Booking your vacation rental directly with an owner/manager will save you money and provide a better overall experience. The percentage of guests being scammed when booking a vacation rental is growing as communication becomes increasingly more electronic and impersonal. Scammers setup “fake” listings online using information stolen from legitimate listings or the MLS. Following a few simple rules will ensure your money goes to the appropriate party and your vacation goes off without a hitch.

Rule #1:

Never wire funds. There is no recourse after you send money this way. Period. The same goes for PayPal Friends and Family. You cannot dispute the transaction.

Rule #2:

Never book via instant messenger with owners that do not have the deal they are offering posted publicly online. Gather and use additional contact information to determine they are the true owner/manager.

Rule 3#:

Verify, Verify, Verify. Google contact phone numbers and email addresses to see what comes up. Look for online listings for the same unit and see if the contact information matches.

Rule #4:

Call them on the phone. If speaking to the owner, ask the address of the unit and what is located close by. If you are not convinced, look up the address on the county auditor’s website to determine if the owner’s name matches. If speaking to a management company, look for the unit on their website and match contact info.

Rule #5:

Let the buyer beware! If a deal seems to good to be true be particularly careful while booking. Scammers control people by making them believe they are getting a once in lifetime deal.

ECBYO.com offers True Ownership Verification Guarantee (TOVG). When booking online from our listings you have our guarantee that this is a verified owner. Book with confidence. You can read our full guarantee online. If you have concerns about any listing on ECBYO.com, please contact us. We will be glad to confirm the contact info is genuine.