Home Exchange | Our Great Experience Swapping Homes with a Stranger

Why swap homes with a stranger?

“Aren’t you worried they’re going to try your clothes on?” my friend exclaimed in horror after telling her our plans for a home exchange. She wasn’t comfortable with a stranger in her home period. But I was open to it because we needed options.

We had plans to visit the Netherlands for 10 weeks over the summer. My husband emigrated from there after we met during my semester abroad in college. Our kids are dual citizens and our oldest plans to go to college at the University of Amsterdam. Although we often visit, it’s only been for vacation and to visit family. I wanted to make sure he wasn’t romanticizing the idea and wanted him to be there long enough to, well, get bored. But how to make it happen?

What is a home exchange and how does it work?

Searching for short-term housing

After many months of searching for a furnished short-term rental, we were stuck. Other than Airbnb, there were no options for families. Sure, Airbnb had some great homes available on the site but it would cost us $4,000-$6,000 a month for a modest home. It just wasn’t feasible on top of our hefty Honolulu mortgage and pricey flights.

We reached out to family, friends, random groups on Facebook and everyone we could think of for ideas. A friend recommended Sabbaticalhomes.com which caters primarily to academics and artists looking for temporary housing. They help you find a match, but the payment and contract are all handled outside the platform by the two parties, which seemed a little daunting. We almost found a place to rent in the city (for $3500 a month), but the timing didn’t work out. Back to the drawing board.

What is a home exchange?

In my research I stumbled upon mentions of home swapping or home exchange. There were several websites which all function roughly the same way. You either set up a direct trade with someone where they stay in your home and you stay in their home or you use an indirect point system.

The point system gives you flexibility to go anywhere in the world at anytime, but a direct exchange is good for long stays (otherwise you have to stockpile points in advance) and for me, peace of mind. After checking reviews we ultimately decided to sign up with a company called Home Exchange.

How does a Home Exchange work?

For Home Exchange, you create an account, pay a fee ($220 for your first year and $175 annually after your first year) and list your home. A daily point value is assigned to your home based on its size, features, and proximity to a major city. You can slightly increase your point value, but not by much. Unfortunately for us, their point system doesn’t take into account cost of living so our small home in very expensive Oahu has a lower point value than most larger homes in middle of nowhere, USA.

Finding a house swap

When you create an account with Home Exchange and complete various tasks (filling out your profile, listing your house, etc.), you receive points. It’s enough to stay somewhere for about a week and if you rent out your place while you’re gone, you’ll have more points for the next home swap. However, we didn’t have a fraction of the points needed for a 10 week stay so we needed a direct swap.

On your listing you’re given a calendar where you can indicate availability and you can mention desired travel locations. I started searching profiles for everyone in and around Amsterdam. However, it’s so far away that no one listed Hawaii as a preferred location. And because our summer break and travel plans started at the end of May but didn’t start until mid July in the Netherlands, it was difficult finding anyone with matching travel schedules.

It felt impossible, but I decided to message everyone who had some summer availability listed. Surprisingly, my 8th attempt was a success. It was another family new to Home Exchange. They were super flexible because they work remotely and have small children. In fact, they’re so flexible, they were traveling around the world for the entire year – New York, Vancouver, Japan, Portugal – and they were happy to add Hawaii to their itinerary. The whole thing felt oddly unofficial. Just a click of a button for a major transaction that we would have to trust would happen when we arrived at the other side of the world.

Since we still had those starter points burning a hole in our pocket, we decided to do an additional exchange for points with a stay in Innsbruck, Austria. There was only one option for our travel time period near Innsbruck so we reached out and booked.

Preparing your home for Home Exchange

Cleaning

The guide provided by Home Exchange was fully overwhelming. It was as if you were preparing your home to sell and included details like “if the tray in your dishwasher is rusty, consider replacing it” and “spruce up the landscaping in front of your house.”

Because we had people staying in our home for such a long time, we put in significant effort to clean and clear space than we would for a short term exchange. We cleaned windows, ceiling fans, the oven, etc. Additionally, we stocked up on cleaning supplies to make them easy to use and labelled remotes for ceiling fans and air conditioning.

Since we have so many plants, we corralled most of them together and installed a simple drip irrigation system to help keep them alive.

Making space

Since we were leaving for such a long time, we decided to make enough space for our visitors to feel at home. We cleared out three dressers entirely, made space in half of one closet, cleared out bathroom drawers and cabinets, emptied bedside tables, and decluttered desk drawers.

We stored hard drives, computers and cameras (I’m a photographer so I have a lot of equipment) in dry pelican cases in one of the kid’s closets. We put the contents of our closet and drawers into storage bins and piled everything into an outside shed.

Making a house guide

Home Exchange recommended creating a guide to your home. Unsure what this should look like I searched online and templates (primarily focused on Airbnb). Information included wifi and garbage/recycling details and emergency contacts – our numbers, a handy friend who would help in case of a home emergency, and the doctor/hospital. Our guide also included house quirks and resources such as the best places to eat, nearby hikes and beaches, and transportation.

The two homes we stayed at didn’t have guides, but they would have been helpful. When traveling internationally, a lot of the basics like garbage, recycling, parking, and building access can be very different.

What about pet and plant care while you’re away?

When you create your listing you can request plant and/or animal care. Animal care is almost always cats, but I have seen a few places that ask you to care for their dog. Personally, caring for a (low-maintenance) pet adds value and makes me feel more at home. Leaving our dog behind was the hardest part about being away for so long.

However, our dog was still young (almost one) and a bundle of energy. If he was a super mellow, easy dog we may have considered it, but we needed someone who could handle him. Finding pet care ended up being more challenging than finding a home exchange. We managed to arrange a patchwork of care from friends for 8 weeks and the last 2 we turned to Rover.

Rover is a service that matches local animal lovers who care for you pet to need. My initial search produced an overwhelming number of carers available with boarding prices ranging from $30/night to over $150/night. You can filter by your pet’s specific requirements – do you prefer a house with a yard, other pets, is your pet okay with small kids, do they need medicine, do they sleep on your bed etc. Although you can use reviews as a guide, there is no way to know who you can trust. I often see complaints about a local dog sitter who leaves dogs in the car for long periods while she swims at the beach.

In the end, we found an acquaintance on the app. We brought our dog to their house for a meet and green and booked them through the app. Ultimately, it was a good, but pricey experience (about $1000 for 2 weeks). They took great care of our dog and sent us a few photo updates

However, I didn’t like working with Rover. They charge pet owners a booking fee (maximum of $50), and take a percentage from the sitters, but there were additional hidden fees that no one could explain. For example, our sitter requested $45/night but we were charged $60/night plus the $50 Rover fee and taxes. In the future, I would bypass Rover and work directly with a trusted sitter, but if you don’t have that option, Rover works.

Our experience with Home Exchange

Using guest points

We were originally looking for a place to stay in Innsbruck, Austria but there were no options for a family of four during our target dates. We picked what was available and it took us to an beautiful village above the city with massive mountain views. There was a grocery store within walking distance along with a farm stand selling fresh eggs and yogurt, a community park with soccer fields and hiking trails. From our balcony we watched fog roll over the hills obscuring and unveiling grazing cows. It was such a peaceful landscape and one we wouldn’t have experienced if we stayed in the city.

The house itself was okay. There was a work station with WiFi, a parking space and great views. However, it was unseasonably cold and the owner turned the heat off before leaving. Our wimpy Hawaiian selves had to wear a lot of clothing to stay warm. He was also renovating the kitchen so it was quite messy and he made no space for us at all. It was a little inconvenient but fine for a week long visit. The location was so great that we would go back to the same place again.

Using a direct swap

After our messy, cramped time in Austria, it was a relief to walk into our Amsterdam home. It was clean and spacious and had everything we needed. Critically, there were two work stations and WiFi because my husband and I needed to work. We worried about squeezing into a 2 bedroom with our teenagers sharing a tiny room with a bunk bed, but it was fine. As in Austria, the location was amazing. Our home was conveniently across the street was a grocery store and a metro/tram station. There were several bakeries, butchers, restaurants, markets, gelaterias, and more within walking distance, but being in Amsterdam, we biked everywhere. For trips outside the city, we had access to several electric cars in the neighborhood we could rent by the hour. We all fell in love with the city and have plans to move at some point in the future.

Was our first home exchange a success?

The good

Absolutely it was. We like to have a kitchen, a little more space, and live in a real neighborhood so we tend to seek out Airbnbs. Home Exchange was similar, only we saved over $8000.

As soon as we listed our home, people from around the world began to message us. Requests for an exchange came from all over the United States as well as Canada, Mexico, Fiji, England, France, Hungary, Italy, Bali, French Polynesia, Guatemala, New Zealand, Thailand, Spain and Japan.

The bad

Honestly, there wasn’t much that could be considered negative. It took some time to prepare the house – extra cleaning, moving things into storage, installing irrigation, finishing up a few household projects, etc. For a shorter rental, I wouldn’t have cleared as much space or prepared as thoroughly.

We found that our toddler guest left us stickers under furniture and on walls hidden by curtains but they all came off. Our plants were suffering, but to be fair, we have a lot of plants and despite the irrigation, their care was more than we could expect from anyone.

The hardest part about leaving was that we missed our dog.

Future Recommendations

If we opted for another long-term house exchange again, we would hire a landscaper and house cleaner for a monthly deep clean. Maybe even to make a short term exchange easier. Some people charge a cleaning fee when you book and some don’t. When we were in Amsterdam, the owner paid for and sent a cleaner to the house midway through our stay.

Is a house swap in your future?

Some people prioritize resorts and convenience. If that is more your style, a home exchange may not be ideal. Although some of the houses on the site are incredible! However, If you love to travel, especially for longer periods, and want to experience life as a local, check it out. If you sign up for Home Exchange, use our link for 250 bonus points which is enough for 1-3 nights depending on where you stay. And if you visit Hawaii and need family photos, don’t hesitate to reach out! Happy travels!