VRBO heads up...

[moesy4]

I know many search VRBO as I do for condo deals, and some may have already noticed that starting last month, there is a hefty service charge added to the rentals. I wasn't sure about it at first and wondered if it was just a different way to list the fee for the listing.
I have heard now from several different sources that this fee is a brand new fee and it goes exclusively to VRBO in addition to the fees the owner listing is being charged for. So on average your booking is going to cost you about 10% more through VRBO than it did 6 weeks ago.
It may be worth it to you to see if owners will take alternative methods of payments. We reached out to several owners regarding our upcoming trip in October and many mentioned the new fee and stated they would drop it if you booked through Paypal or another method. We personally ended up booking through VRBO because we got a good deal and since the person didn't have a ton of reviews on the website we wanted the buyer protection, but it is something to consider.

 

[Gr8t Fan]

I know many search VRBO as I do for condo deals, and some may have already noticed that starting last month, there is a hefty service charge added to the rentals. I wasn't sure about it at first and wondered if it was just a different way to list the fee for the listing.
I have heard now from several different sources that this fee is a brand new fee and it goes exclusively to VRBO in addition to the fees the owner listing is being charged for. So on average your booking is going to cost you about 10% more through VRBO than it did 6 weeks ago.
It may be worth it to you to see if owners will take alternative methods of payments. We reached out to several owners regarding our upcoming trip in October and many mentioned the new fee and stated they would drop it if you booked through Paypal or another method. We personally ended up booking through VRBO because we got a good deal and since the person didn't have a ton of reviews on the website we wanted the buyer protection, but it is something to consider.

Thanks for the heads up. That will definitely deter us from booking through VRBO in the future. Ugh!

 

[party-of-five]

I know many search VRBO as I do for condo deals, and some may have already noticed that starting last month, there is a hefty service charge added to the rentals. I wasn't sure about it at first and wondered if it was just a different way to list the fee for the listing.
I have heard now from several different sources that this fee is a brand new fee and it goes exclusively to VRBO in addition to the fees the owner listing is being charged for. So on average your booking is going to cost you about 10% more through VRBO than it did 6 weeks ago.
It may be worth it to you to see if owners will take alternative methods of payments. We reached out to several owners regarding our upcoming trip in October and many mentioned the new fee and stated they would drop it if you booked through Paypal or another method. We personally ended up booking through VRBO because we got a good deal and since the person didn't have a ton of reviews on the website we wanted the buyer protection, but it is something to consider.

Our upcoming trip in September is the first time we're seriously looking at renting a townhome or condo. I've been looking at Paradise Palms in particular. Any other suggestions on how to find/book without using VRBO? Is home away doing the same?

 

[Vacationingfamilyoffive]

Home away is doing the same since they are owned by the same company. Airbnb charges a service fee but is it is often less than the Vrbo fee.

 

[moesy4]

Our upcoming trip in September is the first time we're seriously looking at renting a townhome or condo. I've been looking at Paradise Palms in particular. Any other suggestions on how to find/book without using VRBO? Is home away doing the same?

This is our first time using them so hopefully someone else can chime in, but I would suggest doing your due diligence to make sure the owner is legit and has a good reputation and then go from there. I know several would take Paypal which I would imagine would offer some protection and many would offer check payments, but that obviously wouldn't offer much protection.

 

[Ametista]

Flipkey has been doing this for years. Most vacation rental communities have their own websites for rentals, so you can avoid that charge. The disgusting thing is that Homeaway charges $600/year for owners to list their property, then they add on an extra fee the owner never sees. Hence the outrageous number of foreclosures in the DW area. Everybody is milking off the people who try to buy houses there.

 

[bearzabout]

Dave Robinson lists a lot of condos and towns houses at Windsor Hills at good prices. Prices drop to fill vacancies last minute. I think he runs his website as a service to his friends who own there. You still pay taxes and cleaning fees, but rental rates can be low at certain times of the year. If you sign up for his emails, he sends out notifications of last minute price drops. I have not used them since I always get a better deal on Skyauction.

Air BNB charges 13%. I hope VRBO charges less than that.

I did a quick search on houses for sale in Windor Hills and the website listed over 100 that are for sale. I'm sure this change in VRBO is not going to help.

 

[Vacationingfamilyoffive]

The service fee for both companies varies on the price of the rental. Neither company has a set percentage. We've used both and been happy with both. There is quite the uproar on the part of owners from Vrbo/home away because of the addition of a service fee. Eager to see if the backlash makes a difference

 

[Shea&Van]

I have used VRBO many many times and was quite disappointed to hear about this new fee from some of the owners we have rented from in the past.

We have also used Dave Robinson before and got a few great last minute deals for a week at one of his condos/townhomes. I'm not sure of the exact web address, but I'm sure you can find him on Google.

Thanks for posting OP!

 

[Sunshine25]

VRBO/Homeaway charges up to 10% of the total cost! Airbnb has always had a fee, however, they don't charge owners an outrageous listing fee on top of that - in essence they are double dipping. (As an owner I am quite upset about it)

Try contacting the owner through VRBO & see if they will accept the booking outside of VRBO to save you the fee.
Also there is a Facebook group of owners with vacation properties world wide who are accepting bookings directly to save travellers the extra fees:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1039071352821480/

 

[Sunshine25]

Also search other listing sites that don't have fees like vacationhomerentals.com & homeescape.com

 

[Barbydoll8]

or try here.
http://www.floridadeluxevillas.com/

 

[disneymom3]

Also search other listing sites that don't have fees like vacationhomerentals.com & homeescape.com

Thank you for those links. We are looking to rent a home in the area for two months next winter and I need all the resources I can find.

 

[Woodview]

Or Try this Co. IPG Florida Vacation Homes.

www.ipgflorida.com

 

[disneymom3]

We were able to find a home at a good price through FlipKey. It is affiliated with Trip Advisor. As far as I can tell, there isn't any additional fees that at least aren't built into the price that is listed.

 

[Tara8595]

Do you guys find that staying off-property and not being able to book FP+ 60 days in advance doesn't affect you?

 

[serenitynow]

Or try ebay. Many of those listings come from owners with excellent eBay ratings (check first) and take PayPal which gives the "buyer" extra protection.

 

[Dacky619]

Do you guys find that staying off-property and not being able to book FP+ 60 days in advance doesn't affect you?

Doesn't affect us much. We have APs from last summer and are going in less than a month. FP are available for almost everything and the extra space we are getting is well worth it.