Home values only grow in these exchanges

November 30, 2008|Meg Pier, Globe Correspondent

Condoleezza Rice and Bono grab the headlines for their diplomatic efforts, but there are others fanned out across the globe, everyday ambassadors quietly dispelling myths about their own and other nationalities. Their movement, at least 45,000 strong, began with a few people posing a new idea for the barter system: home exchanges.

Karl Costabel, owner of HomeLink USA, which dates to 1953, says: "We are, and I suspect will remain, a niche market. Our main demographic is the psychological profile of the individual: They must be easygoing and open to the idea of turning over their home to a stranger. There is little middle ground. When a person hears about this, there are two common reactions, either 'This is great, how do I join,' or 'You'd have to be totally deranged to offer your home to a stranger.' I tell people openly that if they have any concerns about security they should not join as they would not be able to enjoy their vacation."

Ed Kushins, 61, who founded HomeExchange in 1992 with one listing - his own - agrees to a point. "The idea of a stranger in your home isn't just a potential concern; it is probably everyone's primary concern if it's their first experience. But by the time homes are actually exchanged, the person is anything but a stranger," he said, citing all the information posted on each homeowner's page on the website, the extensive communication leading to an exchange, and the ability to check references.

"The most appealing thing to me about house swapping is that it makes the world a smaller place," said Gretchen Hunsberger, 57, of Newburyport, who with her two daughters has been home exchanging for 18 years. "I believe the world is, more often than not, a good place, a safe place, and it's important to have that worldview affirmed."

Yet even the most savvy exchanger can have a bad experience. Nicole Feist has been home exchanging since 1991 and has done more than 30 swaps. In 2006, she started HomeExchanger.blogspot.com, which attracts 35,000 readers. A passionate advocate of exchanging, Feist nonetheless had what she termed the "home exchange from hell," described on her blog as a small, dingy, smelly apartment in an unsafe neighborhood of Paris.

Feist is confident that her bad experience and those of others can be easily prevented. She cites three important steps: Never agree to a swap without seeing interior photos. Get to know a potential swapper. Avoid third-party swaps, which she calls a "big no-no."