safe way to rent

[rmasu]

Hi, I read the stickY on renting and dont think we'll use the escrow.

So get a rental agreement 1st and call the resort to confirm reservation under the owners name B4 sending money?
any other advice?
Is there any feedback or checks on redweek?
Thanks
Ross

 

[Tacoma]

I've been on both sides of rental transactions and the other person is likely just as nervous as you are. I doubt they will want to send you everything in your name before they get anything from you. In the past I normally send half and then get a confirmation letter. I also almost always phone the person first just to get a feel for them. I also call the resort and make sure my name is on the reservation or at least check that they own the unit they've probably got the unit booked in their names at this point. THis year I rented a worldmark and they(Worldmark) would tell me nothing when I called trying to check. So I sent the second half of the money since I had covered all of the other steps and the person seemed legitimate they have sent me all the paperwork but my name isn't all sorted out yet. They also gave me cell phone numbers in case anything goes wrong. I will check with the resort soon but admit I haven't yet. I have never used escrow yet and I've bought 4 timeshares for myself and friends and rented three times.

Joan

 

[DeniseM]

For me, even more important than a rental agreement, is getting a copy of the reservation in your name from the resort.

If the week is already reserved, the first thing I do is send the renter a copy of my confirmation.

Then they send me a $100 deposit to put the Resv. in their name.

Then I put the reservation in their name and have the resort send them a confirmation in the renter's name (directly.)

As soon as the renter gets the confirmation from the resort, the balance is due in full.

I use Paypal.

As far as safety goes, you will find a lot of stories about getting mistreated by the exchange companies, but hardly any about unsatisfactory rentals. Especially if you rent from a Tugger.

 

[rmasu]

thanks for the great resopnses, what about redweekers?

I like the idea of 100 to get the reservation in our name.
THanks again.

 

[pointsjunkie]

i just did a rental and we safefunds.com it was only $26.which the renter paid. as soon as they got the reservation in their name and verified it with the resort they released the money. it keeps both parties honest and doesn't cost a lot.

 

[JMAESD84]

I'm a Redweek member and advertise there as well as a couple of other sites.

After discussing the rental, rental process and coming to a verbal agreement with the renter. I proceed as follows:

I request contact information and a 20% deposit via PAYPAL(referencing the Redweek listing number).

I prepare and mail a copy of the rental agreement to the renter and contact the resort to get my renters name on the reservation.

I forward a copy of the reservation in the renters name to the renter ASAP.

The renter signs/returns the rental agreement and pays the balance of the rental.

When I've received the signed rental agreement and the final payment has cleared, I follow-up with the renter to let them know that the transaction has been completed and that they should contact the resort with any questions/requests they may have and enjoy their vacation.

While no method is perfect, I haven't had any problems with this method.

 

[Whirl]

I've rented for the last 11 years and a variation on the processes above has worked for me along with a little common sense and intuition. Never once burned by a renter (and that makes at least 80+ rentals) and rented myself successfully.

I request 50% and then once signed contract in place (or more recently email acknowledgement of the terms and conditions of rental )plus deposit ( via check or paypal), I put the unit in renters name and request final payment. If the rental is far out, then I request final payment 60 days prior, or if near term, then due immediately upon copying the renter on the resort guest notification via email or snail mail....whatever the system is.

That's it. I do like JMAESD84's idea of using paypal and referencing the redweek ad # ( especially as redweek has become my prime rental source).

Perhaps the deposit has or hasn't scared off a potential renter or two...No one has ever expressed that concern and some people are happy to just send the whole thing to streamline the transaction, so I really don't know. I have never had a problem renting with this policy, though.

For me, its fun ( yet profitable)....I keep it low key and like to make sure my renters are happy. It is vacation after all. If it becomes too much work, I just won't do it anymore. I try hard to make my renters comfortable. Personalizing the transaction helps, I think.

Good Luck.

 

[Tia]

If the week is float/point then there can be a reservation in the persons name, but if it's a fixed week it doesn't work that way as the owner has the week without requesting it out of a pool.

We have rented ours by asking for 50% deposit with the remaining due 2 months prior to use. After recieving the deposit I create a guest certificate with the renters name listing the details, send a copy to the resort, keep one and one to the renter. Renters may have called the resort to verify our ownership, but I don't know that.

We rented someone elses ts this last winter and due to the shorter timeframe paid the whole rent after several email exhanges. We then recieved all the guest documents from the owner. It was a matter of trust on both ends since you don't know them.