WITH pricey pints and the most expensive public transport in the world, living in London has become a nightmare for many who wish to save up for a house deposit.
The British capital is one of the most expensive in the world, taking fourth place in a study by wealth migration firm Henley & Partners.
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The average rent price for a place in London is £2,121 according to Zoopla, but now one savvy couple have revealed how they’ve managed to avoid the eye-watering cost.
The duo behind the @couch2castle account said their trick allows them to save up to £2,500 each month, which they are putting towards a house deposit.
How, you may wonder?
The pair are able to save thousands on rent costs by house sitting and looking after people’s pets while owners are away.
In the video, which has since racked up more than 30k views, the lovely duo explained that they used to live in a one-bedroom apartment Peckham.
With bills included, the total costs of living there came to a whopping £2,400.
They went on: “What we actually paid to live in London this month: £0.
“So where did that £££ go instead?”
House sitting enables the two to save the £2,500 from their jobs, and put an impressive £1,600 towards their house saving fund.
The rest of the money, they added, was saved for travel (£350), driving lessons (£200), getting ready for Christmas (£100), as well as Self-Invested Personal Pension (£100).
”Bonus £186 into our travel pot – our trains to Edinburgh were refunded due to cancellations and delays.”
In total, they revealed, the couple had saved more than £2,536.
”Still blows my mind, this is more than my monthly take home pay before I went freelance last year.”
The pair wrote in the caption: ”It’s not always glamorous but cutting out our biggest expenses makes saving in London actually possible for us.”
How much can you earn as a house sitter in the UK?
THE amount a house sitter can earn in the UK varies depending on a number of factors.
However, the national average salary for a house sitter in the United Kingdom is £23,952, according to Glass Door.
The rates can depend on factors such as:
- Location
- Length of stay – some long-term assignments of three months or more can charge a lower fee than shorter assignments.
- Pets – if the owner has animals that you need to look after the fee may be higher, particularly for dogs which require more work than cats
- Property size – the bigger the property the more care and upkeep may be required, depending on the terms.
The duo previously explained they they typically make bookings though Trusted Housesitters – a company that has listings all over the world – and they didn’t need any experience to start.
Now that they have built up some good reviews, they have booked out their stays for the rest of the year.
They shared: “We plan pretty far in advance – we’ve had our schedule locked until the end of 2025 since like March.
“We plan ahead for gaps to go on a trip or stay with friends and in a pinch we book a hotel!
“We go back to lots of the same sits regularly and it’s as lovely for us as it is the pets.
“You can housesit for people who don’t have pets – but for us pets are our fave part.”
They said they keep the majority of their belongings in a small storage unit, but don’t have many material items and have downsized since they started their nomadic lifestyle.
The video has clearly impressed many, as it’s won 220 likes and more than a dozen comments.
One person said: ”Love it but no permanent address especially needed to buy property etc.”
To this, the pair explained: ”We never said we didn’t have a permanent address for all the boring admin bits.
