To Trade or not to Trade, that is the question

Hi,

We're rookies at this and need some advice. For a few weeks we've been registered HE17744, trading from Canada for France, and have just been offered a trade. It's great, other than our boys really wanted a pool. It's mid-February and I'm not sure if activity will increase and other offers will very likely be forthcoming or someone will accept our request.....or should we "get while the gettin's good"?
Thanks so much for any advice you can give.
Regards, Sue
Sue's home in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada's capital

Answer

Hi Sue,

Thank you for your e-mail. Unfortunately there is no straight answer to this - it is true that many members subscribe or renew in the first few months of the year, and this is the busiest period for enquiries if you are seeking a summer break and you may indeed receive further offers. There is no obligation to accept the first offer that comes your way, but we cannot guarantee that you will receive a better offer. I notice that you state on your property listing that you are looking for a farm if possible, but you do not mention a pool - it is perhaps worth considering that there may not be a large number of farms which also have pools.

If you have specific requirements, the best way of securing a suitable exchange is
to be pro-active in sending out offers to members with properties you have identified as desirable. You should be able to find suitable properties by using the search facility on the website. In the meantime, you could promise your current exchange offer partners to commit within a period of time (perhaps within 3/4 weeks) being open about the fact that you are looking for a property with a pool, and then pro-actively send out offers to any properties that fulfil your requirements completely. It is also advisable to stress to those you send enquiries to that you need a quick reply because you have an outstanding offer.

Of course, this might mean that you lose the chance of this exchange in the meantime if they manage to confirm another offer. I don't know whether there are any other significant advantages to the offer you have received as you don't give their name or membership number, (do they have children of a similar age? are lakes, swim holes or the sea accessible? etc) and obviously you need to weigh up what other attractions there might be at the property or nearby that your sons would enjoy - you could ask for more information from them in the meantime.

We do encourage all members to reply to offers whether they are interested or not, so people know where they stand, so please do make sure you give a final decision one way or the other.

I hope this helps. I realise that it is difficult to make a decision, especially if you are first time exchangers, but being clear about your requirements, asking questions and communicating with exchange partners is the only way to make sure your exchange meets your expectations.

Please do get back to me if you need any further advice.

Yours sincerely
Kath
GTI Home Exchange

GTI Home Exchange Member Suggestion

(Include a hyperlink to your property listing when sending an enquiry using the GTI Home Exchange Email Enquiry Form).

Hi,

How about including a hyperlink to the property listing in an enquiry email submitted from your website - that way the person receiving the enquiry would be able to go straight to the property lisitng to see the exchange offered.

Best Regards, Cordialement,

Alison HE17138
Alison's townhouse in Romney, Hampshire, England

Hi Alison,

Thanks for your suggestion - this is a good idea and it would obviously be easier to access a listing with one click if it were possible. I suspect however that there may be technical difficulties implementing something like this as we have to make sure our e-mails are suitable for people using different email formats and software all over the world and therefore keep them as simple as possible - we have to be careful not to introduce complications that will prevent them reaching their destination or being blocked. Some mail servers security checks may also classify messages as potential spam if they contain hyperlinks. However, I will include it as a possible feature when we come to our next upgrade specification later this year when we can properly assess feasibility and/or look at other ways we could make it easier to access a listing from an e-mail enquiry.

In the meantime, any members who are familiar with html coding, and "a href" statements wishing to include a direct link to their own GTI Home Exchange property listing from their email enquiry to a potential exchange partner, may like to paste their own link into the email form before sending it.

Many thanks for your input - ideas for improving the smooth running of home exchange are always welcome!

Home Exchange Record - Can you beat it?

With records being broken daily at the Winter Olympics in Turin, our thoughts at GTI Home Exchange turned to records of a different kind. We ran an article a short time ago inviting members who thought they held the home exchange record to contact us. Until then it seemed that the record for GTI members was eighteen exchanges, but we now discover that that record is beaten by GTI member HE14636.

Their property, located in Sheffield, which has attracted so many exchange partners is described as a "spacious 5 bedroomed Victorian house on three floors overlooking parkland. Small secluded suntrap garden. Within walking distance of beautiful Peak District National Park. Conveniently placed for a city and country break. Easy access to historic York, Chester and Lincoln. Cinemas, theatres, swimming, cycling, walking, horse-riding, top sports venues and shopping mall all within fifteen minutes of house. Experienced exchangers (more than 20 in Britain, North America and Europe)".

Eluned goes on to say: "We are a family of five (two away at University) Youngest still at home (17). Although Sheffield may not immediately strike you as your dream holiday destination we have previously exchanged very successfully with families from Venice, Toronto, Brittany, Oxford, London, and Catalunya. We even have some references. Some have been repeat swops, so we must be doing something right! We have a wealth of local information and the natives are friendly if you get in a fix. We will endeavour to look after your home as if it were our own".

Home exchange for the very disabled - wheelchair and hoist required...

This week we had an enquiry from a potential home exchanger regarding the suitability of exchanges for the 'very disabled' ie for those that need to use a wheelchair and hoist. Unfortunately there is no straight answer to this one. Home exchange is often the best way to travel for disabled people if you can find someone to exchange with that has similar needs to your own, but obviously this becomes more difficult the greater the need for specialist apparatus - this is the reply that we sent...

"You can search listings on the website for disabled access by clicking on the Search tab at the top of the page, and then checking the 'disabled access' box. You can then refine your search depending on what other criteria you require. Currently 147 listings come up as offering disabled access, however unfortunately there is no way of telling whether a hoist can be accomodated or provided. Some members may mention a disability in their own listing, and this may give you a clue as to how well equipped a potential exchange would be for you, but really there is no quick shortcut to asking them directly in most cases.

GTI Home Exchange does have disabled members who exchange successfully and who are wheelchair users, indeed member HE16184 travelled from her home in Vancouver to Australia with her wheelchair and scooter this year, but I don't think she required a hoist. Similarly, GTI Scottish member HE14242 also travelled to Australia, using her scooter. In answer to your question about the possibilities for the more seriously disabled, it would really depend if you can find a match for your own requirements and unfortunately we can offer no guarantees. I am sorry I cannot be more helpful.

You may also find the Accessible Journeys website can provide you with useful advice and links to specialist holiday companies if you are not already aware of it: http://www.disabilitytravelcom."

On the other hand, if by any chance any of you blog readers feel that you could accommodate such a request and are interested in an exchange, or indeed you are aware of other specialist sites that we can signpost people in this position to, please do let us know so we can pass on details to this or other enquirers.