Holiday House Swap

National Geographic Traveler magazine covered the trend months ago in our "Trading Places" article (April 2006), but only now is Hollywood tackling house swapping, in Sony Pictures' recently released film The Holiday. The movie tells the story of two women—played by Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz—who swap their homes in England and Los Angeles as a way to take a break from their faltering romantic relationships. As luck would have it, they both find new men (and true love) in their temporary homes.

While IT can't promise such happiness (we've had both good and bad experiences in others' homes—none of which included romance), we do think house swapping is an interesting and generally inexpensive way to travel. The characters in the movie coordinate their swap using Home Exchange (see below), but what other companies offer such services? Here we post Ingrid Ahlgren's profiles of seven leading agencies—originally printed in last April's print issue:

Digsville Home Exchange entered the world of online home exchanges in 1999. Today the company has home listings in more than 53 countries. Founder Helen Bergstein and her family have had approximately 15 swaps of their own, most recently a trip to Ottawa to skate the Rideau Canal during Winterlude. The cost to join Digsville is $45 for one year.

HomeLink International, which claims to be the "largest and most respected home exchange organization in the world," has almost 14,000 listings worldwide. HomeLink has been in business for more than 50 years. The organization has representatives in most major countries. A Web-only membership costs $80 per year. A full membership, which includes two full-color directories, is $125.

Intervac has been around since 1953, when members of teachers' unions founded the company. It now has about 10,000 members worldwide. Most members (about 75 percent) are in Europe, and about 25 percent are in North America. Almost 80 percent of Intervac's listings are outside of the United States, and they have staff in over 30 countries. Intervac also has a blog where members can share their swap stories. A one-year membership costs $50 for U.S. listings and $70 for international membership.

Home Exchange was created in 1992 and now has over 8,000 listings in over 85 countries. Featured listings include houses and apartments in Paris, Sydney, and New York City. Four home exchange enthusiasts with a combined 36 years of home-exchange business experience own and operate the company. The cost for one listing for one year is $50, or $100 for three years. There is an additional charge ($25 for one year, $50 for three years) if you want to list more than one property.

International Home Exchange Network, which has been around since 1995, is unique because it allows nonmembers to respond to listings without paying a fee, although there is a $40 annual fee to list your own property. Sample listings include a 3,900 square foot ultra luxury four-bedroom house in Buenos Aires; a villa with a pool in Phuket, Thailand; and a flat in the center of Berlin, Germany.

Seniors Home Exchange describes itself as "The Only Home Exchange Company Exclusively for the Over 50 Age Group." In addition to home listings, the site also features travel-related discussion forums. The cost is $79 for a three-year membership or $100 for a lifetime membership.

Craigslist, an online community of classifieds and forums, was started by Craig Newmark in 1995. The website is known for apartment listings, but it also has a housing-swap section. Examples of some recent swap listings include Maui for Sonoma and Barcelona for Manhattan. Unlike the other sites, Craigslist is free, but you need to do the vetting yourself.

Comments

[Home Exchange Travel]

We love to exchange homes and meet new people. We have a home in Miami FL USA, and would love to travel almost anyplace.