Home Exchanges

Back in the 1950’s, home exchanges were the way vacationing teachers traveled on a shoestring. Now thanks to the Internet (and a tough economy), home exchanges (aka house-swapping) have become one of THE smartest and most affordable ways to take that dream vacation. An estimated half-million home exchanges occur worldwide every year, and are as brief as a weekend but typically lasts one to three weeks. According to the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, the following home-exchange Web sites are among the most popular:

Craigslist (www.craigslist.com) — Craigslist generates more than 30 million free classifieds every month from 450 cities worldwide. Home exchanges are among the most popular categories. To check listings in your city, go to Housing and click on “house swap”.

Home Base Holidays (www.homebase-hols.com) — Currently has listings in about 65 countries. Annual membership about $50 (depending on the exchange rate). Publishes bimonthly electronic newsletter, and three print directories a year.

HomeExchange (www.homeexchange.com) — The southern California-based organization has 20,000 listings in 110 countries. Annual listing and contact privileges cost $100. List viewing is free.

HomeLink International (www.homelink-usa.org) — The Florida-based organization offers listings in 70 countries. Listing and contact $110 per year. List viewing is free.

Intervac International (www.intervac.com) — A Swedish-based organization with listings in 52 countries. Annual membership $65 (US listings) or $95 (US and international listings). About 20 percent of members are from North America and the rest are from Europe.