How should this cost be split?

[LtlTee]

Thought I would post this scenario here to get some unbiased answers!

We have a group of friends/family that rent a vacation home together each year for about 4 or 5 days. We stay in the same resort area, but usually rent a different house each year. We are in the process of looking for this year's house and this question has come up.

We have 4 families going; 3 are families of 2 (husband and wife) except for one family that is a family of 4 (husband and wife and 2 kids). The house is a set cost and not based on how many people go. So, should the cost of the house be split by family or by person (with the family of 4 obviously paying more if it's split by person)?

The very first house we rented years ago was priced per person ($XXX for 10 people, $XXX for 12 people...) so that's how we split it. However, the recent houses have not been priced this way - it's a set amount for the 4 or 5 days.

So, do we split by family or by person?

 

[MIGrandma]

That's a tough one.

DH and I have rented cabins in Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge, first alone then last year with his sister and her husband. We split the cost equally between the two couples.

But, we are considering asking our daughter, son-in-law and their two children (ages 5 and 1) if they might be interested in renting one with us in another couple of years when the little one is a bit older. I think we would go with splitting the cost evenly with them, rather than asking them to pay more just because they have two children.

In your case, with 4 families going, I think I would ask for everyone to vote and see what the majority wants and go with that.

 

[luvmy3]

Since it isn't a per head price then I would split it evenly among the adults (family).

 

[Christine]

I would split by how many bedrooms each family uses. If everyone is using just one, same price. If most families use one bedroom and the other family uses two bedrooms then they should be charged more.

 

[Pakey]

If I were one of the families of 2, I'd say split it by person. If I was the family of 4, I'd say split it by family.

How old are the children and are they going to have their own sleeping area or are they sharing with their parents or sleeping in an open area? That would probably weigh into my thought process. If the children are teenagers and taking up a bedroom, I'd say that it should be by person. If they are younger and sharing space with their parents, I'd say it should be by family.

 

[NMAmy]

Is the family of four sharing a bedroom or will they have two separate bedrooms? If they're sharing a room, then I'd just divide the cost by each family. If they're using more space, then I'd divide it by person.

 

[disneystacy]

I would split by family. Hotels are not split per person unless you have more than 2 adults and usually its a small upcharge.
Now if you had to get a bigger house to give the kids their own room, then I would do per person.

 

[tiggger1]

how are you splitting the bedrooms rooms? if the kids are getting their own room then I would do it by person, but if they are sharing with the parents then I would do it by family...

 

[kamik86]

I would split by person... We have a DVC trip where we are spending a good deal of points to take extended family instead of paying to stay elsewhere and are asking them each to contribute some to the cost of the extra points (they are still saving a bundle though) and we did that per person even though the room price didnt change.

 

[lspst8]

Are the kids going to be staying in the same bedroom as the parents or do they get their own bedroom? If the family with kids is all in one room, I would split the costs evenly by family because they aren't taking up any more room than a 2 person family. If the family with kids get 2 bedrooms, they should probably pay a little more than the families that only need one bedroom.

 

[Hannathy]

I would say by person because you are going to need a larger house by 2 people because of the kids than you would if it was all just couples. (if it was one little baby in their room I would say by couple, but 2 kids mean a bigger place)

Unless they all plan on staying in 1 bedroom, then maybe by bedroom. But I doubt they plan on doing that.

 

[msjprincess]

We rent a house with a group of people every year. We always split it by family. Whether it's a single person or family of five. It works for us and no one has ever complained. Everyone is different though.

ETA
The kids always sleep in a bunk bed room. So it's not like they're really taking up more space. If the kids weren't there the room would remain empty.

 

[luvmy3]

You guys would really split it up by who gets a bedroom? If a couple doesn't have any kids its not like they are missing out on getting a room. What about if there isn't enough bedrooms and there are a few pull-out sofas? Would those people get to pay less even if they have kids?
Do you charge them more because they use more dining room chairs? I'm sorry I think that is really strange, but I see alot of you guys said that. I know when we go away (4 families) we split the cost by the adults because we don't see the point in nit-picking about how much space a family takes up, we just like the idea of being able to all stay together.

 

[smkiya]

I would split by how many bedrooms each family uses. If everyone is using just one, same price. If most families use one bedroom and the other family uses two bedrooms then they should be charged more.

 

[Scurvy]

If each family is using one bedroom then I would split the cost evenly. If the larger family will be taking up more than one room or if the kids will be sleeping in one of the common areas (which would mean no one else could use it at night) then I would expect them to pay more than the other families.

 

[LtlTee]

The 2 kids are young teenagers. Last year there were 2 pull out couches, one in the living room and one in a loft area, and that's where they slept, and they were fine with it. They used their parents' room as the "base" to get changed, etc.

In all fairness, we have chosen houses in the past so that everyone has a bedroom, but like I said, last year we didn't. We chose last year's house due to location and an awesome hot tub. (unfortunately, that house is not available for our dates this year.) One of the houses we really like this year actually has one more bedroom than we would need -- but we like it due to location and amenities. So, we don't always choose solely based on bedrooms. A lot of other factors come in to play too, if that makes sense.

I'm not the one with the kids, so it really benefits me if we split it by person, since my cost would be cheaper but I really wasn't sure if that was fair.
Thanks for the opinions so far!

 

[LuvOrlando]

I'm with everyone else on the bedroom thing. If you ask for them to pay per person there is a good chance they might back out or stop going with you in the future because the cost might become prohibitive. Maybe that matters to you and maybe not but I'm assuming the reason you all split the house is to keep costs down in the first place so if they stop going you might not be able to afford it all, not to mention ruining a good group thing you all get to do. Personally, I wouldn't rock the boat and would just enjoy things the way they are split by family.

 

[johnsontrio]

We used to have annual beach vacations with a large number of people. The adults counted as 1.0 and each kid counted as 0.5 for the house and all the food as well. Everyone saved their receipts and we worked it out at the end of the week. Always turned out to be a very economical vacation.

 

[phorsenuf]

Did you have to get a bigger place by adding the kids? If so, then I would do it per person. If it was the same size place you were going to rent any way, then by family.

 

[mikehn]

We dont sweat the little things like this. We just split the cost per family. Over the course of the stay, some families might contribute more than others with groceries, booze, or some other consumables. So in the end, its just about a wash for everyone.