sjde53

Airbnb actually charges travelers a higher service fee than VRBO does. Of course, VRBO charges the owners who list more than Airbnb does but that doesn't matter to a traveler.

There is a site that does not charge the traveler anything , because the owners pay for an annual subscription. Like the old VRBO. It is part of Trip Advisor called vacationhomerentals.com

chaps

Add me to the list of unhappy -- make that VERY -- unhappy VRBO homeowner. I recently had my property "hidden" because I did not convert a rental request into a booking in 24 hours or less. I found out about it because a potential renter and I were emailing back and forth & suddenly he told me he could no longer find my listing. Furthermore, he said that when he called customer service at VRBO, they told him to have the owner get in touch with VRBO. So, I went on the website & couldn't find it either! I then called VRBO and found out why it had been hidden (see above). And, to make matters worse, the VRBO person couldn't find may listing either!! He said he'd have to refer the matter to their tech department, but that it could be up to 2 weeks before anyone got back to me. (Really?!?). I then asked to speak to a supervisor. After being on hold for a good amount of time, the person came back and told me that all the supervisors had gone home for the day. (Really?!?). Talk about lousy customer service!

I also voiced my strong disagreement with their new way of doing business since Expedia bought them. Unnessary fees, no way to contact the potential renter by phone, excessive demands - just to name a few!! They are trying to push the homeowner aside and basically manage our property themselves, at least in terms of how it gets booked. I am going to contact the Attorney General's office and see what their Consumer Protetion division has to say.

janisj

>>I am going to contact the Attorney General's office and see what their Consumer Protetion division has to say.

suze

<They are trying to push the homeowner aside and basically manage our property themselves.>

Yes... and???

sylvia3

It's obvious from the comments of some that they have no clue of what VRBO used to be and how a conglomerate has bought out every site that offered the service, and changed the rules, the prices, and the operations to the detriment of the owner and the renter.

Chaps, you are absolutely right; I know a few VRBO users, and have used them myself for years, and not one person is happy with the changes.

janisj

>>and not one person is happy with the changes.

suze

<they have no clue>

No, I know all that...

julies

Interesting that this thread I started 1.5 years ago is still going.

As mentioned up thread, Homeaway bought out near;y every competitor so there really aren't many alternative options--AirB&B and TripAdvisor mainly.

I am still unhappy with that extra VRBO fee that does absolutely nothing for the renter. Here in the US I have been lucky in that many owners will rent directly without going through the extra VRBO add-ons. I've talked to them, and they too are fed up with this fee. They will accept a check to get around the credit card booking that automatically adds on the fee.

Internationally it is another story though partially because of the language difficulties and partly because of the difficulty one would have paying directly (I know how hard it is because we have done direct transfers in the past). I just booked a place in Italy and sucked up the Homeaway service fee.

I am quite suspicious that these Homeaway-owned booking sites will purposely block communications between owner and potential guest if the guest just clicks contact owner rather than request to book. I have had several owners they did not get my message when I tried using the contact the owner option to ask a question.

fishee

I just started listing my AirBNB unit on VRBO this year and there is no way to make my contact info visible. Prospective renters can only message me through the vrbo system.

On another note, I don't pay a subscription fee for VRBO but they charge me 8% commission on each booking. I subsequently increase my nightly rate on VRBO (compared to my AirBNB rate).

I was thinking of making a facebook page with the same title as my vrbo listing -- has anyone done this? Not only would guests have a way of contacting owners but they can even send payments via faccebook with no fees (on either side).

julies

I wonder if you went with a more premium level of listing with VRBO if you could then directly list contact info.

I know some (just a few) of the places I have looked at recently do have a phone number listed. Maybe though these are long-time listers who were able to retain that feature.

I like your Facebook idea, but I think you should also include some of the exact same text you use in your description or have a very distinct name for your place that would be easily searchable.

sidwellr

vrbo website listing states "100% refund" yet I am being charged 10% for cancelling less than 24 hours after booking!!!!!!!!! Nowhere is there any statement about a "cancellation fee." Even in the link to request a refund!!!!! A blatant deceitful and illegal practice.

Anyone wish to join me in a class action against VRBO and Expedia?

schmerl

At the very least report them to the Better Business Bureau.
You could also contact Chris Elliott the ombudsman.

sylvia3

Refund policy is usually up to the owners. Is there a difference between owner and vrbo here in who exactly is charging the fee? (HomeAway owns Expedia, I think)

igotsurf

I have been a customer of Homeaway for over 10 years ,I feel what they are doing by getting in the middle of the bookings to get a service fee is not only greedy but inhibits booking because I feel if the renter wants to call and ask question about the area they can't contact the host to get these detail . Also I have experienced them blocking my listing when I did not respond in 24 hrs I called to let them know the inquiry did not have specific dates they wanted me to reserve the entire month until they knew there exact travel dates which anyone knows that's a ridiculous request . Another problem I see with Homeaway forcing host to use there booking and charging system is if there is a dispute from a renter homeaway seems to have there own charge back HomeAway payments also know as vacationrentpayment which when you call its located in the Philippines and know one returns your calls , when you let Homeaway know they back peddle and say they can't be of any assistance !I have just had a charge back from a renter he claims he has a health issue and for some reason thought I had a medical center which there is nothing that says I have anything of the sort and Homeaway refuses to back me !! I experienced a similar situation about five years ago and after the charge back was done and I got awarded the funds back they took the funds again and I took the charge back company to court the judge told them first Data Merchant services they were wrong and broke the law I received the judgement even though Homeaway refused to back me but it took over a year to resolve . It looks like this time I will be taking Homeaway to court !!!!!!

Brian_in_Charlotte

Beware that the reservation fee is non-refundable even if the owner fails to complete the booking process. We were burned to the tune of $61 a couple of months ago and got no help from vrbo.com.

TJM_70

Wow, what an interesting discussion.

We dropped our VRBO membership when they stopped viewing us and our properties as partners and instead decided we were a commodity they could control. It's not a way of doing business that's in line with ours, so we parted ways.

I respectfully suggest more property owners do so. The best vote is with your wallet.

We do still list on Airbnb as their model is different - we don't have to pay a listing fee and we aren't extorted to pay higher fees to get higher listing results. Our pay per booking fees are in line with what we would pay for a credit card transaction and they seem reasonable.

However, we also do a lot of direct bookings. Back before the short term real estate boom, we did all our bookings this way.

Now, thanks to scare tactics from VRBO / Homeaway and other OTAs (online travel agencies)...people are afraid they don't have "protection" when booking direct...it's almost funny.

A transaction between us - the property owners - and the guest is always cheaper, easier and convenient.

My best suggestion is that a property owner who does not have a website and brand for their property is not serious about this business.

If you see a listing at VRBO and the property has a name or some other identifying branding, you should search for it online. You can use google picture search - try it it's cool - to find other websites with the same photos. Is it a little more effort for the renter to go right to the owner? Probably. But, it will yield savings and peace of mind in the end.

I just don't like when the third party calls all the shots - who can contact you, when, how, where, requiring instant booking, etc.

This used to be a fun business, it's harder every year.

Caddy1010

I agree with TJM. If you find a property you like, then google search the description, photos, name of the property, etc. to try and find it elsewhere. Many owners have their own website or are listing on other regional listing sites where are NO BOOKING FEES.

Since the original post, now VRBO/Homeaway has increased their service fees to be dynamic. Often times this is more than 12% of the total. Airbnb recently increased their booking fees to up to 15%. TripAdvisor has them at 14.5% And sometimes the fees is all rolled up into the nightly rate. So you don't even know you are paying them.

Try to find the owner directly and save your hard earned money. New listing sites are popping up daily as owners are fed up with the listing sites increasing their fees to travelers.

Keep in mind you can't ask the owner to book directly as the listing sites will flag the account if the owner tells you how. Not all owners have their own websites. But it shouldn't be hard to find if you just google for a few minutes.

MmePerdu

Whe searching for owner sites, as Caddy1010 mentions, or where they may list with lower fees, search with the title or headline name that the owner gives at the top of the page. This may very well lead you directly to an accommodations own site.

Dayle

I have used VRBO very successfully several times over the years, but I quit when they added the fees.

Out of curiosity, I checked to see what it would cost me for a place a few hours drive away for 3 nights over the Christmas weekend. The cleaning fee, taxes, and vrbo fee added the equivalent of another night's lodging.

It just doesn't make vrbo a good value anymore for me so I will go back to hotels and B&Bs.

sylvia3

The vrbo website often lists the owner's phone and enail, so there's no flagging or screening there; the owner might not want to go outside vrbo, not trusting checks or not wanting to bother setting up for credit cards or PayPal. Vrbo wouldn't know if someone was working with an owner directly.
My cousin's fla condo is listed only on vrbo, and she gets all kinds of service offers and come-ons from other renting sites, so there's obviously no screening. (They go through "rental request" or "inquiry" through vrbo.)
Depending on what you want, it's still a better deal to get a separate bedroom and kitchen and living space, for example, than a hotel room for a similar price ( and remember hotel prices are often very different from the initial listed price when the final taxes, parking, and "resort" fees are tallied).