Ever paid for VRBO rental in cash?

Old Feb 20th, 2014, 04:04 PM
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Ever paid for VRBO rental in cash?

Hi all, I found an apartment I really want to rent for a few days in Amsterdam on VRBO. The listing has 6 good reviews and lots of other information. I emailed the manager a couple times, and he's written back promptly with lots of information. He says to confirm the reservation, I need to give him my credit card details as a guarantee, but pay cash upon arrival.

I have only used home rental companies like this twice before, so I'm not sure if this is normal or not. Has anyone else had a similar payment arrangement? If you were me, would you go through with this? The VRBO website says never pay in cash. It just makes me a little nervous; I'd rather use PayPal or something. Thoughts? Thanks.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 04:10 PM
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We've paid for several rental houses through homeaway via wire transfer and/or paying upon arrival and never had a problem.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 04:10 PM
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Yes, it's quite normal, but you can ask the manager if you can use PayPal.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 04:12 PM
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I've done this many times in New Zealand and Switzerland.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 04:16 PM
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totally normal -- I've paid cash on arrival as often as any other method.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 05:31 PM
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Just about every apartment I have rented requires cash on arrival. Deposits are a different story and vary as to whether owners accept Paypal or credit cards or wire transfers.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 05:32 PM
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I've paid cash on arrival too. I think the VBRO recommendation not to pay cash is for pre-pay with cash. Once you are there, have met the owner, and toured the place, I think paying in cash should be fine.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 06:03 PM
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I think they mean don;t pay in cash IN ADVANCE. Once you're there and see the place what possible risk is there in paying cash?
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 06:22 PM
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Thanks everyone! I feel more comfortable now. I think I'll do it!
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 06:33 PM
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SIG- Even the booking sites require you to provide a credit card to hold the reservation. Then when you arrive at your destination, some of the smaller B & Bs, hotels, and apartments will only accept cash in order to keep their overhead down. So you can feel perfectly safe in providing cash AFTER you inspect the property. It gets a little dicey if you provide a credit card and then when you arrive find the property isn't as advertised. But that is a risk you would take anyway. Hopefully the CC company will go to bat for you if the worst happens... Just don't part with your cash if the property is not as advertised!!

Have a good trip!!!

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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 07:52 PM
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I have a studio apartment in Paris booked for April through VRBO. My owner is having me use VRBO's payment program. If you are concerned, perhaps ask if your owner is willing to use it. Just a thought.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 10:02 PM
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Any owner demanding a cash payment pretty much ensures that the rental is illegal.
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 10:31 PM
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I thought requiring cash was primarily about not paying credit card fees. How would a prospective renter confirm whether a rental was legal or illegal?
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Old Feb 20th, 2014, 11:59 PM
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We stayed in an apartment through VRBO in Strasbourg and the owners wanted cash when we arrived. We knew in advance and didn't have a problem. Also another apartment, not through VRBO, in Dubrovnik where the owner asked for cash. That was more of an issue as we didn't know she wanted cash and only just had enough.

Kay
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Old Feb 21st, 2014, 02:44 AM
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The credit card fees are too small to explain why owners want cash. It's usually because they don't want to declare the income for tax purposes and don't want a paper trail. In Italy there is now a law that forbids cash payments for anything of over €1000, with few exceptions. That doesn't prevent apartment owners from requesting cash payments, though.
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Old Feb 21st, 2014, 05:25 AM
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Regarding a vendor initiating a contract with a credit card, and then insisting on cash for actual settlement (insisting, as opposed to merely offering a cash discount): I know this sort of thing is done, but I dislike it on principle and won't deal with such vendors if I can at all avoid it. If the vendor does not, in fact, deal with CC payments at all, they should not be implying otherwise with a "guarantee with CC" demand. Either they deal with CC or they don't, and if they do, it should be up to the consumer to choose whether to settle in cash at a discount or with a CC.

Also, it is not in your best interest to settle in cash - there's no saving to you as ATM charges, forex fees etc will be charged to you anyway, plus you have the added inconvenience (and risk, even if only from ATM to rental with that much cash). I'd offer to settle with a CC or Paypal even it meant giving up a cash discount, i.e. paying a surcharge for use of a CC. This just isn't a good place to save money.

Local laws will affect the precise rules of CC use, but that said, you may find this site useful:

http://www.knowyourcard.org/

I know you asked about cash, but so long as we're on the subject: would pay close attention to the rules about routing and debit, as opposed to credit card payment.
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Old Feb 21st, 2014, 07:32 AM
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Also, it is not in your best interest to settle in cash - there's no saving to you as ATM charges, forex fees etc will be charged to you anyway

Not necessarily. If you have an account that is tied into a local bank (e.g., BoA and Barclays) or have a Capital One account or credit union at home, your forex fees will be minimal to nil. European BANK ATMs do not charge ATM fees. Cap One does not charge ATM fees abroad.

The biggest problem will be obtaining a sufficient load of cash prior to accepting the apt, which is dependent upon the number of days you'll stay and your withdrawal limit (i.e., if you stay 10 days and it's 130E per, then you need 1300E in hand and the ATM won't cough that up in one go).

If you can do that at an ATM in Netherlands, that's fine. If not, you'll need to buy Euros at a US bank or the airport (assuming you're going from the US to Amsterdam and the flat straight-away, not somewhere else in the Eurozone first) and US bank and airport exchange rates are uniformly awful (about 6-8% worse than the Interbank rate).

Of course, you do NOT hand over a Euronickel until you inspect the place and determine that everything works, especially the bathroom fixtures.
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Old Feb 21st, 2014, 04:16 PM
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We have used vrbo and homeaway exclusively on three different trips to Europe over the past 4 years. I'm guessing we've stayed in more than 20 places (We spend 5-10 weeks and travel on the continent.) Each time the owners have asked for cash upon arrival. Some have asked for a CC to guarantee, and others have asked for a deposit to hold the place. We have had no problem giving them cash, nor have we ever had a problem.

Like others have said, make sure someone meets you, shows you how to work everything, and gives you a receipt.

I want to point out that I also make sure that wherever we're staying has more than one review, and at least one has to be American or Canadian (or Australian).
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Old Feb 21st, 2014, 09:40 PM
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We are renting for a couple of months in Venice in April / Way. Hefty deposit wired in USD, balance in cash, which will be paid at the end of the rental. We have stayed there before, so are not concerned about wiring USD.
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Old Feb 22nd, 2014, 06:32 AM
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I have always used paypal, no credit card and always paid cash in Europe upon arrival. One time in Boston we did paypal deposit and two weeks before paid the remainder through paypal and they sent us the key to get in. Never saw the owners.
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