Home Sweet Home...Away

It seems that I am hearing more and more about people getting away from the typical hotel rental and instead opting for home rentals.  I went to the dentist this week and my hygienist, Susan, was telling me how she used, www.vacationrentals.com to book a vacation in Hawaii.  She looked at over 50 homes, comparing rates, details, amenities and photos.  She said this was "an exhausting process but fun at the same time."

Then my friend, Sean, and I were talking about family vacations.  I talked about my trip to Sunriver, Oregon and he told me about his annual family vacation to Palm
 Springs. In October my family will be vacationing in Palm Springs but we will be using timeshares.  Sean stated he rented a home through the rental site Homeaway.com. When I spoke to Sean he said the top
 reason he uses that site is the availability and rates are there for 
all to see. “You typically don’t have to email an owner to figure out 
if a home is available or what is the rate for your travel dates, saving you both time and disappointment should the house be 
unavailable or above your budget. On the HomeAway site, they publish 
the calendar, along with the available dates. But what is really 
beneficial about this type of travel is the savings from paying lower
 rates than what you would typically pay at a hotel and some places even come with a private pool
 for you and your family or friends to enjoy.”

I have not used HomeAway but I subscribe to a publication called Bottom Line (contains financial information) and in the April 2012 issue HomeAway and other vacation rental options were discussed. This article explains the upside as well as the downside of home vacation rental. You can click on the link or I have posted the article below.  It is a little long for a blog but if you are considering a rental home versus a hotel as an option, keep reading. If any reader has used any of the sites listed below, please feel free to comment on your experience.

A Travel Insider Tells How

“Imagine spending your vacation in a furnished studio apartment in the heart of Paris for $540 or a cozy apartment near the water in Miami Beach for just $273 a week.

Hundreds of thousands of privately owned properties now are offered as short-term vacation rentals, an increasingly popular alternative to hotels. They include everything from ordinary homes and apartments to ski chalets, beach houses and luxurious mansions.

www.HomeAway.com, the largest vacation rental site, reports 44% growth in rental listings over the past three years. Rentals generally are significantly cheaper than hotel rooms of comparable quality, and they almost always offer more space, a homier feel and a kitchen. But choosing, booking and paying for a vacation rental are much trickier than staying in a hotel—and there are potential drawbacks that you usually don’t face in hotels.

Here’s what you need to know to save money and have a wonderful vacation rental experience…

Consider these possible drawbacks before booking a vacation rental…You’ll probably have to sign a contract and pay a security deposit well in advance of the trip. It can be almost like signing a short-term lease. Read the rental contract carefully before signing—it likely spells out important details, such as additional fees and what you must do to ensure that your security deposit is returned.

Helpful: As soon as you arrive for your vacation, walk through the property and take digital photos or video of any problems or damage. Then confirm that the property owner is aware of these so that you don’t get blamed. Take another set of photos and video as you leave to prove that you left the property as you found it.

Cancellation penalties can be stiff. Canceling a vacation rental might mean sacrificing 50% to 100% of the rental price depending on the terms of the rental agreement and possibly on whether a replacement renter can be found.

Helpful: Travel insurance could cover this loss (see the July 8, 2012 blog)

Some vacation rentals are in violation of local laws or homeowners association rules. Cities including New York, Paris and San Francisco have banned short-term rentals. In theory, that could result in a guest being forced to vacate.

Maid service usually is not part of the deal. Guests often are charged a cleaning fee. There might be other fees as well. Some rental owners charge for linens and towels or for exceeding some preset limit on the number of guests. Others pass along the cost of electricity or charge extra when you arrive and/or depart on a weekend. These details might be buried in the fine print.

FINDING RENTALS

Searchable vacation rental Web sites enable travelers to quickly sort through many thousands of properties. These sites usually do not own the properties. They list them on behalf of property owners and property-management companies. The sites typically include online calendars indicating when a particular property is available—but property owners don’t always update them. It usually is necessary to communicate directly with property owners or managers to confirm availability.

Some Web sites offer little more than classified listings, while others provide reviews from other travelers and safeguards to increase the odds that travelers get what they pay for. And while most sites don’t charge travelers a penny—they typically charge property owners to list their properties—a few do impose significant booking fees.

Options include…

HomeAway has more than 260,000 listings in 145 countries. It’s particularly strong in the US, France and Spain. HomeAway doesn’t charge travelers to use the service. Travelers sign rental agreements and make payments with the property owner or a local property-management company. www.Homeaway.com

VRBO features 165,000 listings, especially US destinations such as California, the Carolinas, Florida and Hawaii. It is now owned by HomeAway and has very similar programs and policies—travelers do not have to pay to use it. www.vrbo.com

Airbnb offers more than 100,000 listings worldwide, with an extensive selection in major tourist-destination cities such as New York, San Francisco, Paris and London. Unlike most sites, Airbnb processes payments so that travelers can pay with credit cards or PayPal rather than send money directly to a stranger. Airbnb holds payments until 24 hours after check-in so that travelers can confirm that the property is as described. It also offers a 24-hour support line in case anything goes wrong. These added services come at a price, however—Airbnb charges guests a fee of 6% to 12% of the reservation amount. www.Airbnb.com

Helpful: Some Airbnb listings are just spare rooms in people’s homes. These listings can be quite affordable—I’ve had wonderful luck with them—but not everyone is comfortable sharing a home with a stranger.

FlipKey has more than 120,000 rentals worldwide, with the largest numbers in the US and Europe. Many FlipKey properties are represented by professional property managers, which sometimes are better equipped than property owners to cope with travelers’ problems. The Web site takes steps to confirm that those who post reviews of vacation rentals actually stayed in the properties they’re reviewing, decreasing the odds of fake reviews. www.FlipKey.com

Wyndham Vacation Rentals features more than 90,000 properties, mostly in the US and Europe—especially in the UK. Unlike the sites above, which list properties on behalf of property owners and property-management companies, WyndhamRentals.com lists properties that Wyndham—one of the world’s largest hotel companies—has an exclusive deal to manage on behalf of property owners. That means travelers can book stays online without having to contact a separate owner or manager to confirm availability. Guests have access to Wyndham’s customer service department if they encounter any problems. www.WyndhamRentals.com

Zonder offers about 10,000 properties, mainly in North America, Central America and the Caribbean. It has a toll-free customer service phone number in case travelers have questions or experience problems. It offers a guarantee that it will find alternate accommodations or issue a refund if a property’s location or size is grossly misstated. Many Zonder listings feature extensive photos and video, making it easier to judge whether a property is right for you. Zonder does not charge travelers any added fees.www.Zonder.com

I even have a link for vacationrentalhomes on my website (right hand side).  I have not used this site so I can no comment one way or the other.  Do your homework.

EVALUATING RENTALS

Favor vacation rental listings that feature lots of photos or videos of the property—it indicates that the property owner or manager has nothing to hide. Carefully read the property description—and any reviews left by previous guests—before booking a stay. Be extremely wary of rentals that ask renters to wire payments. Once a payment is wired, there is no recourse if the property is not as described—or, worse, if the “property owner” actually is a scammer. Instead, rent from those who accept credit card or PayPal payments—and if you pay with PayPal, make sure that your PayPal account is linked to a credit card. Credit cards offer consumer protection in case of fraud or misrepresentation.

Warning: Some property owners post reviews of their own properties. But Airbnb reviews are particularly likely to be legitimate because the site allows only people who actually have booked a stay at a property to review it.”

Please leave comments if you have had a good or bad experience with these companies so you can help your fellow travelers.

Have a great weekend and fun travels!