DebitNM

A rental agreement will not help when you arrive at the house and there is a problem. You would still have to make other arrangements and then decide if you would even file a small claims court suit, since you will use up your vacation time to file and then would you return for a court appearance?? Most likely not. So, IF there is a problem, it isn't going to matter all that much whether or not you have an agreement or not.

I rented an apt in PARIS through VRBO without a rental agreement. I paid a deposit by US check, that was mailed to the owner [in reality, he would have had a tough time cashing it since it was in $]. I didn't speak to him, but we corresponded a lot by email. The whole process was as smooth as could be in the end.

I was concerned about the lack of a rental contract, but the info in my first paragraph was given to me by several people and it made sense. Either the deal is legit or it isn't and having a piece of paper won't change much.

Brian_in_Charlotte

I have rented VRBO with both contract and without contract and have had no problems. I did do a bit more research on the ones that did not provide a contract (web search for history, comments, etc).

cd

I have had to cancel twice and in both cases was glad I had a contract spelling out I would get my deposit back because of canceling within the proper time frame that was spelled out within the contract.

happytrailstoyou

It is very typical in the US that people (even good friends and family members) do not respond to mail, e-mail, Facebook, or other means of communication.

Also, wedding gifts and other gifts often go unacknowledged. Your cancelled check or delivery company tracking number confirmation are your thank you!

Good manners and financial planning are among the subjects not taught in many US homes and schools.

On the upside, those who do respond and have enough sense to say "thank you" often have something worthwhile to offer. I suggest that you send out three or four times more inquiries than you feel necessary in order to get the number of responses you need to find the dwelling that meets your requirements.

HTTY

Herrick9

Interesting comments here and since I'm new to the VRBO platform I remain curious as to how the brand is perceived on the consumer side. I like to think of my self as one of the good-guys in the private property management area but I'm hearing complaints here that are pretty basic to the rental task.
VRBO too has been a learning experience as I haven't wholly adopted their "system" starting with c/c either. Fact of the matter is that many of my clients are older and don't fully embrace credit card sales over the internet. Yes,! Still...
Oh and yes, manners matter and that caveat should apply the person making the inquiry as well. I make it a point to answer all inquiries received during the business day within a few hours and those received in the dead of night are generally out with current availablity by 7:00 a.m..Still can't quite figure out why the inquiry is central to availability when the calendar for such is central to the on-screen presentation.

For that matter everything central to the transaction is pretty much there as well including twenty-four photographs.

I am always interested in learning how to make a service better or BEST so I will continue to follow along here and make note of comments and whatnot.

Tks.,

-j

bigtyke

We don't rent our beach places thru VRBO, although we might in the future. We use to have the summer week long tenants either clean the apartment themselves or hire it out. This was satisfactory, especially since almost all the tenants were multi year tenants whom we know well. 3 years ago we decided to charge $200 more (for both cleaning and an inflation adjustment) per stay and have the cleaning done professionally. No one objected.

Last year we rented a place in Austria for 5 days. Although we left the place spotless, we still had to pay a 59 euro cleaning fee. That was all up front and not objectionable.

sharmca

We have just been informed last minute that the place we rented 6 mths ago has been sold and now not available so we are left high and dry scrambling for a place. Still looking for my money to be refunded.

nancy21

As a homeowner I do not charge a separate cleaning fee but I do hire a housekeeper to clean before and after rentals. hotels don't charge separately for cleaning so I don't either. I just take the cleaning fee out of the rent money.
I just read that some people don't rent a vacation home if there isn't a cleaning fee because they don't want clean. I never expect anyone to clean. Some of us just think cleaning should be included in the price.

Dukey1

One renter's "I cleaned it" is another's "You've GOT to be joking."

NeoPatrick

I'm not sure why people would balk at not paying a separate cleaning fee -- unless the information and contract state "you are responsible for the cleaning". That's my clue to look elsewhere. I know that many people on day of departure are scrambling to get to wherever they are going next, and it's hard to imagine many of them taking the time to scrub toilets, mop floors, change bed linens, and all the rest. In fact I'm willing to bet most just don't bother. But I've stayed in several VRBO and other "by owner" rentals without a separate fee, which clearly stated that the apartment WILL BE professionally cleaned before and after arrival.

Skiergirl

I have a big feeling I wasted too much time not dealing with this but this thread has got me thinking....

I did an airbnb earlier this month. I just looked at the listing and the owners charge a $50 cleaning fee. However, the owner gave me a big discount as I was sort of on the fence and my booking would have coincided with another booking very nicely (her words). The location was terrific, but when I showed up I was literally appalled at the non-cleaning. There were dust bunnies everywhere and the tub/shower was old and had a few stray hairs in it. I realize I could have called the owner, but I just didn't. She couldn't renovate the bathroom and I just did a basic clean. The rest of the house was fine.

Then I got bit by a spider on my 3rd night there. I think it happened over night while I was sleeping. I woke up the next morning with a really bad reaction that was downright PAINFUL. It was as if my left shoulder blade had exploded. I ended up having to go to a clinic which cost me $85 plus antibiotics and my time. It still hurts almost 3 weeks later.

Because I didn't want to cause an issue I didn't tell the owner. Instructions called for the tenant (me) to strip the beds and put everything in the laundry area. I did that, but I didn't do much else to tidy up. I am very clean in general so there wasn't much to do. I just know that a professional cleaner was not there before my visit, but I don't know if the $50 cleaning fee was even utilized because I got a special deal. Lesson learned is the next time I do this I will ensure a professional cleaner is used. I advise everyone else to do the same!

I will say one thing - I live in a 2BR apartment in NYC (a very expensive place, as you all know) and I pay $80 for a cleaning. So when the fee is $100+ I find that suspect.

nancy21

All owners should have the homes they rent out cleaned very well prior to a guest arriving. We, the owners, are running a business and we should conduct ourselves that way. We can choose to have the guests pay for the cleaning by charging a cleaning fee or pay for it ourselves with money from the rental proceeds but we should NEVER have guests arrive to a dirty house! The very last thing a guests wants to do after a long journey is to clean a house! My goodness.

happytrailstoyou

These problems come with the territory and can be avoided by booking with reliable organizations, such as Marriott.

If you book a room at Hampton Inn and aren't 100% satisfied, they won't charge you for the room.

HTtY

Patty

I will say one thing - I live in a 2BR apartment in NYC (a very expensive place, as you all know) and I pay $80 for a cleaning. So when the fee is $100+ I find that suspect.

I used to think that too until I moved out of Los Angeles. Then I realized that living in a major metropolitan area had spoiled us in terms of the low cost of certain services due to fierce competition and no shortage of labor. Now I pay more for anything requiring labor and often have trouble finding someone to do it. Similarly, my parents have a 3BR condo in Hawaii that costs $300 to clean and they have a difficult time finding a reliable service.

Skiergirl

You're right, and that's something I didn't think about. This Airbnb was in Nashville, which is still a city but not NYC. I used to worry when I moved here years ago I wouldn't be able to get manicures as much as when I lived in Chicago until I realized they cost half the price here! I just hope my spider bite isn't something more serious in the long run.

Nancy - can you please own all the places I'd like to rent?

HTTY - sometimes if you are staying in a place for a prolonged period of time you don't want to be stuck in a cramped hotel room for when a similar price range you can be in a big house.

happytrailstoyou

sometimes if you are staying in a place for a prolonged period of time you don't want to be stuck in a cramped hotel room for when a similar price range you can be in a big house

I understand. My point was: These problems come with the territory. Those who want to live in a privately owned home assume the kinds of problems about which the OP complains.

HTtY

Skiergirl

I've seen some not so clean hotel rooms in my lifetime too. Nothing is perfect.

starrs

"...until I realized they cost half the price here!"

Did you see the recent thread that explained why?

Scary stuff.

happytrailstoyou

I've seen some not so clean hotel rooms in my lifetime too.

Yuck.

NeoPatrick

When I rent out my Florida townhouse (for a three month minimum stay) I usually pay my cleaning person about $275 each time. She not only dusts and vacumms and mops the floors, but throroughly scrubs the bathrooms and kitchen top to bottom, cleans out the refrigerator and ovens, washes all the windows (mainly sliding doors) inside and out, cleans all the balcony railings, uses a stepstool to climb and clean the ceiling fans and hanging light fixtures, vacuums all upholstery by removing the cushions (who wants to reach into the cushions and find someone else's popcorn or peanut? She opens every cabinet, vanity, and dresser, and completely wipes out the interior of every drawer. She moves furniture and vacuums or mops under everything, lifts, and mops under all area rugs as well as thoroughly cleaning the rugs themselves, and slat by slat polishes all the plantation shutters. She has an assistant and such a cleaning normally takes the two of them three to four hours. They bring all their own equipment and cleaners.

But skiergirl or others -- in any of you want to come and do all that for $80 please contact me!

By the way, I charge $175 cleaning fee, absorbing the rest -- and of course only charge the fee once per renter.