This is an interesting situation and it really comes down to who you feel most comfortable dealing with.
Booking with the owner doesn't necessarily mean getting a better deal and sometimes it can have problems. 90% of the time there are no problems and everything goes well. It's just the 10% of time that causes the problem. And for the following, I'm going to get some stick....
Lets imagine scenario A. What happens if you book with the owner and the owner has been economical with the truth., ie., the home isn't as described or there is building work, etc etc ?
What options have you got....not many if truth be known. If the home isn't as described then you can try and negotiate with the owner but it's not going to help you much if you aren't happy. The owner won't be able to offer you somewhere else to stay as a MC might.
Now for scenario B. It's not uncommon for an air conditioing unit to fail in his part of the world. OK, it's a rare occurance but it happens. What is the owner going to be able to offer you if this can't be fixed quickly ? Again, not a lot !
So that's part of the negative, the positive is that the normal owner will know far more about the property than the average MC. Few MC employees have set foot into the property and don't really know it. Further, some MC's deal with travel agents and couldn't care less what it looks like anyway !
The trick here is to deal with an MC who is small enough to know the properties and has people answering the phone who are intimate with the home(s). I don't want to blow my own trumpet here but every member of our telephone team has been inside each home.....try and get a company that operates the same way.
Now, let's look at MC's. Generally speaking they fall into 3 categories, a) the good, b) the medium and b) the absolute awful. MC's come in all shapes and sizes from the large multi national companies to the husband and wife teams. It doesn't take a mind reader to know where the best service is !!
The other thing about booking with MC's is that you do have some recourse and it is usually far easier than going through the Court system with an owner if you really have to. Just today Families First have lost their status with the Better Business Bureau as a result of the fiasco a few weeks ago and this will undoubtably hurt them.
The really major thing to remember when booking with an MC is that if a problem does occur, then they usually have another property for you to move into.
So far this sounds a little biased towards booking with an MC and it isn't intended that way. When I first visited Florida I booked the same house twice a year for three years with the same people. I became familar with them and they made extra effort for me. Yes, this can happen with an MC who you book regularly with but not usually.
I have many owners who do the majority of bookings themselves and I have to say the system works well. You know the house you are getting and you know who you are dealing with by and large. The same happens with MC's who feature individual homes in both pictorial and video format on their web sites but unfortunately many don't.
Overall, you must go with what you are comfy with. Obey the golden rules and you'll be fine whoever you book with.
1. Check who you are dealing with. Are they reputable ?
Check Better Business Bureau, Chamber of Commerce, Central Florida Property Manager's Association, relevant county taxing authority etc etc.
2. Check the home is located where you want it.
3. Check the home has what you want.
4. Make sure the home is licensed. Department of Business and Professional Regulation can help.
5. Check terms and conditions and make sure you are happy.
6. Do you detect anything odd with the person you are dealing with ?
7. Does the owner or MC have a web site showing the home in pictorial and better still, video format ?
8. Know where the owner or MC is located - US or UK or elsewhere.
9. In case of booking direct with owner, make sure the home is managed by a local MC in case of emergency/problem.
10. Make sure you receive good directions and know where to collect the key. Either directly at the home or at MC lockbox.
Obey these simple rules and you'll have a great time.
