What questions to ask possible rental by owner?

[Lulu]

We rented a home last year and it was a piece of cake, they were very prepared for potential customers. This year I just can't figure out what questions to ask. Are there good standard questions to ask when renting a home? Thanks for any help!

 

[pats]

i rented one through vrbo.com for aug. I only spoke with the actual owner through email, but he gave me the name of the management company that watches over his properties and i called them. They were very nice and answered all my questions. I wanted ot know about the pool upkeep and linens, coffee maker in kithen...little things so i would be prepared. I really wanted to make sure that they were really there!!! I had some bad dreams about getting there and finding out i was scammed.

 

[horseshowmom]

May I make one more suggestion? Ask about the actual pool size. The first answer you get will probably be that it's the regular pool size, but go ahead and get the actual dimensions. Several years ago the developers started putting in what I call postage stamp pools. Yes, the property does technically have a pool, but it's very small. I wouldn't want to go much under 15'x30' (especially if there are several of you). There are plenty of houses with pools that size, but you may have to look a little harder. The private pool is one of the main reasons we rent a house, and we want it to be nice. It's also nicer if the pool or yard has a privacy fence or bushes around it. That's just my opinion, of course.

 

[Lulu]

Well my first rental choice fell through, but I learned a valuable lesson. The lesson is to ask if the rental for a week is six nights (ex. Sat.-Fri.) or seven nights (sat-sat). Now, onto the next house! Thanks for the previous suggestions, I am asking pool sizes (some of those pools do look small) and the names of the management company (this does make me feel more assured

 

[tednvon]

Hi.....I always to check see if bed in master is queen or king, is there a TV in the bedroom, and how big is TV in living room, also check for VCR....funny what we look for, huh?

 

[nhrenee]

I asked the owners for a floor plan of the house and they mailed them to me along with color photos!

I also emailed them many, many times with questions I kept thinking of ( are local phone calls free? Do you use a local management co.? How many tv? How close to WDW? etc,etc,etc!). They were quick to answer all of them so I thought that was a good sign.

Oh, you also might want to ask how old the mattresses are. Our house was beautiful but the mattresses were awful. My poor husband's aching back.

 

[tednvon]

again, we have had wonderful experiences with vrbo.com....sounds like you have very interested and meticulous owners.....enjoy....ted