How to Rent an Italian Villa

Renting an Italian villa means living in an authentic, Italian home for 1 to 3 weeks or more. You'll live the life of an Italian, with morning breezes, waves of olive leaves throughout the day and sunsets that appear scarlet, purple and golden orange across the hillsides. Renting an Italian villa can be your adventure if you follow these steps.

Instructions

1. Peruse ads for rentals. Check newspaper travel sections, upscale consumer magazines, college alumni, publications, travel magazines, professional journals and the Internet. Also, contact brokers whose clients own villas or check with a travel agent who might be aware of the process and can help. Throughout your search, you will discover that a majority of Italian villas are available in Tuscany, Chianti/Siena, Lucca, southern Tuscany, Umbria, Venice, Veneto and Cortona.

2. Consider the season you want to visit Italy. Costwise, fall and spring are lower in rates compared with summer, which is an easy time for adults and children to travel. Winter is lower in price, but extra costs for heating are charged.

3. Ask the broker how often he has visited the property to see if he knows the villa's true condition. Ask for previous renters' references as well. Monitor your working relationship with the broker to see if he knows the industry.

4. Request pictures and references if you are going through a private party that you found in an advertisement or on an Internet listing. Working directly with a private party saves you money, but you need to avoid scams.

5. Take the time to imagine what you desire in the villa you want to rent. Going through the process of renting an Italian villa will help you become more cognizant about Italy. The more you learn and know about Italy, the more you will know what you need. Plan to limit your choices to no more than 10 finalists.

6. View as many Internet photos as possible and view detailed maps of the surrounding areas of your finalists. Based on all the information you have thoroughly looked over, make your decision on the Italian villa for you.

7. Make sure you have gone over all the details of the rental. You must understand everything that will be provided to you and your party, such as towels, linen, electricity, cleaning, water and furnishings.

8. Reserve your villa as far in advance as you possibly can. A typical lead time is 9 months to a year.

9. Arrange for payment. A 30 to 75 percent deposit is required upon reservation. Then, within 60 days of your arrival, a final payment is due. A security deposit is quite common and ranges from $200 to $500 or as much as $1,000, depending on the size of the villa.

10. Relax and consider all your amenities are taken care of by the owner of the villa. Cleaning and closing of the house is taken care of unless prearrangements were made for you to clean the villa and close it up. Usually this is never the case, because most renters hire their own cleaners and maintenance people to clean up after you leave.

Tips & Warnings

• A villa for rent could mean any kind of property, from an apartment in Rome's Piazza Navona, a farmhouse on the hillside with a gorgeous view of the sea or a restored stone house along the coast with views of the sea in all directions.

• Inspect the property before making yourself at home. When you arrive, check over everything in the villa. Make sure nothing is broken, and it's as promised. If not, contact your broker or owner and work out the problem together.

• If you cancel your rental, you will lose your deposit and any payments you made for the villa.

• If you fail to notice something that is not optimum at the villa, you could be blamed for it and lose your security deposit.

Resources

• Italian Vacation Villas