Wondering if a home exchange would work for you? Here is everything you need to know about setting up for a house swap.
We did our first home exchange a few years ago. We were going on a long holiday and wanted someone to look after our cats. Our friends had been doing home exchanges for years, and they recommended it for our pet-sitter issues.
The first one was a bit nerve-wracking… but wonderful. The person who stayed in our house was appreciative and loved our cats. And we got to stay in a three-bedroom house, so our kids didn’t have to share a bed or a room (ideal because they’re 5 years apart and don’t go to bed at the same time).
We’ve done several exchanges since that initial one. We introduced it to my mother… and she is the ideal person for a home exchange. She lives near the center of a major international city and has a fairly flexible schedule.
Flexibility is definitely a bonus. We’ve been asked to do all sorts of interesting house swaps (Thailand, Banff, Mexico), but the timing doesn’t work for us because we have kids in school.
How does a home swap work?
–> A home swap is when you swap houses with someone else who has about the same number of beds as you. They stay at your house, and you stay at theirs.
We have organized house swaps through friends, however, it is even easier to do it through an online website. There are a bunch of house exchange networks. We chose one that has the following features:
- Insurance is part of the yearly fee.
- Has point-based swaps, so you don’t always have to exchange back-and-forth.
- Offers good website support.
- Includes a blind rating system.
- Has an availability calendar and lets you know how often someone responds to emails.
Karma & The Importance Of Trust
Probably the biggest concern for people is having strangers in your house. Do you have to hide everything of value? Can they eat your food?
I’ll go over everything you need to do to get ready for a home exchange in the section below. However, first I’m going to share my philosophy to explain why home swaps are wonderful.
It all comes down to KARMA.
Karma is real… It exists because we all tend to view other people as reflecting our values and beliefs.
Someone who lies and is manipulative thinks that everyone is manipulative. They aren’t trustworthy and they don’t trust other people.
Someone selfish assumes that everyone is just as selfish. They don’t realize that they’re missing out on seeing the wonderful kindness that exists in other people.
In my experience, the people who are willing to open up their homes to strangers are people who are kind, trustworthy, and genuinely want their visitors to have a good time.
The best & Worst Things About Home Exchanges
The best reasons to have a home exchange are probably obvious:
- Affordable: There might be a cleaning fee… but it’s a lot less expensive than a hotel!
- Comfortable: When you’re staying in someone’s home there are amenities that you don’t get in a hotel.
- The use of bikes or boats
- Toys for kids (we usually exchange with other families)
- Decent coffee maker, fridge, stove, microwave
- Pets (if that’s your sort of thing)
- House sitter: You get to have someone care for your house while you’re away. (Pets and plants included!)
- Simple: Many people do repeat house swaps. It’s nice to travel back to a familiar place and know your way around their house and neighborhood.
The BEST thing about a home exchange is a connection to another family, even if you don’t get to meet them.
The worst things are definitely subjective. And to be honest, we haven’t had any real problems with our housing swaps. But these are probably the worst things we’ve had to think about:
- Lack of trust: We stayed in one home where they locked everything away in their basement and they had nest cameras all over the place. It didn’t feel good to stay somewhere like that. (It was a non-reciprocal exchange and we had someone lovely stay at our house that weekend).
- Accidents and illness: We almost had to cancel an exchange because of a sick kid, but luckily they were better by the time we had to travel. The online platform has a way of dealing with last-minute changes. But it was definitely stressful.
- Dogs: Not everyone is willing to have a dog come into their home. And not everyone is willing to care for a dog. You’ll probably need to get someone else to take your dog.
How to get your home ready for the first exchange
1. Clean and tidy
The goal with a house swap is to have the people who are staying at your house feel comfortable. It doesn’t have to look like a vacation rental… but it needs to be clean and tidy.
- Many people charge a cleaning fee and hire a cleaner. This way you know everything is clean and dusted.
- Bathrooms and kitchens should be scrubbed.
- Clear away clutter.
- All linens need to be fresh and clean. We bought a new set of bathroom towels, tea towels and dishcloths, and sheets for our exchanges.
2. What to put away and what to keep out
There are two types of things to put away for your guests:
–> Put away all clutter so your guests have space to put their things. So clean off the bathroom counters, your bedside table, the kitchen table. Don’t leave any clothes lying around.
–> If you are concerned about personal items, like electronics, jewelry, or documents, then put those away. I think pretty much everyone has some personal items that they also put away. I put away my favorite chef’s knife because it’s carbon and needs to be cleaned right after use. 🙂
(The no-trust house put away their dishes and cleared out a whole bookcase of stuff. It was weird).
What can you leave out?
- It’s fine to leave soap and shampoo in the bathroom.
- Food in the fridge (just let your guests know whether they can help themselves or not).
- All knickknacks, books, games, toys, shopping lists on your fridge, etc. This is your home… no one expects it to be perfect.
3. House guide
The house guide is where you share all the important information about your home. I recommend having an electronic version and a printed version.
The electronic version is handy because it allows people to become familiar with your home and neighborhood ahead of time.
Here are some things we have in our house guide:
- Lovely photos of our pets along with their names and care instructions.
- How to use our appliances.
- Things to do and places to eat in our neighborhood.
- Emergency contact numbers (it’s good to have a neighbor who can help if needed).
If this post becomes wildly popular, I’ll write a follow-up post with guidelines about how to write a house guide. But I’m sure there’s something already available online.
We were lucky enough to get our friend’s house guide as a starting point. And my mother used our house guide to make hers.
4. Gifts and comforts
This is the BEST part of home swaps! Gifts and comforts are how you connect with your guests.
- It’s standard to leave a coffee/tea station set up in the kitchen, with a fresh bag of coffee.
- Some people have guest books. (We’re not that kind of people… but we always fill them out!)
- We always put out a fresh bar of fancy soap in our bathroom. It doesn’t always get used, but it’s a nice touch.
- If you have guests coming from overseas, it’s nice to leave them a little welcome basket with food. Jet lag can be hard.
- People typically leave a thank you card and gift at the end of their stay. This is usually in the $10 to $20 range.
Phew! I think I covered everything, but if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!
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