The Finance Blogger

A little while ago, we wrote a post about Snow Birds Renting Long Term Condos. This was a general post about retired people heading south for the winter. Perhaps renting a condo for a couple of months during the winter. We covered a lot of things that you may want to look out for. Especially if you want to ensure that you do not get ripped off or experience disappointment.

Snow Birds Renting Long Term

Some people will head south for the winter. Perhaps they have a work situation that requires them to live in a city for an extended period of time. Until a project is completed. They may want to rent a furnished apartment or condo for this period. Instead of living out of a hotel room which is much more confining and limiting. This is a great way to see a city by the way. Experience living in another culture without having to invest a lot of money. No furniture or even buying a home, condo or whatever is required.

Long Term Rentals

We have never rented on a long term basis for personal reasons. We have traveled on business and lived in a condo that was furnished for a period of 8 months. The condo came with 2 bedrooms, and all of the standard furniture and utensils. Everything that one would need to live comfortably. For short duration’s such as this, renting a furnished condo or home is by far the way to go.

We found that negotiation is everything when it comes to service as well as prices that we were paying. It is never too late to renegotiate the price you are paying for the condo. As long as you have a relatively open contract which we did. This same approach applies to snowbirds as well who are heading south for the winter for a period of 6 months. Although once you agree for a specific price etc, it can be difficult to renegotiate. Unless you are not receiving the services or conditions that you agreed to in the contract.

The key to any contract is to negotiate everything up front and make sure you have everything you want before you sign on the dotted line. Once you sign the owner is going to be unwilling in most cases to open the contract unless it is too his advantage.

Negotiate Rental Contracts

Read our other post about Snow Birds Renting Condos for some of the things to watch out for when you book your place. Note that since you are staying longer there is a better chance that you will be able to negotiate a lower price than you would for a shorter term contract as well. Sometimes you can save as much as 50% between a one month contract rental price and one that is for a period of 6 months.

It really depends on what the demand is and your negotiation skills. The same contract issues apply,  such as term, price, items in the condo, inventories, damages, services to be provided, pool availability and how you are supposed to leave the condo at the end of your stay. If there are damages or if it is very difficult to clean the unit after you leave, your deposit may not be refunded or you may be assessed an additional fee.

In addition, you may also not be invited or accepted back the following year. If you are concerned about any of these issues and cannot get out of the contract, take pictures of the condo when you first arrive to establish and inventory and to establish the cleanliness of the unit. Some landlords rely on the tenants to keep things clean and in most cases, tenants do not do a good job at this.

If you have comments about this subject feel free to leave them. We can all benefit from everyone’s experience.

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