Successful in my prime entrepreneur Lois Sealey, founder of Home Base Holidays knows all there is to know about home exchanging.

Since 1985, Canadian-born Lois has operated a service from her home office in London offering exchange properties in over 60 countries.

Here she shares her wisdom and helpful tips on how to organise a happy home exchange.

For more details visit her website at Home Base Holidays, and click here to read more about Lois.

Holidaying in a home away from home

- Why home exchanging hits all the buttons for in my primers

Although home exchanges have been taking place all over the world for at least fifty years, the advent of the internet has made the process so much easier. Finding a suitable swap and then making the most of exchange arrangements has undoubtedly become quicker and cheaper by email, with the added facility of being able to email photos and directions and to use the web to research the locality in detail.

Swapping homes is a great way to get to know a new area or country, living like a local and often discovering little known attractions from your exchange partner's friends and neighbours. Although the initial reason for considering a home exchange may be cost savings, convenience and the fun of living in a real home come close behind. New friendships can also be a pleasant lasting bonus.

Families with young children, mindful of all the paraphernalia that they entail and the need to adhere to basic routines, appreciate the convenience of being able to travel comparatively light to what is a real home away from home. But the fastest growing group of home swappers is older couples and singles.

The over 50s, often with more flexibility in terms of dates and length of exchange than families tied by school or work holiday periods, have the broadest choice of exchange possibilities. Many prefer to exchange with others in similar circumstances, that is, avoiding families with young children if their homes are not geared to their needs. Others like to travel with grown children and grandchildren and a larger home with plenty of space invariably appeals more than cramped hotel rooms or basic holiday rental apartments.

Traditionally, home exchanges have been equated with overseas travel but in recent years a new growth area - home swaps within the UK even for weekend, or short breaks – has emerged These are often hotly pursued by over 50s keen for new experiences and attracted by off-the-beaten track or city centre locations where it can be difficult to find high quality, comfortable, yet affordable hotel rooms.

How to go about it

Swaps can be arranged privately through friends or by placing small ads in newspapers or on website notice boards. However, these methods can be risky and ineffective. To optimise chances of finding a suitable swap, join an established home exchange agency that will provide both a good choice plus guidance and back-up support. Look for:

• A good choice of listings in countries or areas you want to visit. It is also important to check how long listings have been in circulation and when they will expire. If you can’t readily see this information in listings, be aware that many exchange offers may be out-of-date. Check that listings aren’t a mixture of home exchange and rental offers.
  
• A good balance of listings between countries so you don’t find yourself competing for the same exchange offers on a site with a large percentage of other UK members.
  
• Detailed, step-by-step guidance on arranging exchanges and a prompt and efficient advice service. Look for phone numbers and mailing addresses as well as email contact forms. A professional service will provide various means of contact and give opening hours for enquiries by phone.
  
• Privacy for members, i.e. access to your contact details only available to other paying members.
  
• Modest subscription fees (rather than a free service) in order to ensure that all listed members are genuinely interested in arranging exchanges.
  
• To be able to offer an international home exchange service at an acceptable rate, no agency can thoroughly vet members or visit their homes before they join. Questions need to be asked and past exchangers need to provide feedback. Home exchange is a proactive vacation requiring homework.
  
  

Steps to success

It can take a few weeks to find an exchange partner. Once you target a potential swap, it's time for lots of information and photo swapping. Some points to consider:

• Remember that, until you get to know each other, your exchange partners will have the same concerns about you as you may have about them! Having someone living in your home at the same time you are in theirs gives each party a great incentive to look after the property entrusted to them.
  
• Check that your household insurance remains valid while you have non-paying guests in your home.
  
• If you decide to swap cars too, again check insurance coverage and agree to any restrictions on car usage.
  
• Agree on household bill payments. Most home swappers continue to pay their own bills apart from the phone bill which can be billed separately for the exchange period (unless you agree to not use the household phones and rely on your own mobiles).
  
• Ask for, and offer to provide, personal references if this would be a reassurance (past swap partners make ideal referees).
  
• Ask a friend living nearby or a neighbour to act as your agent to welcome your exchangers and help with any problems while you're away (though here again, email can be useful for queries).
  
• Compile an information folder. This will include emergency phone numbers, instructions for operating household equipment, information on local public transport, taxis, recommended restaurants, sports facilities plus maps and brochures for nearby attractions.
  
• Confirm if your exchange partners are willing to look after pets. If so, provide information on care, your vet's phone number and an adequate supply of pet food.
  
• As soon as you have agreed on a definite exchange, arrange to buy air tickets simultaneously. Exchanging ticket copies is an extra assurance to both parties that the exchange will go ahead as planned. As you will have corresponded back and forth by email for some time, it is a good idea to collate everything you have agreed into one document. This can avoid potential misunderstandings and disputes later on.
  
  

Californian Jan Stewart, now an experienced home exchanger, describes the lead-up to her first exchange to London,

"We wrote lots of 'get acquainted' emails beforehand, answered one another's questions, made plans together and sent information back and forth. We also made several phone calls during our preparations. We all shared the same goofy sense of humour, so that really connected us!

"We appreciated coming home after a tiring day of sightseeing. It was great having laundry facilities, a beautiful back garden, and a barbecue for a cookout. Every little thing was fun and exciting, from watching British telly to figuring out the appliances - all the stuff that makes travel to a foreign country have meaning.

It felt good to share what we have in California, and to accept our exchanger’s generosity. It felt politically correct and spiritually magnificent!"