Hey all,

For those of you who have rented via VRBO (or similar), I have a question/concern:

I read (from VRBO's site) that a rental agreement is strongly recommended especially if you're paying by check, etc.

I ended up calling and talking with the VRBO owner of the unit we are interested in renting and had a nice conversation. She was definitely willing to work something in but wasn't quite sure what to put in it, so she asked if I could help with listing out my concerns of what might go into the contract.

I guess the thing is, I don't really know either!

First, do you guys think it's even necessary to have a rental agreement? We'll be renting this condo unit for 6 nights.
Second, if I absolutely should, what types of details would I want in it?
And finally, there was some talk of using Paypal - she has an account but doesn't use it and doesn't know what kind of protection is offered, nor do I. Is Paypal usually good for vacation rentals? And does it sufficiently protect the buyer/seller?

Otherwise, the owner sounded trustworthy and I've verified that she and her husband are in fact the owners. Should I just forgo having a rental contract and send her the deposit (and just make sure I have an electronic/paper trail of our communication as well as get a 'receipt' from them)?



TIA!