Do you negotiate the rate of house/villa/condo rental?

[Captain Hook Wannabe]

Always negotiate. I have rented homes every year for the past 7 years, and I always haggle a bit.

My tips:

1. When you first contact the owner, compliment the house but say you have a budget and need to stick to it. Some people (like some of the posters) might get offended that you are asking for a deal. Compliment the house, and most of the time people will react positively.

2. Get ready for rejection. Might have to deal with several "no" responses, before you get a yes. Usually if it is a "no" the owner will give me their best offer, so I may get back to them later.

3. Don't wait to the last minute. As soon as you know your dates are firm, start contacting owners. The cheaper, but still nice, houses go first. Some owners list their properties for very reasonable rates, because they want their homes occupied, rather than vacant. Easier to negotiate when you want $20 off a night, rather than $100 off a night.

Renting a house is the best. Some much room, cheaper than a couple of hotel rooms and its fun looking at all the options and finding the perfect house. Never had a negative experience renting a house in Orlando, and I always used vrbo. Good luck.

 

[TrustedTraveler]

I always ask for their best price, and let them know price is a consideration, but I'm never looking during high season. About half of the owners ignore my request and quote their published rates, 25% knock off some fee(s) and about 25% come back with a much better offer.
I understand that as owners they have the right to hold their price, but as a renter it's well within my prerogative to shop around. Over the years I've saved $200 to $350 per week just by asking. It's a simple case of supply and demand.

 

[1andrea]

We always get a lot of quotes asking for the best price and filter out the quotes that are way too expensive for us. We then pick one that we like and recheck that its the best price as we usually stay 3 weeks and go from there!

X

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Looking to rent again through VRBO/Homeaway and wondering if anyone has negotiated a rate with an owner/manager? . . .

1) You should ALWAYS negotiate.
2) If the owner won't deal, go elsewhere. *
3) There are over 30,000 "short-term" home rentals in/near Kissimmee and Orlando.
4) And, over 1,500 rental companies, not counting individuals who rent their own property.
5) We have two rental/management companies in our Kiwanis chapter.
6) They always talk about dealing and negotiating.
7) And, some of their reductions have been major.


* Remember, price is determined by what the BUYER will pay, not what the SELLER
wants. It is called supply and demand, as well as market forces. We frequently
stay at house rentals when we vacation (eg. Myrtle Beach, Vale, etc) and we would
never take the asking price.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

. . . The villa owner is the last link in the chain of your vacation. So why not pay a fair asking price .

1) Because it is MY money.
2) Why throw it away if you can save it?
3) By the way, you CAN negotiate car rental rates.
4) And, who determines if the Asking Price is "fair"?