How to Prepare for a Home Exchange

Are you nervous about the idea of ​​a stranger sleeping in your bed, rifling through your papers, breaking a precious vase? Or afraid of being disappointed by going to this stranger? The key to success: adequate preparation and mutual trust.

Brigitte Ayotte lived in Laval when she exchanged her house for the first time. “My partner was reluctant to have people move in with us,” she remembers. I did some research on the internet and came across the Home Exchange website. »

The couple then tried the experiment with a family in the Paris suburbs. “A neighbor came to pick us up at the airport and, two days later, we were having an aperitif at his place! He gave us original ideas for visiting outside the tourist circuits. »

She has since moved to Magog, but she adopted the concept for her vacations.

How it works ?

There are several ways to exchange your property: simultaneously, deferred or with points accumulated over time for short or long periods.

There are all kinds of house exchange ads on the internet, but registering on a specialized platform is more reassuring, because the identity and address of the owners are verified by the site organizers. This is the case with Home Exchange. To join, you must register on the platform, complete your and your home’s profile, then submit the appropriate verification documents before seeking an exchange.

Please note that this type of exchange has no impact on your insurance, since it is equivalent to lending your house to relatives.

Make Connections

When your home sparks interest, you receive a message. “It’s important to talk and see each other by videoconference to get to know the person before lending their house,” says Brigitte Ayotte.

For Corinne Enault, who has already exchanged her house in Normandy with Brigitte Ayotte, the adventure began in 2016. The first exchange that she and her husband (sceptical at first) carried out was with a family from Toronto. Then they traveled to several countries. “When you go to people who are exchanging their homes, it’s a bit like being hosted by friends; It’s prepared several months in advance. And then, it’s much warmer and more personal than going to a hotel,” believes Corinne, subscriber to Home Exchange as well as the Australian platform People Like Us Home Exchange.

An important point to consider, according to Brigitte Ayotte: “Houses have their lives, so sometimes there is a little disorder, a threadbare couch. But generally, they are clean. »

A house in order

Corinne remembers her state well during the first exchange: “At the time, our children were still living with us and they just wanted to leave “because mom was going crazy”! I cleaned the house from top to bottom. After a while, I told myself that I wasn’t going to look at the top of the furniture in the houses I stayed in, so I became more calm. But cleanliness is essential and you need to do a good cleaning before lending your house. »

We must also think about making space in the storage so that people can store their personal belongings. You can store your belongings as well as papers and objects that you do not want to leave within everyone’s reach in a space unused by guests.

Brigitte Ayotte always leaves little gifts. “I’m also planning a dinner and what I need for the first lunch,” she says.

She also leaves basic supplies available and people replace them as needed. “It’s really a story of trust,” she says. We behave as we hope the people who will live in our house will behave. »

Visit the Home Exchange website