dreamon

There appear to be a heap of short term apartments available in Paris. Filtering through them online takes time but my question relates to whether there is a way to determine whether the owner/managing company is legitimate. I've searched Lonely Plant and this forum for some of the websites but found no information. There has been press about tightening the rules around apartment rental to protect local Parisians, rules I wouldn't want to fall foul of. Is there a relatively quick and simple way to determine whether it's the real deal?

marianne123

My friend rented from Parisforrent.com and had a wonderful experience. Her deposit was returned, they picked her up in a car from airport, etc. Also, you may want to check guide books (ie. Rick Steve's Paris 2011 recommends this company) there are others in Frommer's also.

grandmere

I've rented successfully from vrbo.com twice in Paris; neither time was a security deposit required. Of course, vrbo is not a rental agency but a listing website.

TPAYT

We've used www.guestapartment.com with great sucess. They were very efficient right from the initial email. They speak English and have an office near their apartments.

Yes, it's time consuming, but it's also fun looking at the different places. I'd start with the thread below and take the Fodorites advice on the agencies they have used in the past.

http://www.fodors.com/search/results...ris+apartments

After you have chosen a few, post them here and you'll get some useful comments.

IMO, I'd try and stay as close to The Seine as possible. Also watch what floor the apt. is on. Our first apt. had 67 steps up to it---live and learn, never again.

Good luck!

txhomes

We rented from RentalFrance and had an excellent experience. The apt was exactly has shown on the website and Pasqual was very easy to work with. You'll love staying in an apt in Paris. I must of have looked at 100s of apts and really liked the apts plus the prices here. We stayed at 211 rue de l'universite with a fabulous view of the Eiffel Tower.

lennyba

We had a great experience with Vacation in Paris. (vacationinparis.com)

DebitNM

We also had never rented an apt for vacation either. It was a bit daunting but we did find a great apt in Paris in the 4th. The location was excellent, the apt itself was perfect and the owner was great to work with and the at 99 euros, a steal. The one drawback, it was a walk-up and it was on the 4th floor. Despite that, we would most definitely return to stay there:

http://www.vrbo.com/339804

aussie_10

DebitNM - that does look like a good apartment.

I have rented an apartment in Paris twice now and once for my son. These have all been through vrbo. It does take some researching and I always read carefully what they are actually saying in the listing. I also make it a rule of thumb not to rent anything that I can't read a review of. Thats just me.

Once you send off a request email, you can often get a good vibe by their reply. If it doesn't feel right then maybe thats a warning. There are lots to choose from so don't rush in too quick. And also I will not pay a huge security deposit.

Robert2533

I guess everyone has their own preferences, mine happen to be Paris Perfect, which fits the name (www.parisperfect.com). We've sent several clients and used their services ourselves. Since they own most of their own apartments, and control what happens, it has a certain level of assurance over firms that represent private owners.

We also use VRBO, but outside of Paris.

farrermog

The owner/ manager's reputation in reviews here and elsewhere and the ease of making arrangements were important considerations in my hastily planned first Paris apartment rental a few months ago. On that basis I chose Paris Bestlodge and was not disappointed.

Christina

There isn't any "easy" and quick way to find out things like that anywhere (including the US).

But the best way is just to not rent from places you've never heard of before, if you care about comments on Fodors or wherever read them. Aside from that, I think legitimate agencies would be registered with the city and should say things like that on their website, all the ones I have used do. Of course anyone can say that, and it would be difficult to check that out. You can just tell a lot by the entire website, also, real scam artists don't usually host elaborate websites, it's too expensive. And then you can tell something by their responses. I only deal with places that are professional, have contracts, and I can read the terms and legalities. I can read French, though, but you can certainly tell a lot by their response to a rental query and their website.

I don't rent from individuals just from ads like VRBO, but a lot of people do.

dreamon

Thanks for the advice, everyone.

kismetchimera

I made a reservation with "Vacation in Paris"..The reviews are excellent.

sils

I have rented an apt with Airbnb and hope it turns out well.. we needed internet, enough beds, place to cook, and knowledgeable host. We hope we have a good time.. We did go back and forth negociating on the final price due to the Euro- Dollar conversion. Does anyone have any experience with Airbnb? We are looking at renting one in London... as well...

Mimar

Look at www.slowtrav.com. It specializes in reviews of self-catering rentals and rental agencies. Even if you don't find an appropriate apartment, you can identify the reliable agencies -- as opposed to VRBO or other sites that merely list apartments. I prefer to rent through an agency rather than from an individual.

Now that Tripadvisor has been listing apartments for a while, the reviews may no longer have been screened by the owner, and you might get more accurate feedback.

For the record, we rented an apartment in Paris this May from Vacation in Paris. It was #72 Simon Le Franc. We would not recommend it and will be so informing the agency.

Guenmai

www.vacationinparis.com
www.homeaway.com and www.vrbo.com (same company)
www,parisbestlodge.com

Happy Travels!

PegS

I look for agencies with a good number of positive reviews. The first place I check is here and TripAdvisor for agencies that many people have rented from. For VBRO apartments I prefer a large number of reviews with enough detail--both positive and mixed--so the reviews seem legit.

For this upcoming trip I took a gamble on a newer agency (http://www.cobblestay.com/), and decided to take the plunge because they have just enough good reviews, enough press so the agency seems legitimate, a nice website, an owner whose LinkedIn profile made me feel comfortable (yes, I went THAT far), AND I decided to call them for my booking (to make sure there was a real person at the end that I could ask questions of) as an extra precaution and liked the conversation I had.

denisea

we are renting our first apt from Paris Perfect and so far, they have been terrific

theflock

I have used http://www.iloveparisapartments.com twice and have been very happy in my dealings with them. No security deposit is required, and since they have an office in the US, they can take your deposit and payment for the rental with a US credit card.

RainyDay09

This is kind of early, but we are thinking of a 2 week trip to Paris in July 2012 with our 5.5 year old (by July of 2012). I am considering DebitNM's apartment on VRBO and will go through other threads to see if I can find others. If you have suggestions, please let me know. Thank you!