What is a home exchange or a home swap? Also
known as house swapping, the home exchange is an optional arrangement that
provide travel accommodation, after two parties consent to exchange their houses
for a fixed period of time without charging anything for the occupancy. The
arrangement is believed to have been started way back in 1953 when the low cost
holiday accommodations were introduced and it was also one of the flag bearers
for the collaborative consumption movement.
The catch
phrase used for the arrangement was “You stay in my house while I stay in
yours”, and the concept exploded through the internet and was highly
popularized in the 90s. It provided great communication which engineered large
pool of houses around the country from where an individual can pick a home for
spending holidays in a desired destination. The housing swap is now facilitated by the services of websites that
make the swap by possible through their house search tools. A member can simply
pay a fee, signup and upload his profile and using the search tools available
on the website can find a match.
Estimates of
house swap indicate that the exchange is rapidly growing each year at the rate
of 15 to 20 percent. The peak season for house swapping is determined as summer
because traditionally people move from one destination to another to spend
their holidays and each time they tray out a different place. This hugely helps
them avoid the cost for hotel accommodation and allow them to enjoy vacations
that are usually beyond the budget. By swapping homes vacation now can save
up to $5,000 per swap that they otherwise would have spent on hotel rooms.
The idea may
not be comfortable for everyone but most people opt for it because it is a
great money saver. The idea is not just considered for saving money but also to
meet different people from different regions, and indulge in the local culture.
Finding homes through swap has been made easy by the internet a hundreds of
websites are now dedicated for home exchange. Earlier the execution of finding
the houses and the act of swapping was done through printed catalogues but
internet has made it possible for any home exchanger to find matching homes and
their information to contact the owners to arrange the swap. Knowing the
exchange home details in advance and the various feedbacks available from the
past exchanger, a prospect will know how the home will fit the purpose.
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