Vacation rental expert offers tips on avoiding scams


Anthony Lipschitz is the chief executive of iStopover, a site that connects homeowners who have spare rooms, apartments or homes to rent with travelers looking for affordable accommodations. With several high-profile cases of vacation rental customers being ripped off — including, ahem, some of my colleagues — I wanted to find out how to avoid becoming a victim.

Apart from the recent stories about vacation-rental scams, how big a problem is this?

It’s a problem, but like everything else in life, you do have choices. If you choose to use pure classified sites then you have no recourse if you do get scammed. You should always use a site that has a telephone number and dedicated support, so you know who you’re dealing with and who to go to if something does go wrong.

What you see isn’t always what you get, right?

Right. Unfortunately there are some very creative photographers out there.

It’s amazing how a wide angle shot can make a 2×3 closet look like a massive bedroom. Look for a site that offers accurate photos and property descriptions that have been verified. The sites you want to connect with are the one’s with a live support team that offer help to both the guests and the hosts. They will make sure the listings are as described and that the property owners are who they say they are.

So how do you know who you’re renting from?

You need to read reviews, check out the host’s profile and message back and forth until you feel entirely comfortable and have a good feeling for who the person really is. We find many successful bookings take place once something in common is found too. Bottom line: I recommend get to know your host.

But how is that possible when you’re on the other side of the country?

Many peer-to-peer site have awesome built in tools like host profiles from these very real, often very interesting people. Use these tools; they are there to help the consumer. We use Facebook authentication and other social networking tools to facilitate one-on-one interaction with your host. It’s all built into the site.

How about timeshare pitches?

Yes, avoid those. They never told you the complimentary continental breakfast was hosted by Tommy “The Closer” Tedesco, a fast-talking timeshare peddler who won’t take no for an answer.

People get themselves into these situations when they book places with gimmicky promotions. If you see something like “free round of golf along with complimentary breakfast,” I highly recommend you find out where the course is, what will be served and if “Tommy” will be joining you.

One of the most frequent complaints is that the rental property stretched the truth when it comes to location. How do you verify a property’s location?

Properties like to use terms like “close to” or “near” or “only minutes from” – but then you find out “close to SeaWorld” is actually 20 miles away. Sites that incorporate a mapping tool like Google Maps should be a prerequisite for anyone traveling as they show you the exact location 99.9 percent of the time. On our site, we also have an interactive neighborhood map of your destination.

And then there’s the whole issue of money transfers.

There are 1,001 ways to hand over your hard-earned cash for a vacation rental. I would look for a service that acts as a third-party, trustworthy clearinghouse. That way, your money is not released to the host until you provide a secure “reservation code” at check-in. It is the ultimate safeguard against bad or misrepresented accommodations.

  • BucksterSF

    I would never even consider staying in someone’s spare room
    while travelling. That sounds too much like the trailer for a
    horror film.

  • http://www.confessedtravelholic.com Michelle

    I like this concept! It’s like in the movie, The Holiday.
    Too bad now you have to avoid these scams that make it harder to
    find a nice place!

  • http://www.ironmountaininn.com Vikki Woods

    Instead of someone’s spare bedroom, how about a
    B&B? You can be as social as you want – you don’t HAVE to
    join everyone for breakfast if you don’t want – innkeepers are
    known for catering to their guests’ wishes. But whatever you do, be
    VERY careful of anything found on Craig’s List. And I welcome calls
    so I can get to know the prospective guest and he/she can get to
    know me. After all, my luxury log home might not suit
    everyone…but it sure suits me!

  • DJP

    @bucksterSF That is part of the fun and adventure in
    it…you are staying with locals. Who knows who you may meet. Its a
    way to travel on a budget. You can say this is our version of
    european hostels.

  • BucksterSF

    I guess I am just too old, but this idea sounds really scary to me. Who’s checking these folks out? How do you know its not hte next Hannibal Lector looking for his next suit piece??

    I am sure most places are legit, but today it’s like hitchhiking. I dunno.

  • Kara Jones

    Perhaps I’m wrong but I think some of the commenters are not understanding what the actual product is. I don’t think this is referring to renting out a room in someone’s house while they’re in it. This is where you actually rent someone’s entire house/condo/apartment and you stay there while the person is NOT using it. Often the owners never actually use the house, they just rent it out for vacationers.

    Although this wouldn’t be my choice for most vacations (I like nice hotels), it’s certainly better than staying in Hannibal Lecter’s spare room, as Buckster was saying, LOL!

    Actually, now that I think of it, I’ve done this sort of thing for summer rentals by the beach. Someone owns a condo apartment by the beach that they don’t use anymore and they rent it out during the summer. So we would rent it for part of the summer and use it on weekends. It’s a much better deal than a hotel in prime season – and no check out time on Sundays so we could spend the day at the beach. Plus we got use of the pool and we had our own kitchen. Not luxury, but we’re talking beach-casual and it was really relaxing.

  • http://www.sanibel-rentals.net Sylvia

    I’m with Buckster on this one!

    And even reluctant to call a spare room in someone’s house a “vacation rental”. We can put 4 wheels on grandma and call her a bus, but that don’t make it so :-)

    A vacation rental, IMO, means some measure of accountability and legitimacy and I really don’t think someone’s basement or attic room counts.

    If vacation rental guests are looking for their own condos, houses, cottages, cabins, b&b’s etc. there are loads of places to find them and loads of places to verify if they are legit and what they claim to be. One of the best ways to do this is through social media, Facebook, and it’s application, http://www.secondporch.com.

  • BucksterSF

    @Kara

    “connects homeowners who have spare rooms to rent with travelers looking for affordable accommodations.”

    This is what I gathered – just renting rooms in an otherwise occupied home.

  • http://dubaiholidaysnow.com/ Dubai hoilday

    Thanks for sharing this interesting information. I don’t like to be count in those people list who just sit in front of there desk in office. when I got time I put my travel shoes and go to a invent some new place.

  • Brooklyn

    I’ve done this in a couple of European countries and much prefer it to a hotel. Look for “vacation rentals” online. Lisbon, in particular, has a couple of websites that provide links to maps so you can see just where the place is. But the agency didn’t do much; it just put me in touch with the owner, who met me at the door. I may have paid in advance – I can’t remember – but there’s no doubt that some trust is involved. Still, I had a lovely little apartment with a living room, kitchen, dining area and terrace looking over a “secret garden” for less than the cost of a cheap hotel. If this is too scary, you can also search for “aparthotel” or “apartment hotel”; these are more like a hotel but you don’t get daily maid service. You do, however, get a kitchen and usually a living area separate from the bedroom. The only problem is that if your luggage doesn’t arrive, as happened to me in Brussels, it can take awhile to get it back because the main doors are locked at night; the reception desk is usually open only during the day and the deliveryman didn’t bother to follow the instructions on the note I left him.

  • Kara Jones

    @ Buckster
    Thanks for pointing that out!

  • Ernest

    Sounds to me like Mr. Lipschitz is saying that his company does everything right and unless you deal with a company like his that it is open season.

    Sorry Chris, but it sounds more like an advertisement than objective information.

  • Ed

    I recently got an excellent price for flying to Hawaii from the east coast in June. I didn’t want to stay in any of the many sky-rise hotels on Oahu (I’ve done that several times) and wanted something different…a beach front house or bungalow. There were several “people” renting out their beachfront houses, but I was taken aback by their seeming lack of accountability. I eventually found a house on the North Shore where the rental is handled by a Real Estate company. This is the one I chose, even though it was more expensive than some of the other options, because this is a legitimate company (and I have the paperwork and letterhead and BBB information to verify) I have an assurance that when I arrive in Hawaii and drive up to my driveway for the week, that I will actually have some place to stay!

  • http://InternetAboardShip naoma

    For many years we have been renting apartments in Paris. At first we rented small ones, corresponded with the owner, had photos, etc. That worked well for a week or two stay. Now that we are staying for months at a time we wanted much larger space. Last years’ was a big disappointment. The owner was an American and the place was “not as pictured.” But, this year we have a grand place, even better than the pictures. My husband happened to be in Paris for a time to study language there and he met the owner, who let him tour the apartment, which as my husband said: “It was fantastic and the pictures. while beautiful, did not do it justice.” Money transfers are not a problem and we look forward to our time there. We are particular: no pets, no smoking, no kids.