Craigslist house rentals?

[Spartana]

Has anyone ever rental a house or vacation house sight unseen off Craigslist? I am looking for a temp furnished vacation place to sublet for a couple of months this spring and Craigslist seems to be ALOT cheaper than the regular vacation rentals you see on www.vrbo.com and www.homeaway.com or local agencies. However I have never used Craigslist for anything and have heard some bad stories.

[SteveinMN]

One reason pretty much everything is cheaper on craigslist is that you are taking on a certain amount of risk; the low price is meant to compensate you for that. Sometimes you can make out just fine, getting a great widget/apartment/roommate at a bargain price. Sometimes the widget falls apart or the seller reports the smartphone as stolen or ... well, the news has plenty of stories about the really bad transactions. The thing is, if something is not as represented, you likely are dealing with another human or maybe a couple, not a business that has some legal and financial stake in your satisfaction.

If you can scope out the place and the lessor sufficiently (e.g., not 50' away from frequently-used railroad tracks; not in a dangerous part of town; lessor does not act like Hannibal Lecter, etc.), and you're able to change plans quickly if things go pear-shaped (say, rent a motel room for a week while you look for another rental), it could save you a lot of money. That might just be Plan B anyway because it's often hard to identify what's not in the picture.

[fidgiegirl]

I have not done it, but have used CL for a lot of things and had mostly good experiences and no really harrowing ones. I think the communication that follows your response to the ad is a good indicator of what kind of an experience it will be. Is the person courteous and a clear communicator? Are they prompt and reasonable? That will help in making your decision.

[The Storyteller]

The last 5 renters I have had came through our Craigslist ad, so I'm a great believer in it. I have had renters who inguired about our rentals long distance, then showed up and decided it wasn't right for them, which is fine by me. One lady in Texas tried to get us to commit sight unseen and we refused. We told her if she checks out, we like her history and she likes our place, we will rent it to her that day. But I wasn't about to promise anything.

The secret to Craigslist is to see the item, though. I would never do anything long distance, either renting to or from, or buying anything.

ETA
I buy and sell through Craigslist all the time. Farm and Garden is on my bookmarks.

[Spartana]

Thanks for the info. I think what worries me is that because I'm in Calif and would be renting a pre-paid sublet or temporary place off Craigslist on the east coast there isn't anyway to see the place before hand - and no way to assure that it would even exist. Kind of scary. I hear about craigslist rental scams all the time so am very wary about sending a check for the deposit (and most people seem to want the full amount upfront) in order to guareentee the place is held for me. I have always had misgivings about doing that even on the regular vacation house rental sites too but have never had a problem with that but Craigslist seems iffy. Probably best to wait until I am actually on the east coast, crash at a motel for awhile and then look for a place I can actually see beforehand (and know it really does exist!!) before forking over the big bucks!

ETA: when my sister was looking for a room to rent near her work recently she used Craigslist almost exclusively. While all the ads were legit, it was shocking to see just how misrepresented the places (and crazy potential roommates sometimes) were. So I'm probably right to be leery.

[CeciliaW]

Spartana, I think you've got the right of it. Being cautious is a good thing. I like your idea of getting there, then looking around.