Vacation House

At last! Your boss approved your leave request. So, what’s next? Spending time with your family and friends or even with you alone in a vacation sounds like a good idea, right?

There is nothing more relaxing than having your own place while you’re on vacation. This is especially true for people who love solitude while getting away from the bustling life in the city. Therefore, it is great to know the best practices in renting a villa for your vacation. Here are some tips that will save you both time and effort in finding the most suitable villa rentals for your taste:

Think real hard

Do you understand that by renting a villa, there is a huge chance that you might actually spend more than renting a hotel room? Will getting a house on a vacation work well with your traveling plans and budget? If you’re not traveling alone, will you be able not just to travel but also share the house with them with no problems? They might eat your food or borrow some of your things. Can you deal with that?

Start searching early

Avoid the stress and the excess charges of finding villa rentals in a peak season or when walking in. Think ahead of time, research for a place, and try visiting it prior to your actual travel. This should be done for at least 6 months before your travel. Put in mind that beautiful villas at a reasonable price are booked pretty fast.

If you’re not sure where to start, the first step to take is to determine the place where you’re traveling to and the approximate date as to when you plan to go. By determining this, a real estate agent can easily find the most suitable places to rent according to your taste and budget. Try contacting huge real estate firms or a well-known agent in the place that you’re visiting to make sure you get the most comfortable villa there is.

Read and Understand the Contract

Whether we admit it or not, we often get too excited that we have booked our desired place or visualize what you planned for the getaway that we often forget to read and understand the contract. The importance of a contract is so huge that you shouldn’t overlook and disregard it. Basically, it explains what you are committing yourself to — basically the extra charges when something gets broken in the house and when extra cleaning is necessary after your vacation.

Ensure that you understand who gets to pay:

  • Internet
  • Phone service
  • Utility bills
  • Housekeeping
  • Cable
  • Gas – for villas with outdoor grilling

The rule of the thumb is to consider the opinion of an attorney that you trust or one that specializes in real estate before signing the contract. This is imperative, especially when there are certain points within the contract that you don’t understand or agree on. Although it’s expensive getting an attorney, it would always be worth it to pay a couple of bucks extra to fully enjoy the getaway than to suffer the consequences later by paying a higher fee for breaching a contract.

Negotiate if You Must

Most often than not, weekly to monthly rental fees and payment arrangements are negotiable. If the person who owns the property or the one manages it won’t move a couple of things that are unnecessary for you or you think adds a couple of bucks to the rent, check if you can get another day for free or they can drop the rental fee to several bucks for a week’s worth. You can use the advantage if you know that the place wasn’t rented for a while now.

Prepare your Budget for Deposit

Rentals that are available in seasons may require a huge amount for the deposit, so make sure you include it in your “Travel Goals” budget. In addition to that, you always have to be aware of how you will get your deposit afterward. You have to take note of the conditions that need to be met and fulfilled to get your deposit in full — like the home must be clean after the rental and all due rentals should be paid. Doing this will surely prevent unnecessary misunderstandings and arguments at the end of your stay at the villa.