In France as in other countries of the world, the rental of apartments or villas between individuals is a booming practice. More and more homeowners are choosing to rent out their homes for the short term, for a weekend or for a vacation. The phenomenon also affects owners of second homes or even guest rooms who can accommodate vacationers at a certain time of the year. This practice allows owners in particular to build up additional income and allow tenants to find inexpensive quality housing.
How it works ?
The Internet plays a major role in the development of rental accommodation between individuals. Thanks to the appearance of sites specializing in seasonal rentals, it is becoming easier and easier to rent an apartment or a house from one person to another. Any owner of a rental property can register on a platform specializing in seasonal rental to quickly find a potential tenant. To do this, he just has to publish an advertisement relating to the exact description of his accommodation or the rented room. He must also indicate the details concerning the rental such as the equipment available, the rental price, without forgetting some photos to complete the advertisement. Every detail is important to attract tenants.
A rental management site thus serves as a showcase for accommodation. It also acts as an intermediary between owners and tenants by providing them with extra services, as well as some tools for accessing information and communication.
Some rental management platforms only offer ad posting services. This is the case, for example, with Leboncoin, Homelidays, Abritel or SeLogerVacances. Other, more professional sites offer to serve as a payment intermediary between the owner and the tenant. This is the case with Airbnb, Housetrip or Sejourning. The latter pay the rental price through a payment system integrated into the platform, which then pays the owner. Generally speaking, these sites are chargeable for owners but free to access for tenants.
Rental management sites, for their part, take a commission on the rental price which they then share with the owner.
The advantages of renting between individuals
The main advantage of dealing directly between individuals for the rental of apartments or houses is to make significant savings. Going through a real estate agency can indeed be more practical, but often more expensive. In the case of a short-term rental, using a real estate agency for the management of a property incurs intervention costs, not to mention the huge commissions charged on transactions.
Thanks to rental management sites, this charge is almost non-existent. This is why today, nearly one in two rentals ends without the intervention of a real estate agency. The development of person-to-person rental sites has also made seasonal rental offers very successful.
By making their accommodation available to holidaymakers for a short period of time, the owner receives additional income. Besides a monthly rental, it is reported that a typical host can earn up to 300 euros per month on average. In addition, this practice offers a lot of freedom compared to a long-term rental. The constraints related to formalities are reduced or nonexistent, as is the risk of non-payment. The benefit may also turn out to be more substantial in regions with high tourism potential.
