Important Considerations When Searching For the Perfect Vacation Rental

If you’re someone that is no stranger to the world of travel, then you’ve probably had your fair share of vacation rentals as well. When planning a vacation, you, of course, are excited about the location and the attractions in that location… that’s the easy part but when you start searching for your vacation rental, you need to be a little more thorough in your search.

Your vacation rental is where you will have your personal belongings, it’s where you will be sleeping, and it’s where you will be spending a decent amount of time at and you want to not only feel safe there but you also want to have that added peace of mind that your belongings will be safe there even in your absence.

Nobody wants to leave their rental to go out sightseeing and come back to a ransacked property, so plan your vacation far enough in advance so that you’ll have time to properly search. To prevent these types of instances from happening, it helps if you search for vacation rentals from a trusted site. Even when you’re on a trusted site, you need to be thorough with your search of each property you look at. Take a look at some of the most important considerations to look at when researching rental properties.

Consideration 1: Always Check the Reviews

Checking the reviews is something that is very important and can be very helpful in making your decision on whether or not to rent from a particular property. These reviews are coming from previous tenants and telling you about their experience at that property and will they generally give you a pretty good idea of what you could possibly expect during your visit there as well.

You also need to keep in mind that there are people who may have had ridiculous expectations for their rental so when their expectations weren’t met, they left unfair reviews. So, pay close attention to the reviews and see if their complaints and praises match what you see on the property listing…use your gut instincts as well; if there are more complaints than compliments, you may want to rethink that property.

Consideration 2: Study the Listing Photos for the Surrounding Area

A lot of times when searching for rental properties for your vacation, people get so caught up in looking at the photos and neglect to really see the photos for what they display. You might see a picture of one of the bedrooms and fall in love with it because of all the beautiful decor but you neglect to see the view of the surrounding neighborhood that the bedroom window displays, which can sometimes be a sketchy neighborhood.

The owners of rental properties are of course going to personalize rental properties to be more appealing to potential renters but don’t rely on that alone because pictures can sometimes be very misleading. To see what you’re really getting, put the rental property address in Google Earth… this will allow you to see the area and neighborhood the property is in and what type of businesses are nearby if any at all.

Consideration 3: Study the Listing Photos For Amenities

This is an important aspect of your search as well. Every amenity the property lists, you should be able to see it in photos. Some of the top amenities that should be listed with photos include:

• Swimming pool
• Garage
• Appliances
• Centralized A/C

Those types of things are very important to have listed with proof in pictures. There have been vacationers who have looked at properties and the pictures are NOT a reflection of what they paid for. USA Today states that you shouldn’t just assume that certain amenities are included just because it’s a home or apartment. Things like linens, shampoo, or laundry detergent may not be included…

So in conjunction with looking at the photos, you also want to communicate with the owners to make sure the property has your rental needs and wants because if it doesn’t you can always check out another property or simply ask the owner if they would be willing to add a certain amenity or touch that wouldn’t be too invasive… You never know if you don’t ask but the main point is to communicate your needs with the owner.

The Takeaway…

Do your research when it comes to planning your vacation. The location and attractions are the easy part but where you reside for the trip plays a major role in how you enjoy your vacation. Thoroughly inspect the photos for the type of neighborhood the property is in, make sure the amenities listed are shown in photos, and check the reviews.

Your vacation is supposed to be a getaway from stress and the rigors of life, not a place that stresses you out even more and a misleading rental property can do just that. Take the time out to properly research your rental property before putting down any money.