Travel Articles by Experts

Experience the World for Much Less

Would you like to live for all or part of the year on a tropical island, in a secluded countryside retreat or in a fashionable district of a world capital? Today’s international rental market makes that possible—and more affordable—than you may have imagined.

Examples: A furnished condo on Mexico’s Caribbean coast recently rented for $800 a month. For $1,100 a month, you can rent an apartment in a charming Belgian village close to Brussels. In Paris, luxury apartments often rent for $2,000 a month, but more modest ones are usually less than half that amount. And these prices are all for short-term rentals—usually less than six months.

The growing short-term rental market for apartments and houses is largely the result of demand from today’s more sophisticated travelers who want to enjoy the area in much the way that local residents do. That means going to local shops, street fairs, community events and inexpensive, out-of-the-way restaurants and cafés to experience the real flavor of the locale. These rentals can also provide the opportunity to meet area residents.

Savings can be huge. For a month’s stay, a rented apartment is likely to cost about half as much as a moderately priced hotel. In a rented apartment, you also save money by cooking for yourself.

HOW TO DO IT

In response to the demand, hundreds of companies have been started—many Internet-based —that specialize in overseas apartments and houses that you can rent for a few days to several months. Over the Internet, you can see pictures of apartments for rent.

Example: In New Zealand, a cottage-style apartment on a working cattle farm rented for $1,200 a month, including breakfast daily.

To find companies that deal in furnished short-term rentals, go to Google or another Internet search engine and enter the name of the city or country you’re interested in, plus “short-term apartment rental.”

Two major companies are Sublet.com (201-845-7300, www.sublet.com) and Vacation Rentals By Owner (www.vrbo.com), which list short-term furnished apartment rentals in nearly 100 countries. Craig’s List, the Internet classified advertising company, also has extensive lists of rentals, but its Web site, www.craigslist.com, can sometimes be confusing because of the huge number of ads.

These three companies try to bar ads from unreliable property owners, but it’s ultimately up to renters to check out landlords and their property. That can be difficult when they are located overseas. The best strategy…

•Ask the landlord detailed questions about the property, and don’t deal with a landlord or real estate agent who hesitates to give you answers. (See opposite page for essential questions.)

•Ask for and contact US-based references to see whether they were satisfied with the landlord. Many foreign landlords, however, won’t have US-based references, and there’s little point in contacting foreign references, because they may not be representative and can be expensive to contact.

•Initially, rent the apartment for only a short period of time—a week or two, for instance. That way, you’ll be able to check it out for a subsequent longer rental period.

•If you have lingering doubts about a rental, it might pay to retain an attorney in the country to check it out. Typical cost: $100 to about $500. (Attorneys can usually be located through the US embassy.)

Another way to find short-term rentals is through traditional real estate agencies in countries you’re considering. To find them, ask for recommendations from a US real estate company that you know to be reliable. Most American real estate agencies know of reliable counterparts overseas.

My company, International Living, lists real estate agencies we know to be reliable in many countries. Example: Tierra Yucatán Real Estate (www.tierrayucatan.com) recently listed a furnished house in Mérida, one of the safest and most picturesque cities in Mexico, for $550 a month.

At our Web site, www.internationalliving.com, you can also find information about such essentials as a country’s cost of living, climate, transportation, health care, culture, entertainment and sports.

Still another way to find a rental apartment or house overseas is to take a regular vacation in a place you like and stay at a hotel. While there, look for a residence that you can rent later for an extended stay. That strategy can also give you a chance to speak personally with the landlord and actually see the residence.

Helpful: American expatriates in areas you’re interested in. They can often recommend real estate agents who deal in short-term rentals, and some expats themselves rent or sublet their apartments. To find expat organizations, contact American consulates in cities you’re considering. Consulates can be located through the State Department at 202-647-4000 and on the Web at http://usembassy.state.gov.

RENTING THE BEST

There’s no standard contract for short-term rentals overseas, but agreements usually are similar to what you would expect in the US, including a refundable advance (typically less than $200) to reserve the apartment.

Before signing a contract, ask the following questions…

•What floor is the apartment on? “First floor” overseas usually means what Americans call the second floor. Ask whether the building has an elevator (in many countries, older buildings often don’t).

•Will the phone be connected when you move in?

•Is there a TV with a hookup to English-language channels?

•Is the apartment air-conditioned?

•Will the electricity and water be turned on? If you rent for three or more months, you may have to make arrangements with the landlord to deal with utility companies.

•How close are grocery stores, pharmacies, transportation and other services you might need?

•Which furnishings are included? Examples: Linens, towels, cooking utensils, etc.

Safeguard: Ask the landlord to write or E-mail you with answers to the questions. The reason isn’t to pin him/her down legally, because lawsuits usually aren’t worthwhile if something goes wrong with an overseas rental. Nevertheless, landlords are much less likely to fudge answers that are in writing. In fact, landlords who regularly rent their apartments often provide instruction booklets that describe features of the residence as well as the neighborhood.

Negotiating tactic: When you look for rentals overseas, you may find quotes only for daily or weekly rates. But if you’re interested in the residence for a longer stay, make an offer to rent it by the month for two-and-a-half times the weekly rate.

You might have to negotiate upward a bit, but many landlords will take your offer, especially in the off-season.

Bottom Line/Retirement interviewed Lief Simon, real estate editor of International Living, a magazine and on-line information service that helps clients buy and rent property in more than a dozen countries in Europe, Latin America and Asia (5 Catherine St., Waterford, Ireland. Monthly. $49/yr.). The company also publishes several free E-mail newsletters about retiring, living and traveling overseas (www.internationalliving.com).