Are you planning to do your first family home swap or become a digital nomad? Take a look at our Holiday Home Swap Security 101 with Tobias Sweijen – an experienced international home swapper and co-founder of Swaphouse.
In this interview, Tobias shares his experiences and tips for keeping your home safe while swapping for holidays.
But first, what is a home swap?
By definition, a home swap is when two parties agree to exchange their homes for a certain period. This arrangement allows each party to live in the other’s home and use it as their own during their stay.
While international home swaps are more popular, you can also swap homes with people from your country. If you live in the US, you can home swap with someone in Europe or anywhere else. There’s no other limit to vacation home swap than your imagination!
There are different types of home swapping:
- simultaneous exchange
- non-simultaneous exchange
- travel exchange
From Facebook group to home swapping platform
Keeping their Amsterdam apartment as their home base, Tobias and his wife traveled on and off for 2 years during COVID. They were tired of spending a lot of money on vacation rentals through OTAs.
They discovered home swapping through Facebook groups. And there was no way back from this point.
The couple set out to create a platform for digital nomads, remote workers, and home swappers. With Swaphouse, they resolved three significant issues – matching the right homeowners, making sure remote workers and digital nomads have a workplace and wifi, and that their home swaps are safe and secure.
As a rule, you get flooded with numerous swap requests and you go through them one by one. Unlike the competition, Swaphouse matches homeowners worldwide using a dating app mechanism.
“This prevents people from being flooded with messages from homes they wouldn’t want to swap with. Only when there’s a mutual match will users be able to coordinate travel plans”, says Tobias.
3 Newcomers’ Fears: Safety, trust, and finding a suitable match
New users often have three main concerns: trust and security, finding a suitable match, and work-related needs. Building trust through communication is crucial. For work-related needs, remote workers require stable wifi and a dedicated workspace. We allow users to test and display their wifi speed on the platform, ensuring transparency and setting clear expectations.
But how do we know that the people we’re planning to let inside our homes aren’t going to ruin or squat it? We know about the numerous cases of squatting in Barcelona and a couple of big European cities.
This is what we do ourselves to make sure we trust the swappers:
- We organize face-to-face meetings with homeowners
- Remote video calls that include home tours, wifi speed verification, and answering questions
- We test wifi speed especially when we’re planning to go on a workation
- Trust your instincts: if something doesn’t feel right, it’s best to explore other options. Take your time to find the right match that feels comfortable
You can trust but you can’t predict
So you’ve chatted with homeowners, you’ve asked your questions, and got your answers. They seem like nice people and you are ready to swap houses. What’s next?
- Get a house insurance if you don’t have one. And if you do, “Start by contacting your home insurance provider to understand their policy on home swapping. Be transparent and explain that there’s no commercial activity involved—it’s just a mutual swap.”— says Tobias. Read about STR insurance here.
- Physical safety indicators like smoke screens and carbon indicators are mandatory in residential properties in many countries. It wouldn’t hurt to implement standard security measures like smoke screens, alarms, and secure locks to further ensure the safety of your home.
- Add an extra layer of damage protection. Nice people also break small things, by accident. Sometimes you will see broken chairs or smeared towels upon your return.
Home swapping shouldn’t leave you or anybody else bitter. So you can add guest damage protection to each home swapping or collest a damage waiver per booking.
Swaphouse partnered with Superhog to offer optional guest screening and damage protection plans. This service provides an extra safety net, screening guests and protecting against potential damages. While it’s optional, it offers added peace of mind for those who want it.
But before you start dealing with damages, take a look at how to bring the guest damages in vacation rentals to a minimum with Rolando Mota and Daniel Tocora.
Be a traveler, not a tourist
Home swapping is a great way to get an immersive travel experience and steer clear of the beaten tracks and tourist traps. Trust us, once you get a taste of these perks, you might just become a home swapping aficionado!
Travel cheaper, travel often
When you swap homes, you essentially cut out lodging costs. Imagine staying in a cozy Parisian loft or a beach house in Bali without the hefty price tag of hotels or Airbnbs.
“We just booked a home swap in Munich for three weeks and we will work 50% of the time and take 50% of the time off. Because we can comfortably work remotely from every home listed on the Swaphouse platform, it saves vacation days and we can take many more trips each year.”
It’s true, a week in a decent Airbnb can easily cost €700 to €1.000, depending on the location.
This means you can travel more often or even extend your trips without breaking the bank. It’s all about smarter travel, not necessarily more expensive.
Explore and immerse
The beauty of home swapping is that it opens doors to places you might not have considered before.
“The homeowner can share the best local diners, bakeries, and restaurants, and tell you what events you can attend. Local’s tips make trips so much better,” – says Tobias.
It encourages a sense of adventure and exploration, allowing you to truly immerse yourself in different cultures and lifestyles. And who knows, you might find a new favorite spot on the globe!
Your home is in good hands
Let’s talk about one of the biggest perks of home swapping – peace of mind. Remember the pre-vacation scramble?
Finding someone to feed the cat, water the plants, and ask neighbors to keep an eye on your place only adds to pre-vacational stress.
With home swapping, that worry disappears. You’ve got someone living in your home, taking care of it while you take care of theirs. It’s a mutual trust that adds an extra layer of security and comfort to your travel experience.
You get a good house sitter
An empty home can be a target for break-ins, squatters, or any other mishaps. But with home swapping, your home isn’t empty.
If something goes wrong, like a leaky faucet or suspicious activity, someone will notice. This person is there to keep an eye on the property.
You can also ask your swappers to take care of your plants, cats, and goldfish.
It’s like having a house sitter inside your home, ensuring it’s safe while you’re away traveling.
Regular swaps foster lasting connections
Now, imagine finding a swap that’s so perfect you decide to make it a regular thing. This is more common than you might think in the home-swapping world. Regular swaps mean you can get to know an area better and deep-dive into a foreign culture.
Maybe you swap homes with someone in Spain every summer. Over time, you’ll start to feel like a local. And even become friends with the other swappers!
You’ll know the best tapas bars, and hidden beaches, and maybe even pick up some Spanish along the way. It’s about building connections that go beyond the typical tourist experience. Home swapping can open doors to new cultures, languages, and lifelong friendships.
In a nutshell, home swapping is more than just a travel trend; it’s a smarter, more authentic, and sustainable way to see the world.
It’s about connecting with places and people on a deeper level while taking care of our wallets and our planet. Stick around as we explore home swapping!
Lead by passion
Home swappers community is growing exponentially. Swaphouse offers a cost-effective, secure, and practical way to explore new destinations while maintaining professional productivity. As Tobias Sweijen highlights, the combination of mutual trust, innovative matching systems, and dedicated features makes home swapping a compelling alternative to traditional lodging.
Swaphouse is perfect for remote workers who want to work and travel easily while feeling at home. It helps them make the most of their flexible lifestyles.
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