He went to the address they gave him, the woman who was crying on the other end of the phone told us, but there was no house there. She tried the number given to her by the person who rented her the house; it was no longer in service. It was Christmas time. She had two little girls. “Please help us.” Unfortunately, all of the vacation rental homes we manage were occupied by Disney World vacationers. Try as we might, we couldn’t find anything for her.
A few days later, we sat around our conference table and reflected on how much we traveled and what it would feel like to be in that woman’s position.
With the advent of the Internet, Craigslist, and low-cost online “places” (HomeAway.com and its recent acquisition, a website for vacation rentals by owner), it’s easy for someone to pay a small fee and post pictures of a house they don’t have. ‘t own, along with a non-existent address and disposable cell phone number with the intent of scamming an unsuspecting tourist.
Even when fraud is not the intent, vacation home renters can end up feeling disappointed, cheated, and ripped off, leaving them with little or no recourse to salvage a vacation they’ve invested thousands of dollars in, not just renting a vacation home. home, but on airfare, meals, admission to attractions or theme parks, car rentals, the list goes on.
Renting a family vacation home can be a great value compared to a small expensive hotel room. Being able to book online gives the potential renter many options: the ability to search for a specific location, the size of the home, the amenities, and of course the price range.
After years in business, our experts want to share some of that experience with you, with the following tips on how to find and book a vacation rental home online. Following a few caveats can help you increase your chance of getting the best vacation rental value possible, while reducing your risk. The following are the tips we came up with for searching and booking a vacation rental home online:
Tip #1 Google Maps could save your vacation!
The first time you use it is when you choose a property management company to rent. Look up the physical address on their website and try to map it on Google (if they don’t have one listed, that should be a huge red flag). If Google Maps takes you to Mailboxes etc. or the location of UPS instead of an office building, is evidence that it is not a real company.
Tip #2 Do some homework!
Consider how much time you spend researching where you want to take your vacation, which airlines have the cheapest flights, when is the best time of year to go, then once you’ve made your arrangements, how much time do you spend perusing online travel sites? line, maps and guides to your destination. Since you’re considering investing a few hundred to a few thousand dollars for a vacation home rental, isn’t it worth spending some of that time researching the homeowner or property management company as well?
On websites like TripAdvisor, FlipKey, and HomeAway, read reviews of the homes you’re considering. The more guest reviews there are, the more likely they are to be genuine. Home Away publishes reviews submitted directly by tenants through its “Guestbook” system. Landlords can also post reviews they’ve received directly from renters (Home Away makes it easy to tell which is which). Flipkey reviews are made up of a 5-star rating for value, comfort, location, etc. (somewhat like its majority shareholder, TripAdvisor, does). Vacation Rentals by Owner allows owners to opt out of displaying the entire review posting process. If there are no reviews, only one or two, or the reviews submitted by the renter (after all, those are the most important ones) don’t meet your standards, keep looking.
If you are considering renting from a property management company, there are many ways to verify their legitimacy. Check your rating with the Better Business Bureau. Find out if they belong to any associations (Visitors’ Bureau, state property managers associations, Chamber of Commerce, etc.). Legitimate and ethical companies consider the price of membership to be a good investment and indicates that the company adheres to the Code of Ethics required by membership. If they weren’t, it wouldn’t be long before they were invited to leave.
Tip #3 Plastic, not Paper
When you are ready to rent, never pay your rent with cash, a check, or a money order. If the owner is unscrupulous, if he uses any of those payment methods, once the money leaves his hands or his account, it’s gone forever.
If a landlord or management company insists that you pay by check, money order, or cash, do not rent to them. Period.
Use a credit card. Find out what purchase protection benefits your credit cards offer. Use the card that offers the most protection in case of fraud or even something like a disputed security deposit. If you pay a hefty security deposit and think you’re entitled to a full refund after you leave, your credit card company may be the only one on your side. The law will undoubtedly say that it is a civil matter, and the expense of seeking legal remedy would probably discourage most people from doing so.
Tip #4 Google Maps can save your vacation (redux)!
It is worth repeating! Use it again after the owner or manager provides you with the address of the vacation home your family is renting. At a minimum, you can map the address and use the zoom function to confirm that a house matching the online description exists at that address! A word of warning here: if the house is in a gated community, Google maps may not have access, so Street View may not be an option. However, it won’t hurt to try!
Tip #5 cover up (age)
Consider travel insurance. Management companies and landlords have a reason for charging non-refundable deposits and fees: if you cancel your reservation at the last minute, they lose their rental fee and any reservations they might have had had they been free to reserve the home. for someone else.
For just a percentage of the total cost of your vacation, you can get coverage if something goes wrong; not only with your vacation home rental, but also with the airline, the weather, and a host of potential problems.
More and more people are choosing to rent a vacation home. It’s a great value, a great way for families to get together, a way to experience the kind of vacation they might never otherwise be able to afford. Fortunately, there are very few tenants who end up like the poor women we mentioned earlier. By following our recommendations, using a little common sense and a little caution, it’s easy to make renting a vacation home a great experience, whether your ideal vacation is on the side of a mountain, next to a sandy beach, or in a house with a private garden. pool, just down the street from a castle in Walt Disney World!
