House Swap

From Winchester to Canada

There’s no doubt that when you have a family money becomes tighter. Add to that economic recession, more financial belt tightening and for many families holidays begin to teeter dangerously close to the edge of unaffordable luxury. And yet who would argue against the benefits of getting away for a break with the family if you can.  If you can’t stomach the thought of camping and staying with other family members is a step too far one option well worth considering for keeping your holiday on budget is house swapping. Would you? Could you? Have you?

Maybe you should.

It can considerably reduce the cost of your holiday and open up many possibilities you have never thought of before. Here’s our Q&A guide to what to expect and how to go about it.

How does it work?
Typically you will sign up with a home exchange organisation online, add details of your home (with photos) and specify countries / areas you would like to visit together with dates you are looking to exchange.

How much will it cost?
Each organisation charges a different membership fee.   Be sure to check what exactly you are getting for your annual membership fee so that you can compare like for like.  Is there a limit to the number of contacts you can make?  How many photos are you allowed to include?  At the time of writing this the fees for some of the more popular home exchange sites are as follows.

This list is by no means definitive but we compiled it through a combination of our own research looking for family home exchange websites, experiences of friends and family and looking at threads on popular travel forums such as the Lonely Planet.

What’s so great about home exchange?

• You can considerably reduce the cost of your holiday.
• You get to stay in a real person’s home which feels more comfortable and less sterile than a hotel environment or self catering accommodation.  There are favourite books on shelves, plants, and family pictures to soften the walls.
• With research you can swap with families having children of a similar age so that your children get a bedroom & toys to suit them.
• You can often negotiate useful things such as the use of bikes & cars.
• It’s great to stay in a residential area and experience your new location like an authentic local.
• If you have pets you can often arrange to look after each other’s pets.
• You get someone to water the garden while you’re away & mow your lawn!
• Reassurance that your home is occupied whilst you’re away

One mum writes on a popular home exchange website;

‘We had always travelled a lot before we had children but then we found it far harder to afford the kind of destinations we wanted – until we discovered house swapping. In the last 3 years we have been to Norway, Sweden, Denmark, The Netherlands, France (twice), Germany and Austria as well as Yorkshire, London and Manchester. And every single swap has been amazing. So when the opportunity of a year in Provence came up we just knew we couldn’t pass it up. Home exchange for us has been a completely life altering experience and we are completely evangelical about it.’

This seems to sum up the appeal of home exchange to me. The possibility and promise of being able to afford to continue to travel and holiday in places you would otherwise not be able to.

I spoke to Caroline Conolly owner of UK based Homelink International and she said;

We’ve just come back from a 2 week swap in Canada with our 4 children (that’s them in the photo above).  It was one of the most relaxing holidays we have ever had.  There was so much in the house to entertain the children that we actually even had a lie in till 10 several mornings!

Now I do like the sound of that

What does my home have to be like to exhange?

It certainly doesn’t have to be palatial or feature fluffy white towels in each bedroom (phew).  The key criteria is it has to be clean, comfortable & tidy. There’s no need to manically clear everything away – just create room to hang up a few clothes.  And it doesn’t seem to be essential that your home is in a tourist hot spot.  If you’re worried about getting your home clean or tidy enough beforehand and cleaning up afterwards there are useful tips such as sleeping in sleeping bags the night before you go (so your beds are freshly made up the day you leave).   And how about leaving the number of a local cleaner for your exchanger?  After all what’s £30 when you’ve had your holiday accommodation for nothing?

Do I need special home insurance?
Give your insurers a ring to check it will be valid while your exchange partners occupy your home. Emphasise that they are non-paying guests. Most insurance companies will agree that your home is at lower risk from burglary when it is occupied. Note: Theft claims are hardly ever met unless there is evidence of forced entry.

Can we swap cars?
If you plan to exchange cars, again check that your exchange partners will be covered to use your car.

Who pays the household bills?
This is one to agree up front. Most people agree to stick to paying their own bills but you might want, for example, to agree not to use the landline telephone and just use personal mobiles.

So how do I actually exchange?
Most of the organisations have clear step by step guides advising you what to do to organise an exchange including member exchange agreement forms which both parties complete and sign before the exchange takes place. Most people will agree that exchanging is very much a trust based agreement

Which organisations should I choose?

• Look for a well established organisation that has been running successfully for many years.
• If you want to visit a specific country or area check that the organisation has a good number of properties in that location before you sign up.
• Phone them up, talk to them and trust your instincts.

Is it really for me?

If you’re still not sure we found this feature on home exchange on BBCs Womans Hour extremely useful (the interview starts at 10.55)

And you could take a look at this feature on the BBC FastTrack site all about home exchange.

Plus we interviewed Liz Walsh of Top Dog Days for our recent What’s in Your Suitcase feature all about her family holiday experiences and she revealed she is an avid house swapper.   See what Liz thought about house swapping here.

Have we wet your whistle yet?

Home Exchange Website Links:
http://www.homelink.org.uk/
http://www.guardianhomeexchange.co.uk/
http://www.intervac.co.uk/
http://www.homeexchange.com/
http://www.exchangezones.com

What are your thoughts and experiences of home exchange? We’d love you to share your comments below.