Home Swap - The Ideal Cheap Alternative For Holidaying
February 8th 2009 10:15
Fancy an overseas holiday but think because of mortgage payments and general life expenses it’s out of your reach? Well you could be sipping a nice red in Italy, lying on a beach in Greece or visiting Disneyland with your family in the USA and all rent-free.
How? House swapping could be the answer to your limited budget.
House swapping has been the affordable alternative for vacations for many years and many have great references. Basically, it involves you staying in someone's house in your chosen destination and them staying in yours. You agree on a holiday period and neither party pays the other rent. Now of course you’ll still have your normal expenses like paying your own mortgage or rental payments but you don’t pay the other person, nor do they pay you, for the stay in each other’s homes.
Sound weird? Well in these tougher times the idea is growing and there are many reputable companies that facilitate the swap.
You don’t even need to be living in a city or by the beach for your home to look like a great holiday destination. Some city dwellers want to stay in a country home and the other way around. Some that have year ‘round access to the beach may want a holiday where it snows. That’s the beauty of the idea.
If you’re worried about strangers in your home, don’t forget that if you are swapping you’ll be staying in theirs and they most likely feel the same so are likely to treat your home with the utmost respect and care.
You would of course need to make arrangements between you for additional costs or what is part of the deal and what isn’t. Some people even choose to swap their cars as well although you would need to check cover with both your home and car insurance companies and it would also be a good idea to have a written agreement about costs etc should any accidents happen in your home – like things being broken etc.
It does take time to make sure you have all arrangements in place and that you are happy with whom you are swapping your home. The time recommended by most home swapping sites is around 6 months.
So where do you start? The best way is through a registered network and many countries have them. I’ll provide a number of links at the end of the article to sites in Australia, the UK and the USA.
Most work on an annual fee. You pay a certain amount to be a member and this includes advertising your home and some of the holiday destinations you might be interested in. And think outside the square. Your thoughts may immediately go to the most well known tourist destinations but how many other places are there that could be enormous fun or a bloody good adventure?!
Even house swapping with overseas or interstate friends can be a way of having a good holiday and as you know them, you know exactly what to expect. Or even offer to housesit for friends if they go on an overseas trip. Whether it’s friends in another state or a friend on the other side of the world, lots of people would rather have someone in their home when they’re away and more the better if you know each other.
Check out these links and give it some thought. You may have the best and cheapest holiday ever by home swapping or house sitting.
http://www.homeexchange.com/ - worldwide site with a memberhip fee of $99.95 per year.
http://aussiehouseswap.com.au/ - Australian site with a $65 yearly membership fee and if you do not manage to house swap in your first year they will give you another 12 months membership absolutely FREE.
Really Long Link - worldwide site with the following fees, 1 Year for $US 59.00 6 months bonus, 2 Years for $US 88.00 (25% discount), 3 Years for $US 110.00 (38% discount).
http://www.homebase-hols.com/ - UK based site with two different price plans starting at £29.
http://www.homelink.com.au/ - Australian based site. A bit more expensive with options starting at $120 up to $300.
exchangehomes.com/ - A US based site which is having a massive February special with membership at $US9.99 for this month only.
There are many more of these sites, I recommend you have a browse to see if you like the idea and which company provides better for your own needs.
Disclaimer: The author does not endorse any of these sites and takes no responsibility for their validity. Please do your research well.
Picture sourced from ecoholidaying.co.uk
If you want to read more about saving money, please visit Janet Collins's blog The Social Critic
How? House swapping could be the answer to your limited budget.
House swapping has been the affordable alternative for vacations for many years and many have great references. Basically, it involves you staying in someone's house in your chosen destination and them staying in yours. You agree on a holiday period and neither party pays the other rent. Now of course you’ll still have your normal expenses like paying your own mortgage or rental payments but you don’t pay the other person, nor do they pay you, for the stay in each other’s homes.
Sound weird? Well in these tougher times the idea is growing and there are many reputable companies that facilitate the swap.
You don’t even need to be living in a city or by the beach for your home to look like a great holiday destination. Some city dwellers want to stay in a country home and the other way around. Some that have year ‘round access to the beach may want a holiday where it snows. That’s the beauty of the idea.
If you’re worried about strangers in your home, don’t forget that if you are swapping you’ll be staying in theirs and they most likely feel the same so are likely to treat your home with the utmost respect and care.
You would of course need to make arrangements between you for additional costs or what is part of the deal and what isn’t. Some people even choose to swap their cars as well although you would need to check cover with both your home and car insurance companies and it would also be a good idea to have a written agreement about costs etc should any accidents happen in your home – like things being broken etc.
It does take time to make sure you have all arrangements in place and that you are happy with whom you are swapping your home. The time recommended by most home swapping sites is around 6 months.
So where do you start? The best way is through a registered network and many countries have them. I’ll provide a number of links at the end of the article to sites in Australia, the UK and the USA.
Most work on an annual fee. You pay a certain amount to be a member and this includes advertising your home and some of the holiday destinations you might be interested in. And think outside the square. Your thoughts may immediately go to the most well known tourist destinations but how many other places are there that could be enormous fun or a bloody good adventure?!
Even house swapping with overseas or interstate friends can be a way of having a good holiday and as you know them, you know exactly what to expect. Or even offer to housesit for friends if they go on an overseas trip. Whether it’s friends in another state or a friend on the other side of the world, lots of people would rather have someone in their home when they’re away and more the better if you know each other.
Check out these links and give it some thought. You may have the best and cheapest holiday ever by home swapping or house sitting.
http://www.homeexchange.com/ - worldwide site with a memberhip fee of $99.95 per year.
http://aussiehouseswap.com.au/ - Australian site with a $65 yearly membership fee and if you do not manage to house swap in your first year they will give you another 12 months membership absolutely FREE.
Really Long Link - worldwide site with the following fees, 1 Year for $US 59.00 6 months bonus, 2 Years for $US 88.00 (25% discount), 3 Years for $US 110.00 (38% discount).
http://www.homebase-hols.com/ - UK based site with two different price plans starting at £29.
http://www.homelink.com.au/ - Australian based site. A bit more expensive with options starting at $120 up to $300.
exchangehomes.com/ - A US based site which is having a massive February special with membership at $US9.99 for this month only.
There are many more of these sites, I recommend you have a browse to see if you like the idea and which company provides better for your own needs.
Disclaimer: The author does not endorse any of these sites and takes no responsibility for their validity. Please do your research well.
Picture sourced from ecoholidaying.co.uk
If you want to read more about saving money, please visit Janet Collins's blog The Social Critic
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Comment by Wilson Pon
Health 2 Know
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boxing sound
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Comment by Janet Collins
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The Social Critic
Janet Collins Blog
Great post.
And....thanks for the mention.
Comment by Jason King
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Salty Popcorn
Total Randomness
Her best friend just swapped her 2 Bed Coogee Unit for a 3 Bedroom Switzerland home. And now mum wants a Canada swap for herself or somewhere in Europe.
But she's crazy - both my parents are artists and their house is a gallery of glass, pottery, woodturning and art - she screams if I leave my shoes on - I think she may have seizures while OS about what "those people" are doing to my house.
Comment by Cheryl J
Rhythmatism
Budget Centsability
Hello Janet, it's funny how we haven't heard more about it in these dire economic times. It seems a good way to have a decent holiday and possibly for longer than most people would be able to go because of the saving on hotel costs.
Hey Jason, Coogee for Switzerland - woohoo a winner for both parties! If your mum decides to go ahead I would suggest she does a lot of back and forth with the prospective swappers. I'm sure there are people that have done it many times and could provide good references. Remember the other party would be thinking the same thing so they would be more inclined to be good holiday tenants.
It's good to hear from someone that knows people that have done it successfully. Thanks!
Comment by Morgan Bell
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Comment by Cheryl J
Rhythmatism
Budget Centsability