Considering using VRBO for house rental...any horror stories?

[typhoonlagooner]

We were orginally going to stay at the Beach Club in Sept... but between the vacation cost, and the cost to board to the dogs... I started thinking...

Reading the Pet friendly sticky, I stumbled upon www.vrbo.com and discovered we could get a week long pet friendly rental for the price of boarding the dogs here alone

We have some concerns though and I'm curious as to if anyone has had a bad experience with an owner/the site. Was anyone decieved or mislead? There seems to be a lot of "hidden" charges such as security deposits, cleaning/heating fees, and pet fees as well.

We found a house that we're really interested in, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of detailed information and only a handful of pictures. Should I contact the seller for more information or is this a "bad sign"?

Any insight would be great. This could be a huge money saver for us in the future and I love the idea that some houses are pet friendly. I really don't want our first time to taint us for good.

 

[mareed]

For the most part, the home rentals go very smoothly, but that's not to say that there's an occasional problem. We've certainly had minor problems, but they've always been resolved. Examples are a smoke alarm with low battery beeping, and it was up high where we couldn't reach it. The mgmt. company sent someone over with a ladder & battery and took care of it. We seem to have a fairly consistent problem with insufficient # of towels, but when we've called and notified the mgmt. company, they've always sent some over.

I will say that the number of places that allow pets is going to be very small. I'd guess under 5% of all the homes, so you're going to have much fewer from which to choose than someone without the pet restriction. And my guess is that the pet-friendly homes may show some more wear than others due to having pets in them for most stays. I personally would certainly not stay at a place that allowed pets, so I'm guessing that most people who do stay there will have pets.

 

[mousebit]

We've used vrbo for vacation rentals in several states, tho none in the Orlando area. We have never had a major problem, but you must do your homework. I only rent places that have lots of photos on their sites. I want to know exactly what I'm getting. I hate it when owners put a few little thumbprint shots on their sites, so I don't even consider those. I've learned to do the homework, read the fine print and find out who is managing the place.

As far as pets, you are taking a chance. Unless the owners take special steps to do special deep cleaning after pets (and they would naturally need to charge extra for this) you could find yourself vacationing in a lovely home with all the amenities of a kennel.

That said, we love our lab and have taken him with us a few times to cabins, lake homes, beach homes, etc. and we have enjoyed our stays. Even tho they can be steep, I would be afraid to stay in a place that did not charge the extra fees and do the extra cleaning and I did not mind paying it.

For Disney, we've found it hard to find a place with all the comforts and amenities we'd like that also allows dogs (even if we're willing to pay extra). I do have a place that someone from these boards referred me to, I believe, and we are considering staying there next year. Let me know if you're interested and I'll try to figure out to post a link to their website for you. (I'm sooo technology challenged )

 

[Brian Noble]

VRBO is really nothing more than a really big classified ads board---in each case, you are dealing directly with an owner, so it is important to do as much homework as possible. Try to speak with the owner on the phone, speak with other renters, confirm ownership, etc.

 

[dougsmom98]

Yes, do your homework. Do not be afraid to ask for more photos and to ask questions. You will get a good vibe through your communications with the owners. If you ask about a particular community here on these boards, some of us may be able to help and give you tips about the area. Yes, there can be some extra fees, but when you contact the owner ask for a quote including all fees whether it be cleaning, pet, pool heating... We had some minor problems on our last trip (no cable for four days, pool turned green and took two days to clear up in the middle of the trip, hot tub was not hot), the lesson I learned from this was to be sure that the management company is truly open on the weekends. My owner's management company only had someone on call for emergencies like no electric or water on the weekends, so when we had problems we had to wait until Monday (two days later) before they could get the ball rolling and fix it. These things didn't ruin our vacation but were definitely irritating.

I have been looking on VRBO.com this past week or so, and I have found quite a few in the Davenport area that are pet friendly. They are a little further out, but we like the area.
Good luck.

 

[horseshowmom]

We've been very pleased with the houses we've gotten on VRBO (only very minor problems, if any).

I do always tell everybody to only rent from people who accept credit cards so you have some "insurance". Also, check their cancellation policy, because renting a house isn't like reserving a hotel room.

You can ask them to email more pictures to you. I've never asked for referrals because I figured they could make them up if they really wanted to.



I did have one friend who had a problem with the house she rented. I had told her to make sure she used her credit card, and that's what kept it from turning into a major catastrophe.

 

[leahjade]

We had a great experience with VRBO for our Sedona trip - everything was so simple and went smoothly. The owner even told us great restaurants to try and places to visit. I'd use them again in a heartbeat.