What are the top features to look for? Here are some suggestions:
Low, flat rental rates – Whether you’re moving for a new job or taking a vacation in the sun, this can easily break the bank. Keep in mind that almost every property management service has a base rate to begin with. Some have daily or nightly rates, depending on their busy season. How will these rates be structured in your search?
Location – Is this property near the beach? The main street? Off the highway? You want a solid reason to choose a property and not settle for anything less. If it’s not a good location, there’s no point in paying a high rental fee, isn’t there?
Multiple property choices – A handful of websites with endless properties is a waste of your time. Use an aggregator such as RentalCaster to find multiple property options.
A good rate – Comparing multiple property websites and services can be a bit of a guessing game. A price of $750 per night seems too good to be true? A few companies charge $700 per night, with an additional charge for each guest. Are those extra rooms included? If a property can’t hold a group of 15 people, why would it be considered a vacation rental in the first place? I would suggest getting a ballpark idea of rates and always comparing, so you won’t have to wait until you arrive in a rental to find that you’re paying more than you expected.
Total property comfort – Most owners and property managers aren’t interested in staying in a cold, tiny space in the winter, even if you offer to pay extra to make it comfortable. Having a hot shower at the end of a long day sounds great, but would it be the best choice? Do you know if the owners have pets? What about bedbugs? Again, use your nose to try to sniff out some of the subtler smells in a property, and if you can smell them, look for a place that’s made to host large groups and have several floors.
Parking – Good parking is worth the price, but how do you know if the property has parking? Ask for photos of the garage and parking lot, or if they have a spot for every car.
Air conditioning – Will the owner work with you to install an air conditioner if your hot summer days are the main issue with your short trip? Also, do they provide it for the tenants or the guests?
Health care insurance – Ask about health insurance benefits, and if the owners are willing to give you a free air conditioning system for your kids if they end up with some health issues while staying in a vacation rental.
Common expenses – As a rule of thumb, a hotel room is typically covered by a hotel’s standard insurance. These insurance policies vary in price and some can be fairly costly for the owner. Also, check out the potential costs for pet care and other expenses that are common when you’re staying in a vacation rental.
What should you do if you find a good property rental? Let me share my experiences when renting vacation properties.
If I’m staying in a vacation rental, I typically don’t plan on staying long, unless the owners can guarantee a long stay. I’ve found that most homeowners don’t take on long-term rentals unless they want to build on the property or extend the vacation rental period. On the other hand, if a property owner says you can only stay a week, that’s often a good indicator that I shouldn’t go ahead with the rental. If you can afford the property, the owners might be more willing to pay you extra to stay longer.
On vacation rentals, I look for low rates that have parking for all vehicles and you can make any repairs yourself. I never rent a property that doesn’t offer extra amenities, such as a great kitchen or a central location, as well as the possibility to stay longer.
I always ask the owner to write down the costs of the cleaning and maintenance, and make sure I know when they start and finish. Then, once I’m there, I get a picture of the garage and figure out the cost to maintain the property. I like to keep a few new tools and a supply of cleaning supplies, and the good news is that they usually sell those at a significant discount to cover the cost of their cleaning.
If I rent a property with a pool, I usually request extra water to fill my swim bucket, as well as a cooler for ice. The owners typically charge a couple hundred dollars to clean, but I make it my mission to find the cheapest cleaning company that I can find and give them a call before I arrive. Those contractors have experience with the properties, so they can save you a lot of money. I always ask the owner if the pool’s water filter is working, but I’ve found that most owners don’t go that extra step and check it out.
Speaking of pools, I don’t care if it’s a pool, a spa or a small pool for a hot tub, if it’s more than a few feet away from my bedroom, I don’t want to see or smell it, and if it’s filthy with paint and other debris, I’ll never use it. Most of the time, I also ask the owner to put fresh ice in my cooler and charge my guests for that. I usually do a quick check, fill my cooler and cooler and that’s it.
How much space do I need in a rental? Look around the property and ask the owner if you can check out the room before you book it, and maybe the garage. Make sure the space is big enough for your bed, chairs, laptop, dining room table, and all of your other belongings. The garage can be large enough to store most of your belongings, as long as you take extra precautions and protect them from the elements.
I look for the shortest distance to the beach and some great nearby entertainment, as well as grocery stores, restaurants and places to get coffee or beer. If you have young kids or pets, you’ll have to pay for extra trips with them to go out for dinner. It might be hard to pay for that on vacation rental fees, so I usually ask the owner if they’re willing to give me a free gift for my kids or pets and also for the boarding fee, which often adds a few dollars to the owner’s pocket.
On vacation properties, I make sure the garage door opener works, but I don’t care if it’s automatic or manual. I’m willing to do more, if I can get discounts on rental fees or buy myself a brand new garage door opener. I don’t want to see the garage, or see the owners work on it, unless it’s a real emergency. Some owners pay for garage repairs, but I prefer to be at the other side of the property.
If I can’t use my clothesline or my grill, I always ask if they can do any work on the yard or if they have any other landscaping items that I can use. On short-term rental, I like to clean the pool and maybe make some tweaks to the landscaping. On vacation properties, I want to find some additional lawn furniture to place on the deck and perhaps even a pool table or a wet bar.
If I can’t find any extra amenities, like a pool or a hot tub, I usually check to see if I can use any outdoor grills or grills, and if I don’t need to use them on vacation, I try to buy one as soon as I find out that a homeowner is going to let me use it.
I try to see the inside of the house before I book, but sometimes the owner isn’t available and they are busy with their family or guests. If the house is small or they’re too busy to show me, I look at the exterior to find out how big the backyard is and look at the landscaping, as well as ask if there’s any garbage cans that I can use to fill my cooler.
Before I call, I usually check to see if they have anything like a spa or hot tub at the rental, as I think that having a big pool or spa is great for vacation homes, and it makes the house really attractive to guests.
I usually ask the owner if they have furniture to give me, and if they say they don’t have any, I don’t book it. If they’re really trying to show off, I usually go ahead and take the furniture on my vacation rental when I get to the house, as I think it’s nice to have a nice set of furniture that you can use. I also look for a cozy sofa or an extra bed in a room for guests, as it adds to the atmosphere of the house.
I often try to look at the floor plan and find out what kind of room the owner is planning on using it for. In most cases, I know that it’s usually going to be used as a second bedroom for an adult or a small child, and that might be enough for me to book a room, so I don’t worry too much about finding a nice private space in the house.
I always check to see if there’s an additional breakfast room, as I love to be able to have my breakfast in the morning. In most cases, the owner is not willing to rent it out to me or give me a free breakfast, so I don’t look for it, even if I would prefer it.
My top priority when checking a rental is to get rid of any feelings of uncomfortable silence. If the owner doesn’t like to talk much, I try to talk with them, asking questions about the house and the area. I always ask if they have any other suggestions, or if they would like to talk about the weather and local attractions with me. If I’m not able to get much of a conversation going, I just hang up, as I don’t think I’m going to get much out of them. It’s usually really easy to find out if I’m going to get any discounts on things, such as rental fees or new garage door openers.
If the owner is willing to speak with me, I’ll usually start to chat with them and ask questions about the house, like what kind of carpeting and insulation they have, if they have added an extra refrigerator or an extra hot water heater, and if there are any outside landscaping items I can use to fill my cooler. I also usually ask about extra things like additional towels or sheets or extra linens.
When booking a vacation rental, you should know the rental history, the price and availability of a rental, and if they’ll be renting it again, so that you can figure out the best price. Most vacation rental owners have a price range that they normally keep to for their rentals, but if they’re willing to negotiate a little, you can see if you can make a deal. If they’re not willing to negotiate, I usually book a different rental that is cheaper.
For me, it’s the small details that make a vacation rental feel special and comfortable. I don’t really care if the house is big or small, but if I feel uncomfortable with an owner, I usually take the other rental.
Most of the time, owners have an agreement with each other that they won’t rent the house out too many times in a row, so if I don’t get a discount for multiple rentals, I usually look for another rental that has an available house right then. I usually try to book at least a week in advance, so that I know that it’s available for my vacation, as I think that it’s great to have the house when you want it, and I think it’s great to be able to rent a rental once and use it for months, and to see if the owner is willing to rent the house to me for another few months.
Most of the time, I book a house that’s part of the vacation rentals website, but I have seen owners go through other companies, and I have even tried to go through another company myself, and ended up booking at a local vacation rental company. If I had already booked at the vacation rental company and they wouldn’t give me the deal, I would consider booking at the vacation rental company again.
Things to Keep in Mind When Booking a Vacation Rental
While checking a vacation rental is simple enough for most people to do, there are some things that I think it’s important to keep in mind.
You should consider how much space there is, because the way I see it, the bigger the house or property, the more expensive it is to rent out. Even if the owner is willing to rent to me, I prefer smaller houses, like one or two bedrooms, and if I’m going to rent to a family, I prefer it to be a house or a small cottage.
I don’t like to pay a lot for a rental because I know that it won’t last for a long time. For instance, I like to go on vacation at least once a year, so I usually buy my vacation rental out during the spring, summer or winter. I’m always on the lookout for what is the best price on the site, or if there are any discounts available. I look for rental agreements that give me an extra discount or coupon, because I think that it’s always good to save a few dollars, but when booking with the owner, I try to book it as close as possible to the actual rental date, so that I can have a little extra time to enjoy the property. I like to look for a week, two weeks, or even three weeks for my vacation rental, so that I know that I can have the house for a little more than the normal price.
I always ask the owner to come to my house to see it, just to make sure that everything is in place and that everything is fine, so that I can make a good choice on the date of my vacation. I usually try to go on vacation at the same time that the owner would like to go on vacation, so that I can go to their house for a little while to make sure that it’s as nice as it looks in the pictures and that there’s no issues with any of the utilities or anything that could make me uncomfortable.
If the owner doesn’t have any issues with the house, and they tell me that they want to go on vacation the same time as me, and there’s a house available for me, then I usually book the vacation rental right away.
The importance of being flexible with the rental date, is that I think that it would be a great idea to have a rental during the week or early in the evening, or at night, but the most important thing to do is make sure that it’s available for my vacation, so that I can get in on the best price that the owner is willing to give me.
Another important thing to keep in mind is to look for a rental that is closer to the airport, and not closer to where I would be flying out from. A rental that is close to the airport is usually worth more to me, because I know that it’s usually cheaper to travel to the airport, as I usually have to pay for parking at the airport, and I usually don’t get a discount on the flight.
The advantage of staying at a vacation rental when I travel, is that it gives me the flexibility to arrive on the weekend, and if there is a problem with the property, I can find someone to fix it for me. If I can’t, then I can just have a few days in my rental, and then come back on the following weekend or if I have the money, I can book another vacation rental. It’s easier than having to wait for someone to come, and it’s much easier to get things fixed.
Another reason that I don’t go to a vacation rental that’s close to the airport is that I don’t like to pay for a rental that is close to the airport, when I can get a better price at a rental that is close to the airport. I think that if I had a rental close to the airport, I would be paying much more for a rental, and it would be a little bit harder to find a rental on the weekend that I’m looking for.
I know that I can always find something on the weekend if I go farther away from the airport. I’ll just make sure that I keep looking for other rental properties if I can find a better rental close to the airport.
On vacation rentals that are close to a beach, I usually look for vacation rentals on the beach. I like to have a nice beach to go to on my vacation, and I usually look for the best rental for that. I like to stay in a beach town close to the beach, because I think that it’s more convenient. I don’t have to drive all the way to the beach to go to it.
I like to stay at a vacation rental where I can have the kitchen, a bathroom, a sofa, a bedroom, and a living room in one space. Sometimes, it’s nice to have the house to myself, but it’s nice to have it be a little messy, because it makes me feel that it’s a little bit like being at home, which is more comfortable to me.
It’s always good to keep in mind that I’m not going to go on vacation to spend time cleaning my vacation rental, because it’s not the best time to do that. If there are some things that I don’t think are important, but if I’m paying for a nice rental, then I would rather spend my money to get a great property.
If I had a great vacation rental, then I would definitely go back to it at least one time, but if I had a crappy rental, I would go on vacation again, because I still get the best price when I book a good vacation rental.
If I could have a vacation rental, then I would definitely stay at that same rental over and over again, even when I’m there on vacation. I’d go back again and again, and then I’d probably buy it, to be able to stay there even more. I think that the best rental to buy would be the vacation rental that has a lot of history to it.
I think that a lot of the best rental properties, that have been around for a long time, are from the 1960s. It’s important to keep in mind that it’s always good to stay at a rental that has been around for a long time, because it helps me to get a good price on my vacation rental.
If I was in a vacation rental that was new, then I would feel that I would be paying more money for a rental that I don’t know if it would be a good rental, because it’s new, but if it’s been around for a long time, then I feel that it would be a good rental.
I think that I would feel that it would be a better rental if it was new, because it’s new to me, so it would give me a good feeling to be staying in a rental that’s new to me, that I don’t know much about. If it’s a good rental that has been around for a long time, then it would give me a good feeling of being in a home that I know. It’s like staying at a hotel, because I know that I can go to a rental that I can book in a week’s time, and the owner would know me by my name. It would feel better to stay in a vacation rental that has been around for a long time, because then I know that the owner knows me, and the owner would be aware that I’m a good renter, and I don’t make any problems for them. I would definitely prefer staying at a rental that has been around for a long time, because I feel like I have the best
