Options for payout of unused vacation when retiring

[Beaglehound]

I hadn't though of house swapping. Could be a great way to slow travel to some other places.

Because hardly anyone in Japan does it he gets all kinds of offers. He swaps his ¥10,000,000 besso for homes that cost 5-30 times as much in Australia and Europe. Usual stay is a week, but often two.

This is really positive as I was half thinking of doing this when we retire in a few years time. I hadn't considered that there would not be a big supply here, but it makes sense given language barriers and I suppose the reluctance of many Japanese to expose their home to the outside world.

[AreTheyTheLemmings?]

I hadn't though of house swapping. Could be a great way to slow travel to some other places.

Because hardly anyone in Japan does it he gets all kinds of offers. He swaps his ¥10,000,000 besso for homes that cost 5-30 times as much in Australia and Europe. Usual stay is a week, but often two.

This is really positive as I was half thinking of doing this when we retire in a few years time. I hadn't considered that there would not be a big supply here, but it makes sense given language barriers and I suppose the reluctance of many Japanese to expose their home to the outside world.

Can I butt in with a question? I, too, had never even thought of this... seems really interesting. Is it an AirBnB thing, or a different forum?

[Beaglehound]

Because hardly anyone in Japan does it he gets all kinds of offers. He swaps his ¥10,000,000 besso for homes that cost 5-30 times as much in Australia and Europe. Usual stay is a week, but often two.

This is really positive as I was half thinking of doing this when we retire in a few years time. I hadn't considered that there would not be a big supply here, but it makes sense given language barriers and I suppose the reluctance of many Japanese to expose their home to the outside world.

Can I butt in with a question? I, too, had never even thought of this... seems really interesting. Is it an AirBnB thing, or a different forum?

I remember reading a Guardian article a few years back where they were comparing a few different platforms, warning of pitfalls etc. None of them were AirBnB from memory.

This topic also got me thinking that it would be good to have an intra-japan house swapping platform for us. Great way to see more of the country in retirement, or potentially before too.

[TJKansai]

Is it an AirBnB thing, or a different forum?

I haven't used it for a few reasons. The main one is I don't have a home to loan out. We also tend to stay 3-5 nights in a place, and this system is better for a week or more. Hotels also have the advantage of being a known quantity, with more flexible scheduling and cancellation options.

The platform my buddy uses is this: https://www.homeexchange.com/

He says he gets about 8-12 weeks of stays a year out of his property in Japan. Some of the places he's stayed in Europe and Australia would go for $300-500/night on AirBnB.

You can sign up and browse for free, but it costs real money to participate, I think about $200 or so per year.

There are a few options:

1. You can do direct swaps with people. Doesn't have to be simultaneous.
2. People use your place, you get "points" and then you can use those points to use someone else's place
3. You can buy points too

If any of you do decide to join, let me know beforehand as there is a bonus for referrals (plus you can get a bonus as well).

[RetireJapan]

The platform my buddy uses is this: https://www.homeexchange.com/

He says he gets about 8-12 weeks of stays a year out of his property in Japan. Some of the places he's stayed in Europe and Australia would go for $300-500/night on AirBnB.

I like the idea but wouldn't want someone staying in our actual home. We're currently renting the place next door to ours too though, so that might be an option...

I wonder if this would fall foul of manshon 'minpaku' bans...

[TJKansai]

I wonder if this would fall foul of manshon 'minpaku' bans...

It is a bit of a gray zone, especially if you are doing a direct exchange.

My friend's neighbors did complain to the homeowners association, but he isn't renting his place out so there isn't much they can do about it. They can't ban him from allowing people to stay for free.

Then again, he has a small house in a besso area and the nearest neighbor is 50-100m away. An apt/condo situation might be different.

The guy I know doing legit AirBnb filed some paperwork and is limited in the number of days he can rent per year. Since he is in the home when the guests are there I imagine the locals aren't too stressed by the idea of strangers passing though.

[RetireJapan]

My friend's neighbors did complain to the homeowners association, but he isn't renting his place out so there isn't much they can do about it. They can't ban him from allowing people to stay for free.

I imagine if it was a one off (realistically, I would only be doing this once or twice a year tops) and an exchange rather than a commercial arrangement there shouldn't be an issue as long as the guests behaved responsibly.

[TJKansai]

My friend's neighbors did complain to the homeowners association, but he isn't renting his place out so there isn't much they can do about it. They can't ban him from allowing people to stay for free.

I imagine if it was a one off (realistically, I would only be doing this once or twice a year tops) and an exchange rather than a commercial arrangement there shouldn't be an issue as long as the guests behaved responsibly.

You'd be in the clear I am sure. Most guests are well-off and very considerate. Only trouble I heard about was misunderstandings about trash disposal. The real question is whether Sendai is on anyone's radar. My guess is it isn't, but someone searching broadly for anywhere in Japan could be intrigued. Especially given that it is a good jumping-off point for the area.

[RetireJapan]

The real question is whether Sendai is on anyone's radar.

Shhhhhhhhhh.

Right now it isn't, and we like it that way