crewgirl0208

My freind and I are going to Barcelona in March and we are thinking about booking an apartment (holiday rental) through gobcn.com. They reuire a credit card deposit to hold, then we must pay cash to the owner upon arrival w/ 150 euro cash security deposit. Has anyone heard of this company or this practice?? I'm hesitant to pay cash as it leaves us no recourse. Thanks!!

figuea

This is pretty common. I am going to Barcelona the first week on April and renting an apartment through friendlyrentals.com

You should check the site out...great apartments and great service. Someone is always available for questions.

They had asked that I pay cash as well and I as well did not feel too comfortable walking around with over 1,000 Euros in cash and that the agency knew exactly when we were arriving and what flight we were on...pehaps it's the jaded new yorker in me....

They are allowing me to pay for the apartment via credit card online. They do require that the security deposit be paid in cash the day we arrive.

It is pretty common to ask for cash payment but I recommend pushing back!

nbujic

try
www.rentals barcelona.com

aprillilacs

We rented last March through apartmentsramblas.com, and the financial arrangements were similar to those you describe, crewgirl. It worked out fine, though the agent who met us was the Agent-from-Hell. Like you, we were required to pay a deposit via credit card and the balance, plus a cleaning/security deposit, in cash on arrival. A-from-H refused to give us a receipt ("Why do you need a receipt? You have the apartment.&quot Our son whipped out his camera and caught the handover of the cash on film. (Who knew he was so smart?) We did get the security deposit back at the end of the week, but not without grief from the A-from-H. She was late arriving for our checkout and we had a plane to catch, so we left the apartment in the hands of our other son, who had a later flight. She made him take the little bit trash that we had neatly bagged and placed in the apartment's trash can down to the street and dispose of it in a streetside waste bin before she would give him the money. Our experiences with A-from-H have provided a lot of laughs when the family gets together. (To the company's credit, they asked us about our experience after we returned home, and eventually fired the A-from-H.)

You'll love Barcelona in March.

Tim_and_Liz

We stayed in apartment 6 from www.apartmentsbcn.net

and couldn't have been happier. The owner lives on the ground floor of the building and was lovely!

Our financial arrangement was similar to yours, although he allowed us to pay our balance on a CC when we requested to do so.

crewgirl0208

Thanks for all the tips and stories. I am a bit jaded even though I'm not a New Yorker. I loved the story about the son who whipped out the camera for the handover of the cash. I think we are going this route as it is still cheaper than a hotel, even if they rip-off our security deposit!