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Do you want to save the holiday accommodation money?Try to exchange your house for another

By hollisterclothingoutlet 25/02/2023 405 Views
CARMEN BARREIRO

Pilar Manrique will stay in a house in Madrid during the last week of August without paying a single euro.As?Very easy.She has exchanged her house in Córdoba for that of another family that lives in the capital to enjoy a few days of leisure with her husband and two children, aged 11 and 13.This is an agreement in which both parties benefit from bartering and in which no economic transaction occurs."One house for the other," summarizes the HomeExchange platform in our country, the most important housing exchange agency in the world, with a real estate park composed of more than 450.000 houses in 159 countries.Contrary to what has happened in the hotel sector, very punished by the pandemic, the demand for exchange housing has experienced in recent months a growth well above the most optimistic forecasts, even exceeding the data of the early era.«Only in June were more than double reservations (144%) than in the same period of 2019.We are talking about more than 55.000 overnight stays during the summer, ”says Manrique.

The "security" and "privacy" offered by this type of accommodation in front of hotel complexes or tourist use homes - with a greater tenant rotation - are two of the reasons that the majority of the new users of the platforms of the platforms argueExchange when making their reservation and "largely justify this spectacular increase in demand for this summer," adds Anna Grossi, responsible for the Spanish subsidiary of Intervac, another of the houses bartering agencies of bartering of houses.

But how does this system work?Should we meet any type of requirement?Does the house have to have a special characteristic?Does the exchange have to be made on the same dates?Where is the trick to leave for free?These are some of the most frequent questions that people who do not know this accommodation system are asked, whose objective is none other than "spending holidays without spending money on accommodation".

The first requirement that is required is evident: "dispose of property".«The house does not have to have any special characteristic.In fact, there are houses of all kinds to exchange.From attached with garden and pool to huge floors in the center of the city, but also studies or a single -room apartments, ”explains Pilar Manrique.

The next step is to sign up on a platform dedicated to house exchange, such as Homexchange, Intervac or Homeelink, among others."Most work through an annual subscription system, whose price ranges 70 and 130 euros," they explain in the user and consumers organization (OCU).And that is going to be the only money to pay both the hosts and the guests to exchange their houses.«That is, the expense of the accommodation is zero.In our case, the only additional cost that is allowed is that of the cleaning service, as long as it is remembered between both parties.And that is 30 or 40 euros at most, ”insists the head of Homeexchange.

¿Quieres ahorrarte el dinero del alojamiento en vacaciones? Prueba a intercambiar tu casa por otra

To "avoid problems", those responsible for the platforms verify all the data provided by users before uploading their profile to the web;From the identity of the owners to the existence of the property.In most companies dedicated to housing exchange, the fee is not paid until the reserve is confirmed.«That is, the family can make a profile, perform the searches that interest it and get in touch with other owners without any cost.The subscription is paid at the time the exchange is officially recorded and renews every year, ”says Manrique.

Una moda iniciada por dos profesores

Unlike other years, "this summer the favorite destinations of the Spaniards are within the national territory," adds the head of Intervac.By communities, Catalonia is headed, followed by Andalusia, Valencia and the Basque Country, while in the category of Barcelona cities it is again the favorite of the users, ahead of Granada and Malaga."You have to keep in mind that Spain is the second country in the world most demanded to exchange houses - France surpasses him -, so it is quite easy to close agreements with families that reside in foreign countries," the experts point out.

In any case, let's imagine that we are a family that resides a country house in Salamanca and we want to spend the second half of August in a beach area.Well, the idea would be to enter the platform and search until you find the house that fits our needs.How good, we have found one that fits what we want in Santa Pola.We launch the offer to its owners.After talking with them on several occasions, we close the holidays.We are going to do what is known as reciprocal exchange, the most common: house by house on the same dates.That is, our family will spend the holidays in the coast housing and the owners of the house of Santa Pola will live in ours from August 15 to 30.Now, there are platforms that allow exchanges on different dates as long as the house is empty.«Let's put that Santa Pola family is not interested.However, I would be happy to spend there the Holy Week.There is no problem, they agree between both parties and an exchange is closed on different dates, ”explains Pilar Manrique, who insists on the importance of maintaining a fluid communication between host and guest to" leave all the details tied well "of the bartering of the bartering of the barteringand thus avoid misunderstandings.

In addition to basic logistics, it is also important."It is one of the advantages of this system, that guests take care of your home as if it were yours".

"It is not necessary that you take absolutely nothing you have at home, but it is usual to leave some space in the cabinets or some free drawer," says Manrique.The kitchen, for example, gives rise to leave instructions for the operation of some appliance in particular or explain where certain food is saved, while in the bedrooms and bathrooms «it is interesting to leave information about where the bedding or thetowels in case they need them ».

Cleaning is usually the cause of misunderstandings between the parties, so it is essential to agree in writing how the house is wanted.«You should not be afraid to communicate everything you do not want to be done at home.Transparency is key to the successes of an exchange ».

At the end, «Each part values its experience, which serves to strengthen the confidence of other travelers.Some platforms offer accommodation insurance to cover unforeseen events such as cancellation, non -compliance with the partner, unavailability of property, civil liability or damage to furniture, ”they explain in the OCU.

«Este verano vendrá una familia de Roma y nosotros iremos allí en Semana Santa»

Zuriñe Sarabia, her husband and 12 -year -old son have been a total of 22 housing exchanges behind her, all with the HomeExchange platform.«We start by chance.My sister discovered it and we got head.We found a great idea.In fact, it is one of the best decisions we have made.You know the places you travel in a totally different way because you are advised at all times by local people who make you recommendations that do not come out in the guides.Now, you have to be very convinced of what you do because in the end you leave your home to some people who do not know and not everyone serves for that or feel comfortable with the situation, ”says this psychologist from the Biscay town of ErandioRECONVESTED IN NATURAL COSMETIC ARTISAN.

This summer, Zuriñe will receive a Roman family at home, but they will not travel to the Italian capital until next Holy Week.This is what is known as non -reciprocal exchange.That is, the hosts make the trip on different dates, always previously agreed by both families.«With the whole issue of pandemic, we have preferred to stay here and leave the trip abroad for later.The time they live in our house, we will go to La Rioja, ”explains the vizcaína host, with very good reviews on the platform for their hospitality.«We always leave you the pantry full and you can use everything in the house.Our son has grown up leaving his toys, consoles...To other children and he has also been able to enjoy those found in other houses ».

Zuriñe's family has traveled throughout Europe with this house exchange system: Copenhagen, Budapest, Croatia, Stockholm...In the Swedish capital, for example, we were two weeks with zero expense in accommodation.Next year, in addition to visiting Rome in Holy Week, we want to look for a destination to speak English to spend a month and a half and perfect the language, ”he explains.

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