apartment rental owner direct transfering money direct to account

[Mammyto2]

Hi All

I am booking an apartment in Portugal from the owner directly, her payment method is a transfer of funds directly into her account, it seems like a leap of faith to me, is this normal? The apartment is advertised on a reputible company but still feel I will have no comeback if anything goes wrong
Any advice appreciated

 

[Odea]

I do it all the time and have had no problems to date. If it is with www.holiday-rentals.co.uk there is a guarantee scheme associated with your rental. You need to register the rental.
I did have a problem last year when funds transferred to the bank were returned "no account found" plus a €65 euro charge. I contacted the owner and the problem was sorted. Just make sure you quote correct account names, IBAN, Swift etc.

 

[declanja]

My advise would be similar. Also check on the website for the lenght of time the rental owner is advertising, if the owners is advertising for a few years, then this is reassuring. I advertise my holiday home and am very aware of guests fears.Have you signed a contract, again this helps. Ask the owner to call you, often this is reassuring. Ask for references from past guests. Search for the property on Google earth if you wish, some guests can be fearful that the property doesnt exist!

I do know there has been incidents of people paying for rental properties that dont exist or are not owned by the advertisers. These are very rare and generally are advertised at unbelievable low prices, so if it seems too good to be true, it probably is!

Enjoy your hoilday.