I have met one or two lovely chaps on this site from London and Miami, but I initially joined looking for chaps in Southern England. But 90% of my messages are mainly from those in America. Now I am fine with the initial prospect of just meeting guys for a week or two etc, but in the long term as an actual houseboy prospect this seems unusual. Has anyone has success with these arrangements? I am rather curious.

No. Just expense and disappointment.

in preparation for going abroad for a year with a previous master from my home country, i chatted with a handfull of guys who had found a houseboy but that was usually limited by 3 months or whatever the local tourist visa limit was. Or however long they were willing & able to push it past that illegally. it just requires the usual reasonable vigilance & vetting since i heard of lots of the usual scamming as well. i heard rumor of one couple that did work out getting status for the boy thru marriage to a female relative in east asia.   I think it's difficult and improbable but possible if your practical and persistent and easier if you have more disposable income.   there seemed to be more couples with at least wealthy partner that were traveling with,  rather than permanently relocating the boy to their home country.  good luck. 

Being in South Africa means that there are only 3 or 4 other profiles and the local community is conservative in the extreme about houseboys.  Try as I may I have had no success here.  So tin my case I would have to look overseas.  I would also have to do it in a period where I can take leave for up to 3 months - Mid or en of year.  My tourist visa would be legal for up to 6 months, but the reality is that getting permanent documents in a foreign country is difficult, and all the more difficult if it means giving up your career in your home country.  Say one comes for 3 months, another reality would be the cost of travel would be about $1000: as houseboy I'd be perfectly happy if that would be a salary payable after (in full or as a part contribution) on completion of the period of service, but to even bring money into a conversation immediately creates distrust.  This is where the fraudulent guys really spoils life for us all. 

Maybe with Skype or another video chat platform the two parties could get a good idea of their mutual compatibility, but it would take time and both would need to commit that if there is doubt on either side, it is “no deal”. Uncertainty and doubt are two different things. There will always be uncertainty about what is coming, but doubt is when you suspect the worst is likely. 
 

As for the financial arrangement, I can’t speak to the actual dollar amounts, but I would expect that if a houseboy completes his commitment honorably (or if the time frame is open-ended, he has served a reasonable tenure) that I should be prepared to send him off with enough cash to get him back to where I found him. 
 

A scam artist can come from anywhere, including overseas. But I guess I’d be much more trusting of a fellow who gets a tourist visa and sees  a limited-time houseboy engagement as an adventure and a way to experience my country while benefitting from having a built-in home and friend.