The Home Exchanger

New Home Exchange Listing: Australian Vacation House

Sticking with the Southern Hemisphere theme...

The Intervac members who own this home, with a swimming pool and four bedrooms, live near the Australian city of Perth.  According to Frommer's, "Perth likes to boast that it gets more sunshine than any other city in Australia, some 300 days a year. That fact gives the city its youthful, energetic, outdoorsy vibrancy." The home is located by many recreational facilites and would be perfect for a family to stay in.

The members are looking to go to San Diego between May 28 - June 17 this summer.  They are experienced exchangers - they have done 5 exchanges previously.

To preview all of our Australian listings before joining, click here.

New Zealand Looking for Orlando Home Swap

The Intervac members who own this large, four bedroom home in New Zealand are looking to go to Orlando in 2007, proving it's never too early to plan a home exchange! The members are a family of 5, presumably looking for some family fun. The home is located on the North Island near Tauranga, a beachfront community with lots of sun and outdoorsy activities.

The home is on a golf course, and is within driving distance to Auckland, New Zealand's most cosmopolitan city. The members have done 2 home exchanges previously. 

Join Intervac by March 15th to be Included in May Catalogue

If you want to be included in Intervac's May catalogue, which goes out to thousands of members worldwide, you must join before March 15th. Intervac, the first home exchange company ever founded in 1953, began as a catalogue business, but migrated to the web in 1999.

But we still publish catalogues - many of our members prefer the convenience of  looking at all the listings at once. To join now, click here.

Home Exchange Arranged: Stockholm for San Juan Islands

The Intervac members who own this home on the San Juan Islands in Washington state will be swapping it this summer.  The home is built in an unusual style, and is referred to as a "dome home".  The San Juan islands are a beautiful, natural place where you can observe both whales and bald eagles in their natural habitat.

The Intervac members they are exchanging with live in Stockholm, which Frommer's describes as "a city of bridges and islands, towers and steeples, cobblestone squares and broad boulevards, Renaissance splendor and steel-and-glass skyscrapers, Stockholm also has access to nature just a short distance away."

What Arthur Frommer Has to Say About Home Swapping

Arthur Frommer, the famed and well respected budget travel authority, has long been an advocate of home exchanging. His most recent article about the practice notes:

"Is it safe to trade your personal space with a perfect stranger? About as safe as staying in a hotel owned by someone you don't know. Remember that your foreign counterpart is also taking a risk by staying in your home, so instances in which the arrangement goes bad are few and far between. Historically, complaints are nearly nonexistent."

He says about Intervac:
"Intervacus.com (800-756-4663): Intervac has been around for half a century, but its old catalog system has migrated to the Web. Its claim to fame is that 80 percent of its listings are international (52 countries are represented), which means, as the site puts it, "You compete with fewer Americans for overseas properties." Access to all listings is $65 a year."

To read full article, click here.  To preview Intervac's 10,000 live and active listings worldwide, click here.

How Long Does it Take to Set Up a Home Swap?

This is a common question I get as an Intervac representative. 

Here's a good example: an LA-based member joined just one week ago and already he has found his summer 2006  home swap.  The LA member is off to stay in the home (at left) of  a member in Sweden. The Swedish home, like the LA home, has a private swimming pool, but is also on the beach.  Many don't know that Sweden is a wonderful summer destination. Gothenburg was recently voted one of the best European city for culture and nightlife and Swedish weather is nicer in the summer than many places in Europe, like Great Britain.

London/Boston Home Exchange Arranged

The Boston-based Intervac members who own this home (at right), near Cambridge, will be trading their house with a London family of four (photo at left) . Both homes have four bedrooms and are just a train ride away from city attractions.

One unusual part of the home exchange agreement: rabbit care is going to be provided by the Boston family. Also, and this is smart, there is a cancellation plan in place. Cancellations are rare (there is maybe one or two a year out of about 10,000 exchanges), but having a back-up plan gives peace of mind.