HELP! Before I bite the bullet on a Windsor Hills Rental...

[Sha259]

Hi All,

I have taken a bit of time to find the right WH rental for my family and came across an owner via WindsorHillsOfficialRental.com. The price was great, the house seems really nice, and the reviews were good. However, I just got the rental agreement and have been googling the crap out of the information to make sure I am not getting swindled!

I have one major concern. The names from the email, agreement,linked in and phones all match up. But when I checked the county assessors info for property taxes it give the name of a partnership as the owner of the TH, and the paypal payment email address is a totally different person than who I have been speaking with. I'm emailing him back for clarifications, but does this sound fishy or like a TH owned in Business Partnership by more than one individual. (I will include that I checked the tax assessment for the other property on their website (5BR/5BA) and THAT property is under his name and I believe his wife)

Also, anyone ever rent Canbemagic.com? Also on VRBO/Homeaway under #3508772. I really don't want to pass up the deal he is offering!

It is just so unerving to have to trust people over the internet!!

 

[Klayfish]

Wow, you're really doing a lot of digging, checking county assessors for property tax info. Guess I'm a lot more trusting, we've booked through VRBO at least 15 times and never once had an issue. I'd bet they have a business name they manage the unit under and have a separate Paypal account for it. I've seen that before. Honestly, it wouldn't concern me at all.

However, the price I found for it on Homeaway is $135/night. Hope you're getting a far better deal than that. I've never really bought into the hype about Windsor Hills, as it seems overpriced (it looks nice for sure, but just pricey). I can get a 3 bedroom far, far cheaper than $135/night.

 

[Sha259]

Yeah I did end up confirming that the purchase was under a joint family venture so they used a holding name, and the Paypal is in his wife's name.

Interesting that you say $135/night is high. Indeed there were other listings for the same time period for less, but they were either condos (no spa in back or outside space, neighbors above and below).

This house is a 3 BR end unit with a grill, pool heat, cleaning, taxes and all the required baby safety stuff included in the fee, which was under $950 for the week all inclusive. Every other TH I asked into for our timeframe ended up being way more when you factored in the initial deposit, taxes, property management fees and cleaning fees. I'm very happy with the price I got!

 

[BigredNole]

In many cases, rentals are run by a management company for the owners. Its good to do the homework, but sometimes it is overkill. Since WH is privately owned units, maybe this level of checking is required. We inquired about a rental a while back at another location. It looked to good to be true. Shortly after inquiring, someone from VRBO called me to tell me the listing is fraudulent. It was the same day I inquired about it. So, there are scams out there, but VRBO does a pretty good job of identifying them

 

[Sha259]

Thank you both for your input! I did end up signing the rental agreement. But I find it interesting that you both felt that checking the tax record for the home and confirming the paypal email address were overkill. I assumed that the name difference on the taxes was to do with a joint partnership in purchasing the house. But that, coupled with the completely different paypal email, and then noticing that he had emailed me from 2 different accounts just made me want to confirm everything.

It only took me 20 mins to look everything up. 1 min to email him, and then he gave me a response within the day. So all is well, and I don't consider what I did overkill. But then I have little to no trust in people over the internet when it comes to money that is not handed over to a security verified business. Overall, I did the level of due diligence that made me comfortable with my ultimate decision and I'm happy with that. And getting to go to Disney in a few months too!!

 

[ruby33]

It’s not overkill. I do the same thing. I also think you found a great deal! I guess I’m not as trusting as some! I’d rather do my homework. It doesn’t take much time and being comfortable in your decision is important. Thanks for sharing your experience. Maybe more people will cover their bases before sending $$.

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

I also check the records and do a quick google of the address to see if it comes up as 'for sale'.