Who is this Guy? Has this happened to you?

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Joseph Strebly
VPL Vacations/Resortdeals4u/Aruba Rentals
E-mail : XXX@resortdeals4u.com
Web Site: XXX.resortdeals4u.com & XXX.arubarentals.com

I have a week for rent on RedWeek and received an inquiry from a 'Joe' - I had what he wanted plus I said I have a friend who could get him the second unit he required.
It seemed as if I was dealing with an individual but then I got an email today signed with the above info that states....

"Your Studio and your friends two bedroom may work great am calling client to confirm with them, will get back to you tomorrow okay. "

I am not sure I like the idea of dealing with a 'middleman' - what is his cut or take on this .... I am not going to pay anyone a fee and certainly don't want him to benefit from my rental.

Anyone have this happen to them?
....I have done over 15 rentals the last few years and never had this situation arise.

[ArtsieAng Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close ArtsieAng]

Not a clue Pat, but it does sound like he's a middle man.

[buff Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close buff]

Pat, There are many private travel companies that monitor the rental boards on different sites The client gives them requests and they contact owners brokers etc to honor their requests.

I used to help out our members by renting exchanged weeks and their owned weeks with independent travel clubs.

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Not a clue Pat, but it does sound like he's a middle man.

Pat, There are many private travel companies that monitor the rental boards on different sites The client gives them requests and they contact owners brokers etc to honor their requests.

I am just not comfortable with the situation....I think I will just wait for another renter.

Thanks for your input.

[buff Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close buff]

Pat,

Just relax, read the link http://www.resortdeals4u.com/aboutus.asp

This guy is legit. I think I remember this guy from tug. He's been around 25 years. Call him

If you need me to ask around I will. You know I have your back

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Pat,

Just relax, read the link XXX.resortdeals4u.com/aboutus.asp

This guy is legit. I think I remember this guy from tug. He's been around 25 years. Call him

If you need me to ask around I will. You know I have your back

Thanks Scott, I am not 'un-relaxed' just maybe a bit 'annoyed' that a broker is 'farming' RedWeek for rentals.....someone posted a while ago on TUG about a similar situation.

And I certainly am not going to have my friend reserve her week for a third party rental - I ask her to reserve a week and then it doesn't work out????
How would u feel if that happened?

And "Joe" isn't doing this out of the goodness in his heart like you or me; he has a business and needs to make money - so I assume he will be charging the renters a fee.

Just doesn't sit right with me - if I wanted to list with a broker, I would have.

[buff Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close buff]

I understand where you are coming from. I must be one of the few knuckle heads who played middle man, helped rent weeks over the years and never made a dime and now that I'm back i got people taking pot shots at me

[djyamyam Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close djyamyam]

Joseph Strebly
VPL Vacations/Resortdeals4u/Aruba Rentals
E-mail : XXX@resortdeals4u.com
Web Site: XXX.resortdeals4u.com & XXX.arubarentals.com

I have a week for rent on RedWeek and received an inquiry from a 'Joe' - I had what he wanted plus I said I have a friend who could get him the second unit he required.
It seemed as if I was dealing with an individual but then I got an email today signed with the above info that states....

"Your Studio and your friends two bedroom may work great am calling client to confirm with them, will get back to you tomorrow okay. "

I am not sure I like the idea of dealing with a 'middleman' - what is his cut or take on this .... I am not going to pay anyone a fee and certainly don't want him to benefit from my rental.

Anyone have this happen to them?
....I have done over 15 rentals the last few years and never had this situation arise.

Pat, I don't know anything about this guy but I have had a few travel brokers contact me about booking our places for their clients. It's actually worked out well as some places that might not have gotten rented did becuase of them. I have one now that has generated multiple bookings because her first client had a good experience. You do run into a bit of an issue with these brokers because they try to grind your price down because they are adding on their fee. You just set your price and stick with it.

For me, it helps spread the word as another form of advertising.

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Hmmmmmmm........

[chemteach Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close chemteach]

I don't really see the problem here. If you are getting your asking rental price, and the middle person is making money, and the people he is working for are willing to pay the total price, everyone is happy. You didn't have to pay an upfront fee. The kicker is making sure he and the renters know there is no cancellation and having a solid rental agreement.

[JudyS Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close JudyS]

I am just not comfortable with the situation....I think I will just wait for another renter.

Thanks for your input.

I think however you want to handle this is fine. The more people involved in the deal, the more things can go wrong. So, if you aren't comfortable with this, you are well within your rights to say that you will only rent directly. If you feel a need to give a reason (and I don't think you are obligated to), you could just say that you like to have contact with the renters to make sure that they are responsible people who won't trash the room.

On the other hand, it sounds like some people here feel travel brokers are safe, so the risk is probably low if you decide to do this.

If it were me, I'd probably be willing to rent through the broker, but I'd want to speak to the broker and have him tell me about his business, maybe show me his website, first. If we were talking, say, March in Mexico or Florida, I probably wouldn't be willing to use a broker because I'd worry he'd rent to a bunch of drunken frat boys. If I were renting on behalf of a friend, I wouldn't use a broker without clearing it with the friend first.

[x3skier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close x3skier]

I don't really see the problem here. If you are getting your asking rental price, and the middle person is making money, and the people he is working for are willing to pay the total price, everyone is happy. You didn't have to pay an upfront fee. The kicker is making sure he and the renters know there is no cancellation and having a solid rental agreement.

Agree. If everybody is OK with the money they are getting / paying and you have a way of checking the middleman (BBB, Boards, Etc) seems like less of a hassle to go with the middleman. YMMV

Cheers

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Just an update - I heard from another member that this particular 'middleman' doesn't pay you until 60 days before check-in.

So that is a deal breaker for me.

[1950bing Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close 1950bing]

Where ever timeshares are, there are sharks that are ready to get money from you. I'm not saying this guy is one of them. With the known rep. of timeshares, people will come around trying to sell you something, maybe even snake oil. BE CAREFUL !

[Spence Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Spence]

I don't really see the problem here. If you are getting your asking rental price, and the middle person is making money, and the people she is working for are willing to pay the total price, everyone is happy. You didn't have to pay an upfront fee. The kicker is making sure she and the renters know there is no cancellation and having a solid rental agreement.