Just be sure to do what you can to protect yourself, whether that means travel insurance in case you must cancel, or enough research to be confident in the property or agency. Scammers are always finding new ways to take people's hard earned money: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifes...4ec_story.html

This is just something you have to accept when renting a flat. We let a flat in London through Onefinestay. It's pretty much booked solid in the summer months, often booked months in advance. If someone were to pull out without paying just before arriving, it would be very hard to fill those days. Most people who book flats do so for a longer period, and well in advance.

And things can go wrong; there can be flooding, a boiler can break down. It's not always a 'scam'. If you book with a reputable agency, they will find you another property, or refund your money.

If you don't like this, then book a hotel.

HomeAway, VRBO and all their affiliate companies were just bought out by Expedia. I would expect more changes that will affect the owner - including raising fees to guarantee placement on the websites - and this will also affect the clients in various ways.

If you pay all the rental fees before you arrive, and if you find the apartment is unsuitable, there is nothing you can do about it. If you pay the balance in cash, the same thing applies. Vacation rentals in Paris are illegal, so you have no legal recourse in either case.

If the person you are renting from does not live in the apartment at least 8 months out of the year, it is an illegal rental. Most owners/agencies have gotten smart and "juggle" their calendars to disguise this, so there's no way for the client to know for certain.

The Mayor's office has stepped up inspections, so there is no guarantee that your apartment will not be pulled off the market if the owner is notified. If you have paid all the money in advance, it might take a while to get it back, and you will have to look for another place to stay.

In Italy, the standard is to pay the balance on arrival. In London, I've never seen a single apartment that allowed that. So if paying in advance doesn't appeal to you, you couldn't rent an apartment in London.

I rented an apartment for a family group in London one year for Christmas. I didn't want us all in separate hotel rooms with no possibility of cooking our own meal on Christmas day (when London is totally shut down). So I had to accept the terms available or not go there. I did some careful research about the agency and the apartment owner, and bit the bullet. It was all fine, although I agree that there's no statistical significance in that sample.

In Paris, most of the listings I used to see required that from agencies. Usually 30-90 days in advance. VRBO and Airbnb are different stories, obviously, as they are private owners, so anything goes.

So I don't think it's unusual at all for an agency that has been around for some years. I've never rented from a private owner so have no idea what the norm is there in Paris. well, okay, I did once through a French website that wasn't an agency (lodgis.fr, sort of like a French Homeaway) and I did pay part of it upon arrival in cash.

both sides are taking risks, obviously

Regarding Airbnb, "anything goes" in no way describes their system. The entire amount is paid in full the moment you hit "book". The owner has no control whatever over that aspect of the transaction. What they do have control over is the cancellation policy. Some offer a full refund (excluding booking fees) at any time up until check-in, while others are less lenient. I tend to choose places that offer a refund though I very rarely cancel. But booking well in advance it's nice to know I can.

For those like me who feel prefer not being locked in or lose it all, should events require a change of plan, it's a very good system.

When I rented my house in France, I asked for a $500 security deposit upon booking plus half the rental, the rest due a month or 45 days before arrival. Payable by check or credit card, never cash. Security deposit returnable once I received the EDF and Sogedo and France Telecom bills to make sure you didn't eat up scads of francs/euros in unnecessary utility expenses. I sent those bills to the renters so they knew I wasn't scamming them (sometimes they were scamming me - like the two NYC stock exchange mavens who ran up $800 worth of telephone calls in less than a week).

Assuming we are talking about legitimate rentals here, isn't this totally acceptable? Do you think that someone who has gone to the trouble of buying, insuring, furnishing, and keeping up an overseas rental will just let you show up without some guarantee that you ARE going to show up and pay what's owed? Owning a property in Europe is far from a piece of cake. As mentioned it works both ways, and I worked hard to get and keep this property. I'm not going to wait for some rental party to show up on its doorstep and decide if they think it's OK for them. If I can't get your money in advance and secure the dates, it's a definite no-show because someone else will always come along who will comply with reasonable rules.

Thanking God I am no longer in the rental business....

Good rentals can choose their clients !

We rent our house only to people we know. If they don't pay, well so be it...