Here's some of the tips and tricks we've learned from our Home Exchange experiences:
Create an "Arrival Checklist" and "Departure Checklist" to help Home exchangers on arrival and departure. We have quite a few back to back exchanges and it's useful to know that clean beddings on etc. For what it's worth our checklists are at the end of the Home manual and can be seen here.
Where possible we like to meet and greet home exchangers. Not only is it nice to meet the people but it can be very helpful to get to know the home and area quickly. Our ideal is for exchangers to arrive during the day or even pick them up at the local airport; show them around the house and answer any questions; take them a brief spin around the area to familiarise them with area, shops and car. Have an evening meal with them and then disappear the following day and leave them to it. Friends for life.
Send them a comprehensive "Arrival" email with instructions on how to get to your home, access arrangements and don't forget your full address.
If you have Americans coming, who are going to hire a car, warn them that UK cars are manual / "stick shift" by default and they need to request an automatic.
Clear some space in wardrobe and draws for clothes and in kitchen cupboards and the fridge for their food.
Create a home manual with basic instructions in. Place it in a prominent position along with any checklists. A copy of our manual is here.
Have a folder with all instruction manuals in, useful to have them all in one place not only for Home Exchangers but also for yourself. Place it next to the Home Manager Manual.
Collect brochures and maps on the area and have them available. Keep them up to date and cull any old ones. An up to date bus and train timetable is also useful.
If you have an old mobile phone then it can be helpful to leave this and charger with a PAYG SIM in for guests to use. It's up to them then to load up more onto the SIM if they use it.
Leave a starter pack with any essentials in. Always enure they have soap and toilet paper.
Try and ring the home exhangers within 24 hours of arrival to see if there are any queries.
Shortly after their stay we like to send our Home Exchangers an independent survey on their stay at our home. Whilst Home Exchangers may post a review, there are lots of quality questions we want to ask in order to try and improve the experience. A short, well organised survey helps in this improvement process.
If you car has Sat Nav then set up local supermarkets and garage in it. If not provide a map with details on.
We often find it's cheaper to get a one way car hire from an airport to the home. If the one way fee is extortinate then either drop off at the airport the following day with other half following in home exchange car or try Hertz they are often quite competative on one ways hires.
Making just minor changes to you HomeExchange.com listing can increase enquiries.
When setting up your HomeExchange listing be sure to put plenty of quality meaningful pictures on your site. 30 beautiful pictures of the garden and none of the house, or 10 of a cluttered cupped under the stairs just doesn’t attract anyone. Have a good tidy around before taking them. Try and choose light and airy pictures, avoid having your home look like a candle lit dungeon.
Check your HomeExchange listing as pictures have a habit of presenting upside down, very narrow or just disappearing
Yes there is an internal email on HomeExchange.com but I don't trust it. I prefer to use proper emails as soon as possible in the dialogue. That way I can file, track progress and status my way.
A welcoming bottle of wine is always a nice touch. In our experience most Home Exchangers do drink.
