someone in her home in the first place.

Probably if she changed her ad to "One month SUBLET available," listing how rent in the area is at $1000/mo, but she'd give a "break" of $500 off if they take care of her cat while they are subletting, she might actually get a few takers.

Whether her cat will be alive & healthy at the end of the month is a different matter.

 

[NotUrsula]

Probably if she changed her ad to "One month SUBLET available," listing how rent in the area is at $1000/mo, but she'd give a "break" of $500 off if they take care of her cat while they are subletting, she might actually get a few takers.

Whether her cat will be alive & healthy at the end of the month is a different matter.

I'd give you 5 to 10 odds that the cat would be let out of the house within the first day or two and probably never be seen again.

The only way I could see charging a live-in petsitter for "utilities" is in a situation where the utilities in question would normally be suspended while the owner was gone. Cable TV, for instance, but not water or heat, which the animal would need just as much as a person.

 

[debden]

Whether her cat will be alive & healthy at the end of the month is a different matter.

That's what I'm worried about the most....her poor little 12 year old furbaby.
I couldn't leave for a month knowing he "might" be taken care of....
No way.

 

[debden]

NotUrsula
DIS Veteran
"I'd give you 5 to 10 odds that the cat would be let out of the house within the first day or two and probably never be seen again."

That's the part that totally horrifies me to think of....But there are people that would not think twice about doing something like that.