We found a great sounding house to rent through VRBO for our week in Arles in the fall, it has many terrific reviews, but the $500 deposit is non-refundable. Non-refundable? Yep. Is that rare?
Posted by
Rural Georgia
2109 posts
Going through VRBO or similar methods has advantages, but the property owners can set their own rules. It can be a tradeoff.
We rented a lovely apartment in Loches. We paid a deposit when we confirmed. It was refundable up until 6 weeks before the trip.
Think of it from their point of view. Once you have booked, they miss any other customers who want to rent for the same time. There's no guarantee that if you cancel, they will be able to fill the slot. If you are concerned about the unexpected, buy trip insurance.
If you don't agree with their terms, you are free to look for other housing.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
4573 posts
I know it is a chunk of money to commit, but as DougMac said, it is for the owner's backup should there be a cancellation. Travel insurance can cover rental and non refundables. So if you need to cancel the whole trip vs just changing your mind, there is the potential for getting that back. And no, it isn't rare, but depending on region, it could be infrequent. Consider some of the more rural resort type lodgings in the US. They also have large non-refundable deposits. It would be a slim chance that someone would drive by and need a night's lodgings. They also often include a meal plan so they need to salvage ordered but unused food.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
16241 posts
We have rented apartments in London, Venice, and elsewhere that required a non-refundable advance payment. They were good solid apartments with lots or reviews and I was certain we would not change our mind. We did cover the amount with trip insurance in case we were unable to make the trip. Note that trip insurance will only cover cancellation for a "covered reason" so make sure you understand what that includes should youndecide to gomthat route.
Posted by
Portland, Maine
2916 posts
We've rented dozens of houses on a weekly basis in France, mostly through Gites de France. With GDF, if you reserve with them rather than with the owner (which we always do), you pay an amount at the time you book (I think it's 20 or 25%), and then the rest a month or more before the rental period. I believe that all of that is nonrefundable, but I've never had to deal with that.