Home Exchange: A How-To Guide for Travelers

For many travelers, a home exchange—also known as a house swap—is an economical, comfortable, and fascinating way to vacation far from home. You arrange to occupy someone’s home at your destination while he or she occupies yours. The possibilities for home exchanges are just about endless.

There are several types of home exchanges. In a traditional exchange, you and your exchange partner travel at the same time and stay in each other’s primary residences. However, another type of exchange has emerged for people who own more than one home. In “non-simultaneous exchanges,” home-swapping partners don’t need to worry about coordinating dates and traveling at the same time. Instead, exchange partners come to stay in a vacation home or secondary residence while the owner continues to live in his or her own primary home. Then the owner can travel to another home exchange property whenever it’s convenient. (IVHE.com is a good resource for travelers looking for non-simultaneous exchanges.) A third type of exchange, known as a hospitality exchange, involves you and your trading partner taking turns staying as guests in each other’s primary homes.

Traditionally, the most popular house swapping services for Americans are two widespread networks, Intervac and HomeLink USA, which have been in business since the 1950s. However, a number of other home exchange companies have also become popular, including the largest home exchange network, HomeExchange.com (as featured in The Holiday) and LoveHomeSwap.com. HomeExchange offers two types of exchanges: One is the classic exchange while the other is called the GuestPoints exchange, where the guests will stay at the host’s home, using a number of his/her GuestPoints. The host will be able to use these GuestPoints to go to stay at another member’s home. Each member receives GuestPoints to welcome them upon registration.

If you’re set on a specific destination, you’ll often find better availability and more options with a smaller agency that’s located where you’d like to stay than with a global network. For example, try Home Base Holidays for exchanges to the U.K. or Aussie House Swap for exchanges to Australia.

Home exchanging isn’t right for everyone. Some folks love to swap and do it several times a year because it allows them to experience new places without paying for hotels, restaurants, or, in many cases, transportation (the use of the family car is included in many home exchanges). Home exchanges are also a great way to get integrated into the life of a local community since the exchange partner will often leave insider information about the area and introduce the newcomers to neighbors or friends.

However, some travelers are turned off by having to cook and clean on their vacation, while others feel uneasy about having strangers living in their own homes. (In the latter case, a vacation rental might be a better choice.) And keep in mind that home exchanges may be easy or difficult to arrange based on where your own home is located. Someone with a popular apartment near the Arc de Triomphe isn’t likely to want to swap for a home on the outskirts of Columbia, Missouri, unless by odd chance the Parisian is teaching at the University of Missouri for the summer. On the other hand, if you live in a popular destination like Chicago or New York City, you’ll have a much wider variety of offers. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try a home exchange if you live in an out-of-the-way area, but be prepared to work a little harder to find a successful exchange.

Obviously, home exchanging isn’t for the itinerant this-is-Tuesday-so-it-must-be-Belgium traveler, but rather for so-called slow travelers who will stay put for a while. (Most exchanges are for one to four weeks.) Home exchanges make an ideal base for one-day or weekend excursions. Perhaps best of all, house swapping immediately makes you part of a new community. Chances are, you and your swap partner will leave each other introductions to friends and neighbors, which not only provides security but also puts you quickly at home in unfamiliar surroundings and can help you get the most out of an intercultural experience.

Most home exchange organizations charge a monthly or yearly membership fee. Many allow you to search their databases or view sample listings for free before joining. There are also a number of organizations that do not charge a membership fee, but you may find that you’ll get more serious offers as part of a network in which members have paid money for their listing. Home exchanging makes for a great way to save on accommodations for longer trips as well, as at the most you only pay a membership fee.

Some organizations will provide you with detailed guidance on how to arrange a swap or even arrange one for you.

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Once you have chosen a company to work with, the best strategy is to plan as far in advance as possible and to be flexible about dates. In your listing and in your offer letter that’s emailed to a potential exchange partner, describe your home and family, your neighborhood, transportation, community facilities, and attractions—anything you can think of to make a swap desirable. You can also usually upload photos of your home to include with your listing. If you’re turned down by a prospective exchange partner, ask to be kept in mind next year.

The more exchange partners you reach out to, the better your chances of avoiding disappointment. But be realistic in your expectations, based on a factual analysis of what you have to offer. Be precise about what you are offering and what you expect: use of the family car, household help, availability of baby sitters, approval to bring a dog, swimming pool privileges, shopping within a short walk, whatever.

Chances are good that your home will be safe, particularly if you’re doing a direct swap because you will be expected to care properly for the home of your trading partner while he or she is staying in yours. Frequent correspondence and/or phone chats between partners before the swap occurs will enhance friendship and trust. If possible, meet in one home or the other to begin the exchange. And be sure that both of you are adequately insured (this includes car insurance if your vehicle will be involved in the swap).

Problems with home exchanges are actually quite rare. The most common issues arise from varying standards of cleanliness. If you have more serious problems with your exchange, you should report them to your home exchange organization, but keep in mind that most of these organizations do not accept responsibility for damages associated with any exchange. At most, your trading partner’s membership may be revoked.

To prevent problems or misunderstandings, you may wish to ask for references before agreeing to a house swap. It’s also a good idea to sign an informal written agreement that outlines the terms of your exchange. Will your exchange partner be allowed to use your computer or your phone? Have you agreed to water their plants? Will the family car be part of the deal? Many home exchange organizations have sample agreements that you can print out and use each time you swap houses. Some platforms also have a verification service and satisfaction guarantee; one of the benefits of the HomeExchange platform is that it has multilingual assistance available 24/7 in case of emergencies.

Leave your trading partner with important contact numbers, insurance information, instructions on how to use your appliances, clean linens, plenty of toilet paper and other household items, and a small amount of fresh food and drink to tide your guests over until they can get to the nearest grocery store. Make sure the house is clean and that you’ve left plenty of drawer and closet space so your guests can unpack and settle in. If you have valuable items that you don’t wish to be accessible to your trading partner, you may wish to store them away in a safe or close off a room of your house while you’re gone.

At the other end of the exchange, be sure to leave your trading partner’s home exactly as you found it—clean out the refrigerator, vacuum the floors, straighten out the main living spaces, and be sure there are fresh linens on the beds. If you enjoyed your stay, consider leaving your trading partner a bottle of wine, a fruit basket, or another small gift as a token of your appreciation.

More from SmarterTravel:

• The Ultimate Packing List
• Are Vacation Rentals Right for You?
• The World’s 10 Best Cities to Live in, Ranked

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2017. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

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