Homes in Orlando

[carye1]

I just returned from a great 10 day vacation in the Orlando area, and spent 5 days in the Disney theme parks. Although I did know that homes were available for rent by executives and movie stars, I didn't know that they were available for regular people. There are homes available for rent in the Orlando area which can be rented on a nightly/weekly/monthly basis, instead of a hotel room. I was very surprised at how affordable and beautiful these homes are. The home that I stayed in was a 4 bedroom two bathroom home, with a beautiful heated pool, a garage, three televisions, two VCRs, a washer and dryer, and everything we needed to have a wonderful stress-free vacation. It even was stocked with a propane BBQ, dishes, silverware, and towels. We had to travel about 10 miles to get to WDW. My kids actually wanted to leave the theme parks to go swimming in our private pool. The entire home was decorated, inside and out, and the home has beautiful tropical paintings and even murals on the walls. The best part was the price. Since I have two teenagers, I would have needed (at least) two hotel rooms for a comfortable family stay, yet the home I stayed in was only $140.00 a night. I had the home for 6 of the 10 days of my stay, and the bill for the hotel rooms were more than the bill of the home. I will never use a hotel again. Premiere Vacation Homes (http://www.disneyinfo.com/premier/index.html) can also rent this home and hundreds of others in the area. I cannot stress how wonderful it was for my family to stay in this wonderful place.

 

[hercamore]

Hi, welcome to the DDis and thanks for posting. Glad to see someone from Montana!. Love your beautiful state. My sons just got back from a winter camping trip in Yellowstone. Nobody there he said.

Yes, it sounds like a home is the way to go these days for us families with teens and young adults along. A few years ago, I would never have considered renting a home, and now that's what we're prolly going to do next trip. Maybe a split stay cause my kids really like the AKL.

Glad you had a great time. What subdivision were you in, do you know? HOw far of a drive was it to parks?

Herc.

 

[Briggsy]

Hi

I own a villa on Highlands Reserve Golf Course and it a great way to spend your holiday in Orlando. I would recommend that you book direct with the villa owners as they can offer a much better rate.


Julie

 

[Lakul]

I totally agree with Julie as I too have a Villa at Highlands Reserve.

Renting a villa is great for families. It's nice to have more bedrooms than be cramped in one room. You have so much more space. Also rent direct from the owner, as the rates are usually better than from a company. Give it a try next time.

Kerry

 

[Juliepoohgirl]

It sounds as though some of you are familar with the area around Disney which rents houses/villas. We are going to DW in July. WE have a 5 bedroom house booked in the Savannas subdivision in Clermont. Any info about this area? Linda

 

[eeyorepatty]

How do you get information from private owners????

 

[Lakul]

Hello eeyorepatty

There are hundreds of private owners out there who rent out their villas to families, with many not far from Disney. Accommodation can range from a 1 bed condo up to 7 bedroom villas with private pools depending on your requirements.

I have sent you a PM of some websites to look at. There are advertising rules so I cannot put them on here. If the moderator says it's Ok then I will post them for everyone to see.
Also you can do a web search. just put in something like Villas to rent near Disney etc

Hope this helps

 

[momtotwinglesx4]

near WDW. We have been talking to the folks at Premier Vacation Homes, but is there a better company to go with? We would need a management company since we live in Illinois wouldn't we? For maintenence and such? ANy advice from vacation/rental home owners would be greatly appreciated! We want to be able to use it ourselves a few times a year, during slow rental times, and then rent it out the rest of the time, hoping to offset the costs for the most part; or is this just wishful thinking?

Thanks,

Sue

 

[Elle]

Sue,
We have just bought our home, If you have any specific Q's please feel free to ask.
Do not worry about management at this stage that comes much later.
Also go to a licensed independant realtor rather than a company that also manages homes, the advise you get will be much more relevant. I can give you the number of our's if you want (I am not on any kind of commision)
PM me if you want.

 

[SimonV]

The issue of Management Company v Private Owner is one where you can go round the houses (pardon the pun) for a long time. There are pros and cons with both, but it generally works out that private owners are cheaper while you have more back-up with a management company (if the house proves to have any defects). I will happily vouch for three highly reliable and professional companies - Premier, Florida Leisure and Alexander Holiday Homes - while the vrbo.com site also gets the approval of many private renters. There are also plenty of indovidual owners here who get good references, and ultimately it is a case of you pays your money, and you takes your choice.....!

Individual references and advertisements for private villas are not allowed, however, in deference to our paying advertisers (and we would be swamped by villa owners otherwise ).

This map also gives you an idea of the location of some developments:

http://www.fhvr.net/Newmap3.jpg

This is more stylized map, but shows more developments:

http://www.evilla-rentals.com/disneymap.jpg

 

[Elle]

"There are pros and cons with both, but it generally works out that private owners are cheaper while you have more back-up with a management company (if the house proves to have any defects)."

Absolutely have to disagree, a private homeowner HAS to have a management company to look after their interests so you get the same amount of "Backup" with a private owner as with the larger homes, it is just that with a private owner YOU PAY LESS!! I personally am all for that.

 

[Lakul]

I agree with Elle. We are private owners who live in the UK and have a wonderful small management company who look after our villa in Florida. They are on hand to help the guests with any problems or queries they may have. We have had many compliments from our guests on how clean and comfortable our villa is. You do get a better deal by booking with the owner and a more personal service.

Happy Easter

 

[Diz]

We have rented a very nice home for 7 nights this June. We went through Vacation Rentals By Owners . The home we are renting was MUCH cheaper through a private owner than going through a company. We got the home for $600, whereas a comparable home through the companies we checked were over $900.

We did our homework and exchanged emails with the owner at least 10 times before we made a commitment. The owner does have a management company look over the property and they gave us their phone number to ease any of our concerns.

I guess we won't know if this was a good deal or not until we get there

One thing I did do, just as a test, was to email the owner of the home from a different email address to see if the dates I had rented were available... To my delight, they replied and told me the home was rented for the week

On another note, I just can't believe that people would stay in a cramped hotel room when they can get a home with a private pool for less than a hotel room.

 

[BonnieA]

I have to ad one "con" to renting with a private owner. It may not be a big thing with most people but being older and having elderly relatives I needed a liberal cancellation policy. When I tried to rent from a private owner I asked about the cancellation policy. I was discouraged from renting if there was a possibility that I would cancel at the last minute. And I can understand why, they only have one property they need to rent and can't afford to give refunds. So I chose an agency with a very liberal policy, they also gave me great service, economical price and beautiful homes. I have rented more than once and never had to cancel fortunately. If my situation were different I would try a private owner, their homes look beautiful. But I'm not sure their homes are less expensive. I got a 3 bedroom home in early December 2000 for less than $600 including all taxes/fees for 7 nights.

 

[Robinrs]

I have to agree with BonnieA. Several management companies, Elite and Florida Leisure, ask for a small or no downpayment and you don't pay the rest until you arrive. Most private owners want their money up front or at least 8 weeks prior to arrival.

I'm a single parent with elderly parents. My schedule can change in a second. I also don't have the funds or financial dependence to accept a unrefundable deposit.

I was looking for a home once 8 weeks ahead of time and had people tell me that I had to pay the entire amount NOW. As a consumer I have the option to protest with my feet...

 

[SimonV]

Elle, plenty of people book up through individual owners and have ONLY that owner as a point of sale reference. The vast majority get a good deal, but occasionally it happens that a renter finds the house in disrepair or with other defects, and then they have no-one to refer to (other than an owner who may be thousands of miles away). They know nothing of the management company or of any other source of help. This is what I'm referring to. Believe it, it happens. Not often I'll grant you, but there CAN be problems this way and sometimes quite serious ones (like people turning up and finding their home already occupied). Which is why I will only ever recommend companies which I know have a good track record and which can supply a full, on-location after-sales service. This is no reflection on anyone posting here, but I have worked in this market extensively for almost 10 years through my guidebook writing, and there have been plenty of horror stories. (And then there have been the rogue management companies and the unethical property speculators...but that's another story ).

 

[Elle]

Simon,
I have stayed in over 30 seperate homes in the area (I am one of those people who has something different from the menu each time!) Time1 to about 6 or 7 we rented via a well known management company, well respected and trustworthy, we stopped using them when we arrived at 9pm on a miserable December night to find they had double booked the home!!!
We had to stay in a hotel.
Since then I have used private owners every time, not ONCE have we been disapointed, if there has been a problem we have contacted that particuler owners management company and have been delighted at the prompt service received (we have only had to call out people 3 or 4 times granted)
Over the 12 years we have been visiting Florida the only problem I have ever had has been from a rental company.
Oh and we have never used the same owner twice!!
There are "horror stories I agree but in my experience they come from companies rather than owners. Private Owners want their 2nd home to be a wonderful place, if they take the time to promote it themselves they are going to be looked after, where as if the owner hands over the reins to a company they probably do not mind so much as the buck stops with the company. I have done lots of research on this myself and can be more specific.
Again I have to disagree with you.

 

[Elle]

BonnieA/Robynrs,
I agree this can be a problem for some people, do not take this the wrong way but do you use travel insurance? English renters all have it so it is not too much of an issue if you have to cancel. I do know that some owners (myself inc) are now coming round to this problem and offering payment on check in, but the majority do not so you will need your travel insurance!!
Elle

 

[BonnieA]

I don't find it necessary to use travel insurance since I use an agency that will let me cancel at the last minute. They also do not require a security deposit or full prepayment (only one night deposit). Like I said before, I understand why private owners cannot offer a liberal cancellation policy and I respect that.

 

[Robinrs]

Exactly what Bonnie said. There are WAY too many homes in Orlando to take a chance or buy insurance for a town that's that close to my home.