what if villa owner sells or loses their villa?

[Tom Morrow]

we're looking to book for 2012, the end of 2012 actually and with the economy we've read that people are losing their villas or selling up. My question is, are we insured or should we insure against something like this happening given that there's a lot of time between now and our booking? What happens if we suddenly hear that the villa has been sold or something but yet they have our money

[arkvilla]

You could check the county records to make sure the owner doesn't have their home up for sale and also see if they have any outstanding taxes etc - often if a owner is struggling to cope with payments the taxes are one of the things they don't pay. This ultimately ends up showing as a Lien on their records.

I always recommend speaking directkly to the owner so you can ask about anything you are usnure of.

Also, don't book a villa on price alone - if it looks too good to be true then it usually is... owning a villa in Florida costs alot more to run than a home in the UK and any responsible owner has to cover costs or soon wil be in hot water trying to pay bills

Sandra

As an aside, there is an insurance policy you can buy that covers you in this event.

Also, remember some owners sell their homes with the bookings in place, so it's not always a problem, it would just mean your booking would be transferred to the new owner.