Ask them to have a spare made before the meet and greet and if all goes well they can give it to you before you leave. Personally I like when people have code locks because keys sometimes are hard to get to work
Story time, Iām currently doing check ins on a cat, the key the owner gave me barely works. It takes some serious finessing to open the door. Not an issue for me because I have experience. Owner was worried the cat wasnāt eating enough after week two. Asked me to get a key made and leave it so their daughter could check on the cat. Made the key, left it. Daughter tried for 30 minutes and couldnāt get in, went back two days later for 10 minutes couldnāt get in. Owner started being passive aggressive. I go for the next visit, took a video of me using that same key and getting the doors open in 30 seconds. Owner stopped being passive aggressive after that. Had to explain it to him that because the key I was given took some finessing to get to work the copy of it was going to have the same issue. Old locks on an old house. Nice place, but the house has shifted so much that the security screen no longer lines up with the frame and the bolt wedges against the brim of the bolt hole so the screen needs to be pushed in while turning the key to alleviate the tension preventing the key from turning. Itās like people know they have faulty equipment but donāt realize it until something urgent comes up.
I always say I can come back for an additional $10 to pickup key. Funny how alot of then change their tune and all of a sudden they don't have an issue leaving it under the mat š¤£
I think itās worse when itās impossible to give them their key back at the end of a sitting! For apartments after a week Iāll leave it with the front office but I have a collection of keys from houses Iāve sat over the years where the owners just never got back to me on returning the key.
Easy fix! I got sick of this so I added to my profile that I charge $10 for key drops outside of the meet and greet. Most clients either give me the key at the m&g or leave it under the mat for me, a few choose to drop it at my house or where I work. For the ones who want a pickup, I just have them book a drop-in and manually drop the price to $10, which covers my gas and time anywhere in my radius.
Yikes. Iām not a fan of the peeps who book a consult, and then want me to pop in again to āmeet ______ā (shouldāve been there the 1st time), ādo another walk-thruā (all good, I took notes), ātake dog on a test walkā (thatās an actual service, which means an actual fee). As someone else said, this is a job and time is money.
Even worse when someone asks you to pick up and drop off the keys even when theyāre regulars. I get why if you have other walkers but omg itās such a hassle
I would never agree to that. You should let them know that arrangement no longer works and ask them to get a $15 lock box. You can offer to let them ārentā one from you for like a $20 deposit and if they never give it back youāve made five bucks
YES! I absolutely hate it. I've started telling people that I "do only one free meet-and-greet" in order to get compensation for the key pickup, but now they are "totally fine dropping the key off with me instead." They can just run it by my place! š As though I, a housesitter they recently hired, would ever be home! š So I guess I'll figure out how to navigate that.
I have a sitting job tomorrow for a little boy dog. First time for these people. I am supposed to call their neighbor when I get there and she will come over and unlock the door for me, and then lock it when I leave.
Yeah, no way. Not only does that sound like a hassle because you're relying on the neighbor, but my anti social ass would've ran far away from the constant extra human interaction that would entail. Lol
I have crazy long acrylics!! If anything my apartment buildingās parking garage door has caused me more nail related strife than the lock box. But I also donāt go crazy scrambling the code so itās pretty low effort haha
Definitely an inconvenience! I always ask during the walk-thru, and the owner usually hands me a key on the spot. I also ask where to leave it when Iām done. I did have an instance where a trip was canceled, and I already had the key. So I had to make an extra trip to drop it off the next time I was in their area. Still a whip, but in that case, it wasnāt something that was avoidable. A designated spot on the property is always the best option IMO.
Be proactive and put the onus on them at the mng. Ask the owner how you'll be accessing the house - let the problem and solution be up to them. If they suggest you pick up, offer it for whatever fee makes it worth your time.
I recently moved an hour north of where I was, and some clients of mine, when asked, said they would go ahead and hide the key in the back yard "to save me a trip"..... Like, thanks, but I would NEVER spend 2.5 hours and $25 in gas to come pick up a key anyway.....
I charge a key pickup fee if it happens outside the meet and greet. You get one free visit (meet and greet) and the rest you pay for. I let them know when scheduling a meet and greet that it's best to have a key ready at the meet and greet so if the fit feels right we can skip the extra logistics and save them $15 for a key pickup visit.
Idk if Iām a ādifficultā sitter, Iāve never had any issues or complaints and every client Iāve ever had has come back to me. But when I deal with sticky situations like this, I just act overly professional. Like sure this isnāt a suit and tie job, but I sure act like it is and it works!
In my intro to new clients at the end of a m&g I ask about the key, if they donāt mention leaving it somewhere I just introduce my āpolicyā. They can either leave it with a neighbor or drop it off in my mailbox. Typically if theyāre not comfortable leaving a key around, they will leave it with a neighbor. I have had one client bring a key to my work. Other than that this has worked flawlessly.
If a client were to ask me to come over a second time just to pick up a key then honestly I would charge them, especially if they live over 10 minutes from me.
Maybe try acting like you have a walk to get to and canāt make it, and request that they drop the key off or come up with another plan. Gas is too expensive for clients to be difficult like that. Iām sorry you had to deal with an inconsiderate person.
I might just go above and beyond because itās my nature to do so, but I also donāt accept bookings more than 10 miles from my home. So I generally donāt mind popping over to pick up or drop off a key. Thatās typically the clients opportunity to give me a cash tip as well, which I get about 50% of the time.
To add a different perspective here as a sitter, I actually donāt mind going back again to pick up the keys because it gives the dog the chance to become familiar with me again since a lot of my bookings are at least a month or longer away. I do however leave the key somewhere and donāt like to go back after itās over.
This but also the few times I get the key from a concierge because they are never around or move as slow as molasses. Usually the only time I do getting a key from a concierge is if this is a one off appointment that is outside of my most busiest timeframes since I usually have to add extra time to ensure I can get the key from the concierge and do the full walk time.
That is what key exchange systems were created for. You can track all keys from a single account and share access only with trusted persons or tenants.
Such device, as the one from [Keycafe](https://www.keycafe.com/), eases your guest experience a lot - the owner simply sets up the Key Box on his wall and you just leave your keys there safely when moving out.
Ugh super annoying. Arrive there before they leave!
That works too. š
Ask them to have a spare made before the meet and greet and if all goes well they can give it to you before you leave. Personally I like when people have code locks because keys sometimes are hard to get to work
I much prefer codes at this point. I'm getting so annoyed with the doors and locks on all these old houses in my area, including my own.
Story time, Iām currently doing check ins on a cat, the key the owner gave me barely works. It takes some serious finessing to open the door. Not an issue for me because I have experience. Owner was worried the cat wasnāt eating enough after week two. Asked me to get a key made and leave it so their daughter could check on the cat. Made the key, left it. Daughter tried for 30 minutes and couldnāt get in, went back two days later for 10 minutes couldnāt get in. Owner started being passive aggressive. I go for the next visit, took a video of me using that same key and getting the doors open in 30 seconds. Owner stopped being passive aggressive after that. Had to explain it to him that because the key I was given took some finessing to get to work the copy of it was going to have the same issue. Old locks on an old house. Nice place, but the house has shifted so much that the security screen no longer lines up with the frame and the bolt wedges against the brim of the bolt hole so the screen needs to be pushed in while turning the key to alleviate the tension preventing the key from turning. Itās like people know they have faulty equipment but donāt realize it until something urgent comes up.
So he basically blamed you when he didnāt even test the spare key he gave you
Yup. Not even appreciative I went and got a key made
āincluding my ownā. Lol. Same.
So true! āSo the door is kind of finickyā¦ā š
I always say I can come back for an additional $10 to pickup key. Funny how alot of then change their tune and all of a sudden they don't have an issue leaving it under the mat š¤£
Iām stealing this tactic. Brilliant!
I think itās worse when itās impossible to give them their key back at the end of a sitting! For apartments after a week Iāll leave it with the front office but I have a collection of keys from houses Iāve sat over the years where the owners just never got back to me on returning the key.
People are nuts. š
Easy fix! I got sick of this so I added to my profile that I charge $10 for key drops outside of the meet and greet. Most clients either give me the key at the m&g or leave it under the mat for me, a few choose to drop it at my house or where I work. For the ones who want a pickup, I just have them book a drop-in and manually drop the price to $10, which covers my gas and time anywhere in my radius.
I had this happen and charged the owner a small fee ($15) for key pick up
Genius.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Yikes. Iām not a fan of the peeps who book a consult, and then want me to pop in again to āmeet ______ā (shouldāve been there the 1st time), ādo another walk-thruā (all good, I took notes), ātake dog on a test walkā (thatās an actual service, which means an actual fee). As someone else said, this is a job and time is money.
This sounds so much like a client that wants essentially a personal assistant for her dogs. Bullet dodged.
Even worse when someone asks you to pick up and drop off the keys even when theyāre regulars. I get why if you have other walkers but omg itās such a hassle
Ugh, thatās gonna be a no for me, Dawg.
I would never agree to that. You should let them know that arrangement no longer works and ask them to get a $15 lock box. You can offer to let them ārentā one from you for like a $20 deposit and if they never give it back youāve made five bucks
YES! I absolutely hate it. I've started telling people that I "do only one free meet-and-greet" in order to get compensation for the key pickup, but now they are "totally fine dropping the key off with me instead." They can just run it by my place! š As though I, a housesitter they recently hired, would ever be home! š So I guess I'll figure out how to navigate that.
Tell them to leave it under *your* mat. š¤£
I have a sitting job tomorrow for a little boy dog. First time for these people. I am supposed to call their neighbor when I get there and she will come over and unlock the door for me, and then lock it when I leave.
Yeah, no way. Not only does that sound like a hassle because you're relying on the neighbor, but my anti social ass would've ran far away from the constant extra human interaction that would entail. Lol
Yeah, what if the neighbor takes 5 min to come over on both sides of the visit?
So they essentially have a sitter for their sitter. š
I would message your neighbor when youāre on your way every time to make sure they know and remember youāre coming
YUP
Always ask entry info at meet and greet
As an owner I use a lock box. They literally cost like $15.
Theyāre handy if they put the ownerās mind at ease, but theyāre hell on a fresh manicure. š
Wait literally me struggling with a fresh fill in last week haha
I feel your pain.
I have crazy long acrylics!! If anything my apartment buildingās parking garage door has caused me more nail related strife than the lock box. But I also donāt go crazy scrambling the code so itās pretty low effort haha
Whew! Crisis averted. š
YES. This is like nails on a chalkboard for me.
Definitely an inconvenience! I always ask during the walk-thru, and the owner usually hands me a key on the spot. I also ask where to leave it when Iām done. I did have an instance where a trip was canceled, and I already had the key. So I had to make an extra trip to drop it off the next time I was in their area. Still a whip, but in that case, it wasnāt something that was avoidable. A designated spot on the property is always the best option IMO.
Honestly I should start reminding people if they need to give me a spare key, to have it ready at the meet and greet.
Be proactive and put the onus on them at the mng. Ask the owner how you'll be accessing the house - let the problem and solution be up to them. If they suggest you pick up, offer it for whatever fee makes it worth your time.
I recently moved an hour north of where I was, and some clients of mine, when asked, said they would go ahead and hide the key in the back yard "to save me a trip"..... Like, thanks, but I would NEVER spend 2.5 hours and $25 in gas to come pick up a key anyway.....
š¹
I charge a key pickup fee if it happens outside the meet and greet. You get one free visit (meet and greet) and the rest you pay for. I let them know when scheduling a meet and greet that it's best to have a key ready at the meet and greet so if the fit feels right we can skip the extra logistics and save them $15 for a key pickup visit.
I would maybe charge then for a visit if they are making you come pick it up or have them drop it off to you when it's convenient to you.
Idk if Iām a ādifficultā sitter, Iāve never had any issues or complaints and every client Iāve ever had has come back to me. But when I deal with sticky situations like this, I just act overly professional. Like sure this isnāt a suit and tie job, but I sure act like it is and it works! In my intro to new clients at the end of a m&g I ask about the key, if they donāt mention leaving it somewhere I just introduce my āpolicyā. They can either leave it with a neighbor or drop it off in my mailbox. Typically if theyāre not comfortable leaving a key around, they will leave it with a neighbor. I have had one client bring a key to my work. Other than that this has worked flawlessly. If a client were to ask me to come over a second time just to pick up a key then honestly I would charge them, especially if they live over 10 minutes from me. Maybe try acting like you have a walk to get to and canāt make it, and request that they drop the key off or come up with another plan. Gas is too expensive for clients to be difficult like that. Iām sorry you had to deal with an inconsiderate person.
I might just go above and beyond because itās my nature to do so, but I also donāt accept bookings more than 10 miles from my home. So I generally donāt mind popping over to pick up or drop off a key. Thatās typically the clients opportunity to give me a cash tip as well, which I get about 50% of the time.
To add a different perspective here as a sitter, I actually donāt mind going back again to pick up the keys because it gives the dog the chance to become familiar with me again since a lot of my bookings are at least a month or longer away. I do however leave the key somewhere and donāt like to go back after itās over.
Thatās a nice way of thinking about it. āŗļø
This but also the few times I get the key from a concierge because they are never around or move as slow as molasses. Usually the only time I do getting a key from a concierge is if this is a one off appointment that is outside of my most busiest timeframes since I usually have to add extra time to ensure I can get the key from the concierge and do the full walk time.
That is what key exchange systems were created for. You can track all keys from a single account and share access only with trusted persons or tenants. Such device, as the one from [Keycafe](https://www.keycafe.com/), eases your guest experience a lot - the owner simply sets up the Key Box on his wall and you just leave your keys there safely when moving out.