High quality photos of your home are the single most important way to attract a top home swap. I searched websites of several home swap clubs to uncover some great examples of Do and Don’t home photography. As you peruse the photos below, please note that the homes themselves are fine, but there are usually a few photography problems, opportunities:

1. Vantage point
2. Lighting
3. CLUTTER

Yes, I capitalized number three, because so many people make the mistake of too much clutter and it’s such an easy fix. I hope these photo examples help you attract the right home swap for your next vacation! Read more »

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On this Cinco de Mayo*, 5^th of May, I’m borrowing a Spanish phrase I’ve always loved, “Si, se puede!” or “Yes, you can!” It’s my rallying cry to tell you, “Yes, you can home swap!”

Cancun, Mexico – Would you swap your home to stay in a 5-star resort… for free? This 2-bedroom/2-bath is offered via HomeExchange.com Si se puede!

Sometimes in life I think we need someone to tell us that we can achieve our goal: we can run that race, apply for that job, or even ask someone on a date. Well, I’m here to tell you that you can travel the world and stay for free! My family and I have enjoyed 15 home swaps in 13 years; we’ve traded our home in San Diego, California with families who live in places as diverse as Hong Kong and Cape Cod. If world travel is a dream of yours, consider house exchange.

The house exchange vacation concept is simple: you stay in my house and I stay in yours. It all began in 1953 when David Ostroff developed the idea of swapping homes with fellow teachers and family. He typed the first list of exchangers on his manual typewriter and mailed it out to participants. Originally the list only included people who lived in the U.S. After all, it was the 50s. Who would have ever thought that people would home swap with someone in another country? Through the decades that’s just what happened and Ostroff joined forces with people around the world who shared the same vision of traveling the world and staying for free. Today it’s estimated that there are 70 home swap clubs throughout the world. The average membership price is $100 per year. The largest club is HomeExchange.com and they have 45,000 members in 154 countries!

Love Home Swap, an exchange club headquartered in London, reports that the average savings per house exchange vacation is $3,487. Numbers like that get my attention! Last fall, I conducted my own survey and reached a similar conclusion. If you visit New York City and stay in a hotel for nine nights your vacation fees will look like this: hotel $2,736 + hotel tips $75 + eating out $936  = $3,747. You can read my full article here: Powerful Proof That You’ll Save Big Money On Your Next Vacation When You Home Swap.

Valencia, Spain – This 3-bedroom/2-bath home swap, available from Love Home Swap, comes equipped with an indoor pool!

However, with home swap, it’s not only about the money. It’s about living like a local— in a neighborhood, not a commercial area. Once you try a house exchange you’ll wonder why it took you so long!

So go ahead, invest some time this week. Research house swap clubs and join one. HomeExchange.com offers a Reverse Search feature and in 60 seconds you can find out who wants to do a house exchange in your community. You’ll be thrilled by the fabulous choices. HomeLink.org, celebrates their 60 year anniversary this year. The HomeLink website makes it easy to tell which of their members respond to home swap requests. Yep, it’s labeled the Response Rate.

As you begin thinking about your next vacation and wondering if you can home swap, let me be the first to tell you, “Si se puede!”

*Cinco de Mayo commemorates the Mexican army’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War (1861-1867).

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Vacation season is just around the corner. If you’ve scheduled a home exchange you must be getting really excited! Over the next few weeks I will post a series of three articles about what you can do to prepare for and welcome your home exchange partners. This week’s focus is the Welcome Letter. We all appreciate a kind greeting, think of your welcome letter just like that, but also it could also include a few details about your home. Below you will find a welcome letter template to help you write your own. Next week, I will provide you with a sample of my own Helpful House Tips, and the final Sunday in April I will post a Home Preparation Checklist. By the end of the month you will be ready to rock your home exchange vacation!

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Steamboat Springs, Colorado – This cute 3-bedroom/3-bath condo is available from HomeLink.

When visiting Colorado in March, spring skiing must be on the agenda. My husband, Stan and I made a last minute decision to visit our son in Denver for Easter. Our daughter decided to change her plans and meet us in Denver as well, so suddenly our vacation would include the entire family. I was thrilled. But then reality sunk in. A ski vacation for four would be expensive; finding a house swap was imperative. But could it be done on such short notice?

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