Have you ever negotiated

[kilee]

Has anyone ever tried to negotiate a better price for a condo or pool home rental? If so how did it go and how did you approach it. Just wondering. Thank you.

 

[susan1]

hi
not a villa but or condo but an hotel. we wanted to stay for several weeks and from the best rates we persuaded them to lower the price the $39.99 a night. nearly half price!

 

[djkeenan]

I used a tip I learned here at the DIS and saved a bundle! The original tip was to make up a list of your top choices and send them a note saying you were getting down to your final decision and were asking for their best price.

I modified that plan a little and put together an email that listed the features we had to have, such as king bed in master, internet access, etc., along with a list of the amenities we would like. I then asked for their best price with tax and pool heat included.

I emailed it to a list of homes I was interested in and sent it out as a general inquiry through a couple of websites that have that feature. I got about 30 replies, and most offered discounts that ranged from mild to wild!

I'm not into trying to beat someone up over a discount, but it never hurts to ask nicely. We saved almost 50% over typical low season rates.

Good Luck Kilee!

 

[debden]

I usually write them a note asking if they are running any 'specials' at this time for my travel dates.
I've had quite a bit of success with this approach.
Good Luck,
Debbie

 

[kilee]

Thank you- I do 3 that would be just fine. I do have 2 other ones that I have my eye on though. They are very similar to the other 3 but are about $100 more. I was just wondering if it would be tacky to try and get a hair more off the price.

I was thinking essentially along the lines of telling them I had narrowed it down to 3 homes. I loved their home, amenities, location, ect... then ask about local management those sorts of things. Then kind of pop in there asking if this is a good a deal they could offer. But nicely and non-pushy.

 

[isla bonita]

Try it all they can say is no thank you.

 

[mbb]

Try it all they can say is no thank you.

ITA

We usually stay for long term, and in "lower" season...and this year, without "asking" for a discount, we were able to secure booking for a pet friendly , 4 bed(king, queen, and two twins), pool/spa heat, wireless, tv's in all bedrooms, PS2, and taxes in for $800/week. On the owners site, their rate for our weeks are in the $900+pool heat.

For two families sharing, that works out to cheap!

I do know some owners won't look at an email that asks for "your lowest price", "best offer, please", etc...but looking at their avail. calendars tells me that they don't have to debate the "empty vs. rented at a bargain price"..their houses are rarely empty But they've also been on the rental market for some time, and the owners are upgrading the properties consistently.

We "asked" last year, as the house was brand new - wasn't even finished when we booked, technically, sight unseen. And the owner did reduce the rates for us significantly.

HTH!!

 

[debden]

I'm not sure it if this is what the above poster was saying or not but sometimes I'll look at their availability calendar and see if they have any gaps
(dates not rented) for that month and see if they will quote me a lower price for that time.
If you have flexibility with your dates that's a good way to find deals.
Debbie

 

[horseshowmom]

Yes, this past June I got a 4 bedroom/3 bath screened pool home in a gated community for $480 total (taxes, everything) for a week.

I used www.vrbo.com and looked at the houses that had a calendar icon (as mentioned above), so that I could see if they had availability for my dates. I also only looked at homes that accepted credit cards as an additional safety layer for my protection.

I did the same thing djkeenan did and emailed them. Some didn't reply at all, some reduced their price a little and some reduced their prices drastically. One important point is that I waited until a month or so (maybe six weeks) before I contacted the owners. They knew they probably weren't going to rent at that late date and were more willing to negotiate.

 

[JANNYANS]

WOW all I can say is that $480 wouldn't cover my running costs for a week let alone allow me to build up any $$ to improve and upgrade my home as I do .There are owners who have bought their dream home and simply do not realise how much it costs to run them every month -I can't understand owners who undervalue their investments so much- they would have lost 10-13% of that in tax straight away.

 

[kilee]

That is a huge bargain. In the end I never asked because I found quite a few that were right in my price zone w/ tax and pool heat. Next I weeded them out by security deposits. Don't get me wrong, but I'm not keen on sending an extra $200-400 for security and waiting 30 days to get it back.

We've rented in the past and once we had no security due. The other time the management company of the owner took a credit card on file.

 

[horseshowmom]

It was a huge bargain, and we were very pleased with the house. The next time we go, we'll do the same thing, but will be sure to contact these same people again.

While this one was our best deal, we had an offer from someone in Windsor Palms that was almost as good ($525 for a 3BR/3 BA). The only catch was that he wasn't willing to agree to rent until June 1st. I'm sure that was to allow him extra time just to try to rent at the regular price (and I don't blame him for that). His pool was only a "splash pool" though, and we wanted a full-sized pool, so we went ahead and rented the $480 house.

 

[JANNYANS]

Kilee there are owners who keep the security for that length of time in case there has been excessive use of the utilties or phone calls that aren't free been made .There shouldn't be the need to hang onto a security for damage that long providing there is no damage of course as the man co should pick up any thing wrong straight away .

 

[vossjemi]

What is the law in Florida on returning security deposits? In Missouri, it must be returned w/in 30 days, and if any of it is kept, what is sent must have an explanation of any withholdings. Or you can sue and get double your deposit back!

 

[debden]

I also only looked at homes that accepted credit cards as an additional safety layer for my protection.

That is an excellent idea and I also plan to do that from now on.At least if there is a problem I can dispute it with my CC company.
Debbie