Avoid Vacation Home Fraud

Renters Beware...

Vacation or rental home fraud is on the rise. The formula is ripe for this situation as the economy keeps families and individuals from traveling far from home, and the internet boasts easy access to rental opportunities near and far.

If you are like us, we work very hard for our money--including long hours and not a lot of pay. We must plan for some time before taking a vacation...even a short one. A vacation is about getting away. Putting aside the pressures and demands of every day life. The last thing you want to do on vacation is clean someone else's home. Not to mention the possible dangers of staying in a run down, filthy home in which the owner has made a lot of enemies.

Our mini break in the spring of 2011 was just such an adventure. We searched the internet for weeks before deciding on a beautiful vacation home in Lincoln City. We made the arrangements and headed to the coast over spring break. However, upon arrival we found garbage strewn all over the driveway. The front door appeared to have been jimmied at some previous time. And the front lock did not work properly.

Then there was the condition of the home: Filth. Grime. Broken glass. Broken furniture. Broken appliances. We feared for the safety of our children.

After being sternly reminded that there were absolutely NO REFUNDS. We headed to the store and bought cleaning supplies, as well as basic necessities such as towels and inside shoes so no one had to go barefoot. We spent the next four hours cleaning the home. And periodically over the next few days considerable more time cleaning areas that we felt we needed to use.

This is not our first experience with a vacation home. We've had arrangements that included self cleaning before. But always, these were reputable rentals with a cleaning crew and a policy that insured at least some monetary reimbursement for damage. This is not the case with Chablis Sands.

What can you do to keep this from happening to you? Be wary if any of the following happen:

• Price negotiation, especially if huge discounts are promised -- 75% off!
• If the person you communicate with is evasive, hard to reach, or does not provide complete information
• Full payment up front, with NO refunds for any reason
• Few or no reviews exist for the property
• No website is available
• No clear contact information is provided
• Little or no information is provided about the individual or the rental group
• Information is not standardized: communique from property owner does not match website
• Early and or late check-in times that allow for no cleaning crew
• A requirement that you bring cleaning supplies
• No credit cards accepted--credit cards often have safeguards against fraud

Do you want your children playing in a home where the carpets are saturated with broken glass? Do you want to sleep on beds that have not been cleaned, let alone sanitized, ever? Do you want to clean up someone else's feces and urine?

Think twice before you rent. Think twice before you rent Chablis Sands--then don't!