Home Exchange- How credits work

Home swap/Trading with credits is simple, and works best for those who have more than one property. You earn credits when another member stays in your property; you then take those credits to stay in any property of your choosing. For Example: You let Kate stay in your villa in the Caribbean and with the credits you earn, you stay in Will's property in Colorado.  Will uses his credits for a stay in Thailand, and so on.

Your property is given a Credit Value based on its potential Weekly Vacation Rental Value- the property does not need to be a rental property.
The Credit system is simple:
$100 = 1 credit
$1,000 = 10 credits
$10,000= 100 credits and so on.

You can earn extra credits by introducing us to new members. Receive 5 free credits per referral (worth $500 of holiday time) and 10 free credits for your friend (worth $1000 of vacation exchange time).

Join IVHE today and receive 10 FREE credits,
                                  equivelent to $1000 worth of vacation time

 No other offer can be used in conjunction with this offer. Love house swap with IVHE and start trading straight away, 

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Our fees

There is no limit on the number of properties you can list for the annual fee of $159.

Our Money Back guarantee- After the first year, if you have put in a trade request and we have not been successful in securing a place for you to stay at an IVHE property, simply ask for a refund.

Our trade arrangement fee is 7% of the Credit Value of the property (minimum fee is $69 US). For example: If the property you have chosen is valued at 10 Credits ($1,000) for the week, the arrangement fee would be $70 for a one week stay.  A fraction of the cost of staying in a hotel or renting an equivalent property.

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Booking a property

Look through our list of IVHE-home exchange members' properties , find a property you would like to visit, sign into the members area, and submit a trade request. Our dedicated home exchange travel team will then contact the owner to see if it is available for that time. We do all the work for you! Once a suitable property is found and you would like to go ahead with the trade, we will send both IVHE- home exchange members an exchange agreement. An invoice for the arrangement fee is also sent to the visiting member.
Join IVHE Home Exchange

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Home Exchange-FAQ

• This is my primary home, would it work with your home exchange system?
• Do you do direct home swaps?
• Does my property qualify to home exchange?
• How many house swaps would I get in a year?
• I do not rent out my holiday home, how many credits would I get?
• Do you take on resort property or time-shares?
• When I rent out my property I usually ask for a damage deposit, can I do that when trading with IVHE-home exchange members?
• What is the process of a trade?
• I have my own agreement, can I use it? 
• Do I get to contact the other home exchange members before the trade?
• I can only have so many holidays, what happens if I have enough credits and don’t need any more for the time being?
• Can I let my  family or friends use my credits?
• Is my property safe when home exchanging?
• What happens if my guests cancel their swap at the last minute?
• What happens if I have to cancel my trip at the last minute?

Q: This is my primary home, would it work with your system?
A: The IVHE system of home exchange is very focused towards non-simultaneous and non-reciprocal exchanges. This system works best with:

• Using a second /vacation property to make trades
• Having good availability throughout the year to maximise your trades

This is because the more availability your property has, the better your chances of building credits to use when you want to holiday at another member’s property.
IVHE- home exchange system is not geared towards direct home swaps and this is what makes it unique to other home exchange sites. The IVHE- home exchange system does not always work that well for primary homes. Mainly because most primary homes have very limited availability to other members and will almost certainly need a direct swap to make it work. The exceptions to this would be:

• If you are away from your primary home quite often.
• If you travel a lot and therefore your primary home is available at different times throughout the year.
• If you do not have to take your holiday at exactly the same time as you host another member (direct home swap).

Q: Do you do direct home exchanges?
A: No, IVHE prides itself on being able to offer non-simultaneous house exchanges. Of course if two members happen to want to go to each other's places we are happy to do that.

Q: Does my property qualify for IVHE -home exchanges? 
A: Location and quality are our most important criteria and we are happy to accept properties in any area people will wish to travel to. The size of your property is not important as long as it is equipped and maintained to a high standard.

Q: How many trades would I get in a year?
 A: This is very difficult to predict. Location, activities, size, style all sorts of factors play a part, but there are all sorts of members, singles, families, skiers, golfers and those who just want to chill out so location desires are just as varied.  

Q:I do not rent out my holiday home, how many credits would I get?
A: In this situation we would find out the rental income of a similar property in your area to determine the amount of credits you are entitled to receive.

Q: Do you take on resort property or time-shares?
A: Yes, this is possible, providing they are available for a substantial/flexible period each year.

Q: When I rent out my property I usually ask for a damage deposit, can I do that when trading with IVHE -home exchange members?
A: Yes, this is possible, if you feel you need to. We are not aware of any member having done so yet, but that is entirely up to you, the difference between renting a property and trading within IVHE; when renting you have no idea who the people are, and they have no reason to respect your property. With IVHE home exchange members, they are also property owners, they expect people to look after their property, likeminded people. As we are a membership network, any bad reports would come back to us. To provide extra peace of mind, please remember that travel insurance usually has public liability that covers any accidental damage to a property that the member is staying in. You should of course check the terms of the travel insurance with your guest.
Read more....

Q: What is the process of a trade?
A: Once you have spotted a property you would like to visit please submit your trade request via www.ivhe.com. Once we have established that the property is available on the required dates both host and guest are sent a copy of a trade agreement and given each other's contact details.

Q: I have my own agreement, can I use it?
A:Yes, you are sent a copy of IVHE's standard home exchange agreement to which you can add any special requirements/restrictions and  can add your own agreement as well.

Q: Do I get to contact other IVHE- home exchange members before the trade?
A: Yes, IVHE are happy to pass on contact details if both owner and guest are willing for them to do so.

Q: I can only have so many holidays, what happens if I have enough credits and don’t need any more for the time being?
A: Everytime we get a trade request, we will forward it to you, it is up to you to decide if you would like to go ahead with it or not, if you get to a point that you feel you have enough credits for a while, just let us know and we can stop sending you request for a while.

Q: Can I let my  family or friends use my credits?
A: Credits can be passed on to family or friends if the host is happy for you to do so. In this circumstance the IVHE- home exchange member will always be liable for any damage to the property.

Q: Is my property safe home exchanging?
A: Your property is much safer occupied than standing empty. We also take references from all our home exchange members before they can stay in another member's house.

Q: What happens if my guests cancel their home swap at the last minute?
A: If your guests have to cancel at the last minute you will still be entitled to the credits you were due to have earned. Read more...

Q: What happens if I have to cancel my trip at the last minute?
A: We will do our best to find someone else to take your place, but if the place remains empty you will have to pay the credits due. We recommend that you take out travel insurance as you would do for a usual holiday – hosts are normally willing to provide financial receipts. Read more...

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Home Exchagne versus Rent with Credits through IVHE

If you have a holiday villa, hotel, cottage, yacht, lodge, cabin or any type of vacation rental and like travelling yourself, then our home exchange credits system can give you more value than your vacation rental income. This does not mean you should never rent out your property, it just means that for 1, 2 or more weeks a year, the credits you earn are worth more than the rental income for that time.

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