Whats a fair deposit to ask for?

[bananacake]

hello,

i am new to the rental world and would like your advise on what would be a fair deposit to ask guests for when booking?

i was considering for guests to pay 100% to book but some say that it would put guests off from booking?

What are your thoughts?

[KathyG]

I think most of us ask for about 25% bananacake but at least one asks for 100%. Where's Margaret?

[e-richard]

Since we tend to build price lists that are rounded (like 500, or 550 or even 555), I find that 20% is easier to calculate

[Windy]

25% with balance 8 weeks prior to the holiday. Mainly UK guests who generally have no issues with this.

[Paul Carmel]

ditto with Windy, with guests from the four corners of the earth......and a few from middle bit too

[Tizfata]

25% with balance 8 weeks prior to the holiday. Mainly UK guests who generally have no issues with this.

Same here.
Different story if you are dealing with Italian, some French or Spanish. Just remind them that when booking a flight or a cruise they are required to pay the 100% in advance.
I just received the montly newsletter from holidaylettings.co.uk that is full of useful information for beginners. PM me your address if you are interested in it.
Ciao!

[Ju]

We ask for 25% too.

I'm not sure what the issue is with calculating it, all my bookings are in a spreadsheet, and I just put in the formula and the 25% is caluculated for me. It does mean that sometimes the deposit is an ammount like £327.50 but that is hardly complicated - afterall most prices in the shops are +99p.

[vrooje]

What does the law in your area state?

In some countries/states/regions, you can only demand up to a certain percentage in as an initial payment. It would probably be a good idea to find out if such a limit exists for you.

If it doesn't, you can feel free to ask for 100% of the booking fee immediately upon booking, but don't be surprised if no one is willing to pay that. (I don't think I would be unless it was a last-minute booking.)

In my experience, clients who are serious about making a booking do not generally have a problem with a 25% initial payment. My payment terms are very similar to Windy's and I've never had a real issue with it. But that's my experience only, of course.

[Margaret]

Margaret's just back from a night away collecting lovely lots of wine for Christmas.

Our 100% upfront policy was a victim of the economic collapse. Last winter we were not ready to risk losing a single booking, not having any idea how many there would be (plenty as it turns out!).

So we have now settled with:

Standard payment terms are 50% at the time of booking and 50% 2 months before arrival. This is not actually specified on our website. We explain it when someone wants to book. So far we have lost only one (German) booking, from someone who was not prepared to pay anything until the end of his stay. All other Germans and foreign guests have accepted it.

For very busy periods and small amounts we still usually take 100% at time of booking. Some guests ask to pay the whole amount at once. For bookings a long time in advance, we may take only 50% at the time of booking but then need payment longer in advance e.g. booking for New Year 2010-2011 in November 2009, the second 50% has to be paid next September.

We find the flexibility extremely useful as we can vary the payment terms according to market conditions. I can't see any difference between this and last minute or early booking discounts.

[pambon]

30% with balance 8 weeks prior to arrival - never a peep from anyone in 3 years. In fact several have insisted on paying the balance long before the 8 weeks.....

[la vache!]

30% with balance 8 weeks prior to arrival - never a peep from anyone in 3 years. In fact several have insisted on paying the balance long before the 8 weeks.....

Yes, often my guests beat me to the balance deadline. In fact I've just had someone who wants to clear the balance now for a July 2010 booking.
I take 25% at the time of booking for all bookings outside of France, with the balance payable 6 weeks before arrival. For France I take 25% deposit with the balance theorecally payable 30 days before arrival but in practice they usually pay on arrival as I'm on site. For repeat guests I ask for a minimal deposit or none at all.
I really do what suits me and my clients and I certainly wouldn't risk losing custom by asking for too much as a security deposit.

[harcourtv57]

20% with balance 6 weeks before - I usually send a reminder for the balance and some people pay before that - and some need more gentle nagging!

[Richard D]

I fix the deposit at £100/week , so the actual %ge is anything between 10% to 25% depending on season etc. I only do this because it means I can send out a standard response email to bookings and I never have to sit down and work anything out with a calculator. Probably saves me all of 5mins per booking but every little helps if it means more time on the beach

[Musetta]

hmmm...maybe will rethink mine.

I take the damage deposit to hold the booking ($400 for the US house. 150E for Italy) but it is refundable (minus a $100 cancellation/processing fee.) I take 50% the rental balance 60 days prior to their stay and 50% 14 days before.

reading this thread now, I'm thinking maybe I am way too soft?! (although, *knock on wood* haven't had many cancellations)

[ruemeyerbeer]

i charge 25% due within 24 hours of booking, on top of that another 250 euros as security against breakages which is held against their credit card by my booking system upon full payment....so far, no complaints from any cutomers, so I think 25% should be more than normal