Booking your Cape Cod vacation rental can be tricky, especially when you are working directly with a vacation property owner directly. How will you pay for the property? How honest is the owner of the property? Do the pictures and description of the property accurately describe the rental? What do I do if something goes wrong? This is your vacation, you want to be as relaxed as possible and get exactly what you are paying for when you rent a property. For these reasons, it could be in your best interest to rent a vacation property through a Cape Cod rental agency such as Leighton Rentals. Check out our blog, “5 Reasons to Book your Cape Cod Vacation Rental with Leighton Rentals” for more advantages of booking your Cape Cod vacation rental through Leighton. Whether you book your vacation property through a rental agency or decide to book it yourself with the owner, here are 10 mistakes to avoid when booking your Cape Cod vacation rental this year:
Find Out Where You Are Staying
Owners may use phrases to make you believe that their rental is closer to the ocean or pond than they actually are. It is common for pictures of the beach to be used on the rental property website, giving the impression that the property has that water view, when really it may just be a beach that is within a few miles of the property. Although most owners do not list the address of the property, it is easy enough to request so you can map where it is exactly and how close it is to the beach or bike trails. The Leighton Rentals website has a map for every property so you can see where it is in town and how close the beaches and other attractions are to the rental. Although the addresses are not given out on the website, you can always request over the phone or through email the address of any property you are interested in renting. On the Leighton Rentals website, there is also plenty of information about the Cape Cod area where you are renting your property.
Do Not Skim Reviews and Descriptions
When an owner writes a description of their property, it is important that you skip the fluff to make the property more appealing and look for the little hints about the property to tell you what it is really like to be in the property. For example, the description may say that the property is right next to the beach and quickly mention that there is no on-site parking or no a/c upstairs. When you’re searching Cape Cod vacation rentals on the Leighton Rentals website, make sure you click on all of the amenities that are important to you in a property. Never assume that a property has Wifi or linens included, look in the description to make sure it is listed on the description or that it is checked off in your search. Reviews may have 4 or 5 stars, but sometimes within the review, there may be a little comment like “not enough seating” or “coffee maker didn’t work” that might affect your stay in the property. When booking through Leighton Rentals, agents give the reviews to the owners and follow up to make sure that issues such as those are resolved for tenants.
Be Honest About Your Plans
Just as you want the owner of the property or agency you are booking with, to be honest about the property you are renting for your Cape Cod vacation, you need to be honest about your vacation plans. When booking your Cape Cod vacation rental, make sure you are within the occupancy limits of the property. Occupancy limits are set up for a reason, and if you go over this might not only get you in trouble but also the owner of the property because it is a safety risk. Also, if you book a property and think you might possibly want to extend your stay, be honest with the owner or agency upfront because the vacation rental might book right after you are scheduled to depart, leaving you without a place to stay. Sometimes things happen that you can not avoid, which is understandable. This is why going through an agency such as Leighton Rentals is a good idea because they offer travel insurance, which many owners do not offer.
Read the Fine Print
When booking your Cape Cod vacation rental, it is important that you pay attention to the rental agreement that you are signing to secure this property. At Leighton Rentals, the rental policy is available for you to read on the website, and a copy of the Terms & Conditions is emailed directly to you once you book your reservation. When working with a rental property owner directly, you need to take a magnifying glass to what you are signing so that you are not hit with any surprises during or after your stay. For example, Leighton Rentals has accidental damage protection up to $1,000, so if any accidental small damage up to $1,000 happens during your stay, it is completely covered. A coffee mug breaks, the screen is torn by accident, or any other minor incident is completely taken care of for you because accidents happen. Also, if you find something is broken upon arrival, contact Leighton’s office to let them know so you are not assumed to have caused the damage. With a private owner, they may charge you for any and all damage done to the property and then some. Read the vacation rental agreement to make sure it is reasonable and something that you would agree to instead of rushing to sign it.
Forms of Payment Accepted
Booking your Cape Cod vacation rental is easy when working with Leighton Rentals because they accept Visa, Mastercard, and electronic checks. This makes booking your rental easy directly on the website or over the phone if that is preferred. When working with an individual owner, they might only take cash or need to wait until they receive your physical check in the mail before they would reserve the week of your rental, opening it up to be scooped up before your check has an opportunity to arrive in their mailbox. Make sure you are clear about payment arrangements and fees that are expected before you book so that you are not hit with any surprises. Is there a cleaning fee? Security deposit? Pet deposit? Check with the owner or rental agency before you enter an agreement and commit to paying fees that you were not prepared for.
Mistakes to Avoid Booking Your Cape Cod Vacation Rental
Booking your Cape Cod vacation rental should be easy, but it is easy to make mistakes. Working with a Cape Cod rental agency such as Leighton Rentals helps you avoid many of these mistakes because their primary goal is to make your vacation enjoyable so you keep coming back year after year like many of our rental tenants. Check out our testimonial page to see what our renters have to say about their experience with Leighton Rentals.
