If you decided to take a trip by air, or wanted to book a package holiday, how long would you expect the airline or resort to ‘hold’ a space for you? Probably no time at all –unless you had put down a deposit. The reason for this is that once a hold is placed on a seat, or a room, then no-one else can book that space. The airline or hotel is at risk of losing any other clients who might be looking for availability at that same time.
The same is true of a cottage. If you contact an owner or agency to ‘book’ a vacation rental, they may place that property on hold for you while you complete a rental agreement and send in a deposit. This will make that property unavailable to other interested clients so if you take your time over completing the process and subsequently change your mind, that property has been out of circulation for that period and the owner may lose out on other potential bookings.
It is not surprising that most agencies will not allow a hold without a deposit of some sort, and expect all, or a portion of it, to be non-refundable. This covers their costs of generating a rental agreement, and the potential for lost income to the owner if the renter changes his or her mind.
Read cancellation policies very carefully. You run the risk of losing your deposit if you cancel and the owner or agency is unable to re-rent the period that has been booked. Even if they do, expect to pay a cancellation penalty in the region of $150.
Renting a privately owned property for a short term is very different from booking a hotel room, or an apartment owned by a resort, and for those who have never taken this type of vacation before, it can be a bit unnerving to be asked to sign a legal contract. However, you should be very wary if an owner does not ask you to complete a rental agreement. Booking policies and Terms and Conditions of Rental are there to ensure fairness for everyone, and are not generally designed to be restrictive. They protect all the parties involved in a rental agreement and make sure that everyone is aware of their responsibilities.
Vacation rental is a wonderful way to spend time with family and friends in a home-style environment in a fabulous location. It’s worth the extra paperwork to enjoy it to the full.
