recent opinions on vrbo?

We have been renting apartments in Europe for a number of years and have always had good results. We have used agencies other than VRBO - just because I was able to find apartments I liked better on other sites. Paris and Rome have many, many agencies that you can check if you are unsure about VRBO. In my experience with other agencies, the reviews have been consistent with what I found the apartment to be.
I've never purchased insurance and never had an experience that would have warranted using it.
Once you take the plunge into apartment rentals, you likely won't go back to hotels....

Thanks for the feedback... it all makes sense. Maybe I'll post another question on some specific vrbo owners/places, to see if there's another source of feedback from this site, vs. the vrbo site. By the way, one of the owners requested payment by PayPal, which I've never used. I'm sure I can find out elsewhere, but, how exactly does PayPal work, and, are there things I should know, when making an international transaction for a rental like this?

Hi JW, I rented a one bedroom apartment in Paris that I found on VRBO. It was great. The owner actually lives in Sausalito. If you would like more information you can PM me.

I've rented 4 apartments - 3 in Paris, 1 in Cortona through VRBO and each one was great. owners were in USA and abroad. My last rental experience was 4 weeks ago. I've written reviews of the apartments too, last one I gave was 5 stars -- not because it was like a 5-star hotel, but because it was as advertised, the owner was responsive and easy to deal with, the place was comfortable and I had a good time. This is true for each apartment I've rented. You have to do the research, contact different owners, check out their terms and deal with those you feel comfortable with, and of course you have to treat the apartment as well as your own home. I only got insurance one time. Never used it.
I think you will have a good experience if you use it. Having an apartment is fun!

Hi JW, You might find it useful to go to Slowtrav.com and look at the reviews of apartments readers have rented. It was very helpful to me. Also, Parisnotes.com has a long list of recommended agencies. We're renting an apartment in Paris in June from ParisAttitude.com and so far have been happy with them. Good luck!

We've rented three times through vrbo, twice in Venice, once in Florence. We are planning a trip to Naples and Barcelona and have just booked two more apartments through them. Haven't had a problem. The insurance is definitely a plus.

I just recently used vrbo for a condo in Gulf Shores, Alabama, and had a wonderful experience. I also have three rentals set up for this August in Berlin, Normandy, and Madrid. I feel very comfortable with the owners I'm dealing with, but obviously can't comment on the reliability of the reviews, as I haven't gone yet. Two of the rentals required small deposits thru Paypal. If you don't have a Paypal acct, just have them send you an invoice and follow the directions from there. It cost me nothing to pay thru Paypal (the owner absorbs the fees) and the exchange rate was exactly the one for that day. I thought it was great and can't wait for my trip.

Thanks for all the sharing, everyone. We bit the bullet and have reserved two vrbo's- one in Paris, and another in Rome. Our situation was perhaps a little more 'difficult', in that we were not renting for more than a few days (4 in Paris, 3 in Rome), when I'm sure owners would prefer at least a week. In both cases, I think we slotted nicely in between other renters-- more luck, than anything else. And, yes, both owners asked for PayPal. Worked very smoothly for Paris, but for Rome, Paypal only wanted euro's, and Paypal would not accept Visa or American Express; so I had to put in bank account information. Anyone else have this kind of problem?

Oh, and one more comment about PayPal... the owner in Rome added a 5% surcharge to the deposit-- basically wanting us to cover the Paypal charge, and I noted there was another couple percent charge by Paypal-- probably a foreign transaction fee (100 euro's + 5% = 105 euro's, ended up being $143 usd-- I had calculated ~$140 based on the latest exchange rate of $1.33 per euro). You really have to watch out for all the nickel and dime-ing...

Another thumbs up vote for VRBO! I have used them several times in Paris, Provence, and the Netherlands. Communication is the key. Usually there are several that I enquire with at the same time and the place that responds the fastest (often within the hour) usually gets my booking! I have dealt with owners on site (usually upstairs or next door) and owners that are in the US. I prefer it to a hotel because it just feels more like you're living there rather than visiting. Some places do have a week minimum but many do not. Some places charge an outrageous "cleaning fee" - I avoid those places. I've never had any problems. Maybe I'm just lucky but I always try to use VRBO when I travel.

Also places that prefer a week will often go for less if the time is pretty close - better to rent for 3 or 4 days than not at all.

As an owner I advertise on VRBO and I must admit it is the only website that brings me so many bookings, maybe because the minimum stay is 2 nights but this website is a mystery to me! Other websites look much nicer with pictures in the listings but it works anyway. Like BG said about rating, our guests are free to put as many or as little stars as they want. We are always very happy to get 5 stars because we work hard to get them! If you don't trust the system you can always check the owner's website and check if there is a guest book. Personally I put my guests picture with their comment. If the property has a name you can also check on tripadvisor. Bon voyage! Coco

I just booked an apartment in Paris through vrbo and paid through PayPal. The owner also added the fee he pays to PP, to the rental price. The other option was bank draft.
For me I have a Paypal account that I use for my ebay account. I have never had a problem.
I also like the fact that the apartment is also listed on another rental site.

Happy Travels!