How to Avoid Vacation Rental Scams

July 16th, 2010

Everyday, people turn to the internet to plan their vacations.  In the vacation rental industry, most of the business comes to us via online advertising.  It is not as though we get drive-by traffic by having a billboard or flashing “No Vacancy” sign.  So how do you protect yourself from being scammed online?

Red Flag #1 ANONYMOUS EMAIL ADDRESS: Does the owner/manager communicate with you through a free email address from Hotmail, Gmail, or Yahoo instead of an info@<insert company name>.com ?  A domain-based email address  costs about $20/year and is more professional.  The owner of a domain can also be searched online by doing a “whois” search.  Be leery of an owner who will only communicate via anonymous e-mails, and don’t hesitate to pick up the phone to ask the owner/property manager detailed questions or even request more photos.

Red Flag #2 PAYMENT ADDRESS: Where is the payment being sent to? Is it a PO Box?  Some companies use a PO Box for simplicity’s sake, but this PO Box would be linked to their business license.

Red Flag #3 PAYMENT OPTIONS: Do you shop at any store that tells you they only have one payment option?  Be leary of sending personal checks, money orders, wire transfers or PayPal payments when that is the only option available.  A successful company will have several different options available — you choose which one works for you.  It can be costly and time-consuming for a scam artist to set up multiple accounts and options — they generally choose one and stick with it.

In Canada, the safest bet is likely paying by credit card.  Merchants are required to go through a lengthy verification process in order to be granted a Merchant Account.  Also, your credit card company may offer some level of protection if you have been scammed.  Please note: you should still be verifying who you are giving your credit card number to by using some or all of the other methods listed here.

Red Flag #4 LOW PRICE: Be familiar with the going rates in the area, and be cautious if a price seems too good to be true (it probably is).  If you find a great price, ask the owner why the price is lower than other available properties.  There might be a very good reason.  Maybe they’ve reduced the price to fill specific dates. Maybe they clean the property themselves and have less overhead costs. Maybe the property is new and they need to entice some guests to try it out.

Red Flag #5 GUEST REVIEWS: Most vacation rental advertising portals have a Guest Review section.  If a property is so great, why are there no reviews?  That being said, be careful of relying solely on reviews.  They are easy to fake.  It is unlikely that 100% of guests are happy 100% of the time, and guests often have suggestions as to how to improve a property.  Be wary of pages of positive reviews without one single negative or constructive comment.

Red Flag #6 AVAILABILITY CALENDAR:  Key holiday dates are still showing availability within one month of arrival, or the calendar shows no bookings in place at all, or there isn’t a calendar at all.

Red Flag #7 LIMITED ONLINE PRESENCE: Is the property only listed on a free website?  Is it only listed on one of the many vacation rental websites?  Professional owners want to advertise in as many places as possible, but that can be too costly for a scam artist who is just looking to make a quick buck.

Red Flag #8 INSULTED BY, or UNABLE TO ANSWER, QUESTIONS: The simple way to avoid being scammed is to ask questions and lots of them! Ask questions about the area and attractions.  Most scam artists do not live in the area that they are advertising. Scam artists don’t have answers for tricky questions.  Scam artists become insulted when they are asked to verify their legitimacy.

Legitimate businesses are happy to answer questions about their business. They are happy when guests/customers are interested in the company. They are excited to talk about the area and attractions.

Red Flag #9 NO WRITTEN AGREEMENT: Get it in writing — the dates of your stay, payment details, damage deposit details.  It may seem inconvenient when compared to staying in a hotel (where you sign the agreement upon arrival), but you need to know what the expectations are.  What is required in order to get your full Damage Deposit back?

Any one of these red flags does not mean you are being scammed, but if 3 or 4 red flags occur you may want to consider looking for a different property.

Red Flag #10 UNABLE TO VERIFY LOCAL CONNECTIONS: Check the address at the municipality website.  If not website exists for the municipality, call them on the phone and ask about the property.  They will know the local laws better than you will.  If you are visiting Canmore, click here for  some information on how to verify a property.

If you have any more suggestions on how to avoid online vacation rental scams, please share them here.  If you have been scammed by someone already, feel free to post that information as well.  Hopefully you can save someone else from falling into the same trap.

5 Steps to Vacation Rental Scams

July 1st, 2010

You probably thought this was an article on how to avoid vacation rental scams.  For that, you may wish to read this article.  We’ve taken a different approach here — let’s see how easy it can be to either scam or be scammed …

For the criminal:

  1. Get yourself a few photos of a nice property. They are plentiful on the internet.
  2. Post a free online ad at Kijiji*, CraigsList*, etc.  If you would like to get a bigger return, spend a couple hundred dollars listing the property on a popular vacation rental website because visitors think that these listings are actually verified (but they are not).
  3. Advertise a price that sounds almost too good to be true
  4. Wait for deposit checks to arrive from multiple guests all searching for a “hot deal” for a popular vacation destination
  5. Leave on your own vacation with the thousands of dollars you’ve just made with your minimal investment of a couple hundred dollars.

For the Guest:

  1. Search a popular vacation rental website for the perfect property, or find a deal on Kijiji*, CraigsList*, etc.
  2. Send payment in full to an unnamed/unverified individual
  3. Brag to family and friends about the “hot deal” you found for your fabulous vacation
  4. Arrive at your destination to find out the property does not exist, and there are 35 other families standing on the street with you who also booked the same property for the same dates.  Why would you all have the same dates? Because it is easier and more profitable for a criminal to pull off this scam during busy holidays on which rates are the highest and many properties become sold out making visitors desperate to find a good deal for their dream holiday.
  5. Realize that your money is long gone; you have nowhere to stay on a holiday (if you find a place available, it will be at a much higher rate than you want to pay); and it is unlikely that the police will ever be able to recover your money from some guy using a hotmail/gmail/yahoo email. Most people will not even report this crime to the police because they are too ashamed to admit that they should have known better.

*Some legitimate companies (ourselves included) will post Last Minute Deals on free sites like Kijiji and CraigsList.  However, no legitimate company would use these free sites as their sole source of advertising. If you found a property on a free site, be sure to verify that it exists elsewhere.

How To Verify Tourist Homes in Canmore

June 1st, 2010

So, you’ve planned your dream vacation and found a perfect property that fits both your needs and budget. And now for the big question: who are you really sending your money to?

There has been a rash of fraudulent vacation rentals online – likely a result of the economic downturn – and Canmore has not been immune to the problem. In order to rent out ANY property to accommodate a short-term visitor (whether a hotel, vacation rental or B&B), local laws require a business license and proper zoning.

If you would like to make sure that the property you are booking is legally operated, you can find much of this information online.

TO CONFIRM ZONING

  1. Visit the Ton of Canmore taxation site http://www.canmore.ca/Municipal-Services/Taxation/Assessments.html.
  2. Scroll down to find the link for the current year’s “Assessment Roll”. Click the link.  A PDF listing of every property in Canmore will open.
  3. Search for the address on the PDF.
  4. Properties require an “Assessment Code of “21” (Tourist Home) or “20” (Commercial). Please note that this list is only published once per year.  There is a possibility that an owner could have begun operating after the list was published.  The owner would have a copy of the Development Permit issued by the Town of Canmore.

For security reasons, some owners may not wish to give out the exact address of their property. Luckily, there are only limited buildings that allow Tourist Homes (1001 6 Ave; 1002 8 Ave; 621 10 St; 999 & 1306 Bow Valley Trail; 104, 160 & 190 Kananaskis Way; 10 Lincoln Park; 107 & 109 Montane Road; 1818 Mountain Ave; 743, 1040, 1080, & 1190 Railway Ave, and individual homes in the ‘Mountains Reach’ development in Silvertip which includes addresses on Silvertip Heights and Silvertip Way).

If you have been sent confirmation of your short stay for an address not listed, I urge you to forward this information to the Town of Canmore.

TO CONFIRM LICENSING

  1. Visit the Town of Canmore Business Directory .
  2. Enter the name of the company and click <Perform Directory Search>.
  3. Or, enter the address that you have been asked to send payments to and click <Perform Directory Search>.  Some of the fraudulent listings have been giving out a licensed company name, but have directed guests to call a different phone number and send payment to a different address. To be certain, call the phone number on the Town of Canmore listing, and only send payments to the address connected with the business.

TO CONFIRM GST REGISTRY

Canada is a beautiful country where we have a high-level of infrastructure to keep our residents safe, healthy, and happy (police, schools, hospitals, roads, etc.).  These services are paid for by taxes.  When an individual or business does not fully comply with tax legislation, an unfair burden is placed on law?abiding taxpayers and businesses and the integrity of Canada’s tax base is jeopardized.

The Good & Services Tax (GST) is a tax of 5% that applies to the supply of most goods and services in Canada. Almost everyone has to pay the GST/HST on purchases of taxable supplies of goods and services, including short-term accommodation.

In order to perform this search, you will need some information from the business: The correct business name and GST number (9 digits).  When asking for this information, you may get some version of the following answers from the business owner:

  • “We don’t charge GST”. Businesses in Canada who have a minimum number of sales in a year are required, by law, to collect and remit GST. This is mandated by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA – the equivalent of the IRS in the United States). Although long-term rental properties are exempt from collecting and remitting GST, short term rentals are not exempt.
  • “We don’t make more than the minimum amount, so we are not required to charge GST”. Even the smallest property at the lowest nightly rate makes more than the minimum amount as set by CRA.  One of the only ways for this statement to be true is if the owner is only renting a few times a year (perhaps while they are on vacation themselves). The challenge for guests in that situation is this:  An individual who rents “on the side” may not care about guest satisfaction as much since they do not have a business reputation to be concerned with.  An individual may not have  a system in place to keep track of guest payments, and return deposit money on time.   A company that charges GST and relies on revenue made from Booking Fees is more committed to guest satisfaction (or at least they should be, if they intend their business to be successful).

There are many legally operated Tourist Homes in Canmore.  Although you may wish you didn’t have to pay GST, it does offer more security that the property actually exists and is being run professionally.

  1. Visit the Canada Revenue Agency GST Registry.
  2. Read through the CRA terms for using the registry.  Click <I Agree> at the bottom of the page.
  3. Enter the 9 digit GST number.
  4. Enter the company name.
  5. Enter today’s date in the following format yyyy-mm-dd.
  6. GST Numbers are tied to the specific sectors of businesses so that CRA can better understand how much revenue is generated by each sector.  So, if someone gives you a valid GST number for “Joe’s Plumbing” they should not be collecting GST under this number for their rental business.

If you have been charged GST by someone using an invalid number, please contact Revenue Canada.

We are sorry if we have scared you with this information. We have struggled with whether or not to ensure visitors are aware of this problem. We have decided that if we save even one guest from having a less-than-perfect time in the Rockies, then it was worth our small effort.

Moving Tips Part #2

May 1st, 2010

If you haven’t done so already, read Moving Tips Part #1. By now your truck should be rented, boxes assembled, and you have purged everything that requires purging.

Packing Books

  • Smaller boxes are better. Books are heavy, so if you fill a big box it will weigh a tonne and you risk hurting yourself or the box breaking open. Look for boxes that have a strong bottom (wine boxes are great for this activity). Tape up the bottom just to be sure!
  • Place larger, heavier books on the bottom of each box.  Finish out the top of the box with paperbacks.
  • If storing the boxes for a while, make sure to not store them on the ground.  Moisture and critters will get into your precious books.

Packing Computers/Electronics

  • Don’t you wish you had kept the original box with all that custom-fit styrofoam?  If you didn’t, pack electronics in a large box.  Wrap each piece with old towels or sheets to protect them.
  • Keep the cords in order.  Roll them up and put them in a cardboard tube (toilet paper and paper towels rolls work great).  Write on the tube which cable is inside, and which component it belongs to.  No paper rolls?  Use plastic wrap for the cords — much better than the sticky residue that tape leaves behind.

Packing Dishes

  • Use all of your kitchen linens (dish towels, etc) to lay between each plate as you stack them.  The nice thing about using kitchen linens is that when you unpack you won’t have to clean up loads of packing trash.  In lieu of kitchen linens, paper towel, cardboard, and bubble wrap works nicely.
  • If you can find some milk crates, they are the best thing to pack dishes in.  No fear of the bottom breaking out!
  • Fill up the spaces surrounding the dishes with cooking utensils and such.  You don’t want the box to be too heavy.
  • Fill up the extra spaces with rolled up newspaper or bubble wrap.  If items can shuffle around, that is how they get broken.

Packing Clothes

  • Leave everything in the dresser drawers.  Move the dresser with everything intact.
  • For hanging clothes, gather about 20 hangers.  Tie a piece of string around the top.  Pull a large garbage bag over the clothes from the bottom up and tie again at the top.  This means you can reuse the garbage bag once you unpack.
  • Use every piece of luggage you have.  Borrow luggage if you have to.  Pack out of season clothes first.  Pack luggage with clothes for your last week.  That way, everything else can be packed ahead of time.
  • Shoes are no fun to pack.  Put socks/belts inside the shoes so they will keep their shape.  Pack shoes in a big piece of luggage or duffle bag.  Lay out one row of shoes, place a towel over top, and layer over another set of shoes.  Continue until the bag is full.

Do you have more tips to add to the list?

Let us know! We’d love to hear from you!


Getting Hooked Up: Electricity

April 1st, 2010

Since we assume that you would like to live in the modern world and not write letters by candlelight, you will probably need some electricity, no? The purveyor of electricity in the Bow Valley is Epcor.

Managing Your Account (New accounts, moving, cancelling service)
It is in your best interest to contact Epcor with at least 3 days notice prior to your move-in date.  If you elect to wait until the last minute, you’ll be charged $10 for your poor planning.  Epcor representatives indicated that 1 week prior is a good time to arrange the new service (or changes to existing service).  Accounts can be opened online or via telephone (310-4300 in Alberta, 800-667-2345 in North America, 780-412-4000 Outside North America).  You will require two pieces of identification.  Driver’s License and Birth Certificate are preferred.  If you don’t have those items, Epcor can use other document to get you hooked up.  A $200 Deposit is required for new customers, which will be added to your first bill.  If you’re not keen on having Epcor hold onto your moolah, you can opt for a credit check -  if you pass, no deposit is required.

If you already have electricity service and are moving to a new pad, you can transfer your service online or via telephone (see phone numbers above).

Monthly Charges
There are a number of factors that affect how much your monthly bill will be, the least of which is the actual cost of the electricity itself which hovers between $.09-$.12/kWh (Kilowatt hour).  How energy efficient are your appliances and what type of appliances are you using?  How many people live with you, and do they operate on a similar schedule? Do you plug in your car, or multiple cars, in the winter? Do you have electric or gas heat? Do you make energy-efficient choices (turning lights off, choosing low watt bulbs, etc)? As there are too many variable at play, Epcor is reluctant to indicate what an average bill is worth.  We polled a few of our users to see how much they were paying so that you could have a general idea:

$65/Month in 2008 <Condo 1000 square feet; 2 Bedroom, 1 bathroom; some energy efficient appliances/bulbs; gas heat; 2-3 occupants on fairly similar schedule>
$76/Month in 2008 <House 1700 square feet; 3 Bedroom, 2 bathroom; some energy efficient appliances/bulbs; gas heat; 2-3 occupants on fairly similar schedule>
$65/Month in 2008 <Condo 1000 square feet; 2 Bedroom, 1 bathroom; some energy efficient appliances/bulbs; gas heat; 2-3 occupants on fairly similar schedule>

Does your rent include utilities?
Having your utilities included with your monthly rent can be a great way to manage your living expenses. However, remember that landlords are business people and are generally not in the business of losing money.  When utilities are included, the rent is usually a little higher to accommodate for any high bills that you may incur.  If you do choose a rental property with utilities included, don’t delude yourself into thinking “I don’t pay, so it doesn’t matter if I leave the lights on all day, or run the dryer just to warm up my bath towel”. It matters.  If you consistently use more power than your landlord has budgeted for, your rent will likely increase.  So turn off those lights, and only run the washer/dryer/dishwasher with full loads or be prepared to pay the price later down the line.  Plus, you live in the Bow Valley now so it’s time to start putting the environment first!

Moving Tips: Part #1

March 1st, 2010

So, you’ve decided to move!  Before you even start looking for your new place, here are some thoughts to get you on your way!

  • Purge. There is no time like the present to get rid of unused items.  The more clutter you can reduce, the less you need to move.  Plain and simple.  If you come across items that you haven’t touched since your last move, those definitely need to find a new home.  Weed out your clothing collection. Shred old documents that you no longer require.  If you are disposing of anything that is still useful (just not to you), consider posting it on FreeCycle.org, or donate it to the Victory Thrift Store (3 Industrial Place, Canmore).
  • Get Stocked Up. It’s amazing how many boxes it actually takes to move!  It’s good to get a selection of different sizes.  Small boxes should be used to pack heavy items (books, dishes), while larger boxes can be used to pack light, bulky items (clothes, shoes, linens).  Visit the liquor store to get wine boxes.  They have strong bases so you don’t have to worry about the bottom breaking open when packing heavy and precious items. Also get some good packing tape and a few markers for labelling boxes.  Ask local retailers if they have extra bubble wrap from incoming shipments. They’ll be happy if you will take it away.
  • Get Organized. On the outside of each box, write a number and the name of the room it will go in your new place (ie bathroom, guest bedroom, shed).  Get a spiral-bound notebook and make it your moving bible.  In your new notebook, write down the box number and the contents. This means you can start packing early, and if you need to find something either before or after you move you will know exactly in which box to look.
  • Start Packing. Seasonal and seldom used items should be the first to be packed.  Knick knacks should be next. Leave out a few books and movies for your last few weeks, but pack the rest up. Make yourself a travel toiletry to cover you for the last remaining days, and pack up al the other bathroom stuff.  By the last week before your big move, only the items that you need for exactly one week of living should be left to pack. If you packed one box each day in the month prior to your move, you can concentrate on moving (and not packing) in the last few days.
  • Use Your Luggage. Pull out every duffle bag and piece of luggage you own.  They are great for packing clothes — go figure!  You might even want to borrow some luggage, particularly if it comes on wheels.
  • Reserve a Rental Truck. As soon as you know the date of your move, reserve the truck.  Think about how many people need to move out on the last day of the month!  There certainly aren’t enough trucks to go around, and you don’t want to be the one left on the street corner next to your pile of well packed boxes.
Well that should be enought o get you started.  Stay tuned for Moving Tips Part #2.

Renting Your First Apartment

February 1st, 2010

For many, moving to the Bow Valley may very well be the first time they have ever lived anywhere other than mom & dad’s or a college dorm.  If that’s your story, here are some thoughts on taking the first steps in finding the perfect place to live.

Be Thorough: Chances are that you are so excited at leaving home that every place you review will seem like a dream home, and you won’t even notice any negative points.  Time to take off the rose-coloured glasses and see things for what they really are!  Open up each door and cabinet — do they open easily? Turn on each tap — is there hot water? Is there adequate counter and cupboard space? Where will you do your laundry? Is it well laid out? Is there adequate storage space? How does the rent compare to other similar properties? Does it include utilities?

Do You Have Enough Cash? Typically, you will be required to pay a Damage Deposit equal to one month’s rent.  So on the day you move in, you really need enough cash to cover two month’s rent.  If you’re having a hard time getting that cash together, ask the bank for a short term loan or credit line.  You could also ask the landlord to pay the Damage Deposit in installments (but I would leave that option to the last resort).

Get Receipts: Make sure you get a written receipt for each deposit.  If you are paying by check, the cancelled heck can act as a receipt.  Don’t even think about paying cash without getting a written receipt signed by the landlord.

Get The Whole Story: Does the place sound too good to be true?  If so, is there something they are not telling you? Is it near the train, or a 24-hour liquor store? Are the neighbours loud? If you are moving into a building with other tenants, ask around about the management of the building — is the manager or landlord reasonable and fair?  It’s sad to say, but for every crazy roommate and tenant, there is a crazy landlord.  This will be your home for the next while so make sure you get all the facts.

Do a walkthrough: Any landlord worth their salt will insist on a walkthrough, but if they don’t you should!  You are responsible for returning the property to its original condition (less any reasonable wear and tear).  You don’t want to wait unti the day you move out to try and prove that the large stain was there when you moved in.  Take a digital camera and document everything in the place — particularly anything that is already damaged.

Did using these tips help you securing your first apartment?

Let us know! We’d love to hear from you!

Budget Meals

January 1st, 2010

We talk about it all the time — the cost of living is getting high! This is not just a Bow Valley issue — this is a national (if not international) issue.

Here are some ideas to help you save money on meals without having to eat Ramen noodles for the rest of your life.
1. 10% Tuesday: Did you know that Sobey’s offers a 10% discount on the 1st Tuesday of every month? Try to buy unperishable food, toiletries and cleaning supplies on the 1st Tuesday. If you have a freezer, buy extra items that can be frozen and used throughout the month. And while you’re there, go to Nutter’s as well — they also offer a discount on what they call Power Tuesdays.
2. Plan Ahead: Plan out your meals for the week and put together a grocery list. Otherwise, you buy stuff you don’t need, or end up throwing out food that has gone bad before you can eat it.
3. Cook Large Quantities: Spend a day cooking up a storm! Look for recipes that freeze really well (casseroles, soups, stews, lasagna, muffins). Having home-cooked meals on hand and ready to pop in the oven will save you from eating out.
4. Find A Food Buddy: You make an extra batch of your meal, while they make an extra batch of their meal — then swap. If you work together, alternate days on which you bring lunch for each other.
5. Join a Community Kitchen: Members of a Community Kitchen meet once per month and make an abundance of food. Because they are buying food in bulk and splitting the cost across the group, the meals are ridiculously cheap. Call 678-7131 (Town of Canmroe FCSS) and ask about their Young Adult Community Kitchen) or start your own.

That’s it for now — I’ll add some more cost-saving ideas later. If you have some ideas you’d like to share please add a comment below.


Roommate Relations: The Roommate Agreement

December 1st, 2009

There are many people in the world who will agree to something, shake on it, and then do the complete opposite.  Don’t you just hate that?  Or perhaps nothing was said at all, but you felt it was reasonable to expect your new roommate would pay their portion of the long distance bill, but somehow they got the impression that since the telephone bill was in your name they were not responsible for lengthy calls to long distance lovers ending with “no, I’m not going to hang up first … you hang up first … no, I love you more”.  I guess you should have had them sign a Roommate Agreement (RA).

An RA is much like a lease, except it leaves out all that “person of the first part” mumbo jumbo that people rarely understand and replaces it with more important details like who is taking out the garbage and when.

Here are some items you should establish with your new roomies:

  1. Rent: How is it paid (cash, check)? Who collects it? Who is responsible for getting it to the landlord?
  2. Division of Rent: Is rent divided equally?  If someone has a bigger room, private bathroom, parking spot, or owns most of the furnishings, how much more (or less) will they be paying?
  3. Utilities: Whose name will the utilities be in?  Are they being shared equally? When is payment due? What utilities are being installed (telephone, cable, satellite, internet)?
  4. Yard Maintenance: Who mows and how often?  Who shovels the snow and how soon after snowfall should it be done?
  5. Garbage: Who takes the garbage out and how often?
  6. Recycling: Who takes the recycling?  Who gets to keep the refund money from bottles and cans? An idea is to collect the refund money and use it to buy a pizza every now and then.
  7. Guests: Are guests allowed? How many? How often?  Are overnight guests allowed?
  8. Pets: Are pets allowed? Who is cleaning the litter box? Who is taking Fido for a walk? Who is buying food and ensuring the animal is in good health?  Who is feeding them?You don’t want to come home to a bowl full of dead goldfish and find out that all 6 roommates had been feeding Goldie. (Or reversely, that no one was feeding Lucky).
  9. Smoking: Is smoking allowed? Where are the designated smoking areas?
  10. Dishes: Shall dishes be washed immediately after use? Or will someone do a load of dishes every few days?
  11. Household Products: Who is paying for toilet paper, dish soap, garbage bags and light bulbs? A good idea is to each contribute a couple dollars to a piggy bank each month and use this fund to buy the necessary shared items.
  12. Food: Is everyone responsible for their own food?  Or is there some give and take?  With limited cupboard and refrigerator space, it is not feasible for each roommate to have their own mayonnaise jar.  Figure out a way to compromise, or use the fund to buy staple food items.
  13. Cleaning: Who cleans the bathroom and how often?  In this case, I would also detail what ‘clean’ means.  For some, picking up the towels and emptying the trash means the bathroom has been cleaned.  How often do the floors get washed/vacuumed? Consider hiring a housekeeper.

Whatever you decide to put in your RA is up to you.  You can make it as detailed or as vague as you’d like.  Print a copy and have each of the roommates sign it.  Make sure to give everyone a copy that includes all of the signatures.  From time to time, you will discover new situations or disagreements that weren’t covered in the original document. You can either ammend the document and have every re-sign it, or keep the newest issue in mind the next time you write a Roommate Agreement and include it at that time.

FreeCycling

November 1st, 2009

Say it with me … “FreeCycling”.  The term sort of rolls off the tongue, no?

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for your entire lifetime, you’ve certainly heard of recycling.  Let me introduce you to our new friend “FreeCycling”.  The concept is simple — instead of throwing out items that you can’t use, but perhaps someone else a use for: FreeCycle it!  You save the item from the landfill, you clear out some ‘junk’, the other person gets something they need for free, and you both get that warm fuzzy feeling inside.  One man’s junk is another man’s treasure.

For example, let’s say you’ve managed to amass a large collection of jars due to your unending craving for pickles.  Why recycle them when you could give them to someone who makes their own pickles? A kindergarten class that uses them for painting? Someone starting a herb garden?  Isn’t FreeCycling wonderful?

Or, let’s say you’re trying to furnish your new apartment on a budget.  There is always various pieces of furniture and appliances available at FreeCycle.  People renovate and upgrade their stuff all the time.  You can set up your new pad with loads of free stuff (everything on FreeCycle is 100% free).  One day, when you upgrade or renovate you can return those unwanted items to the world of FreeCycle.

If you’re ready to sign up, visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bowvalley_freeforall/ and join our group.  Today there was a 32″ TV posted.  I’ve also gotten a free fridge and stove.  I’ve given someone all of my wedding decorations; a set of brand new towels (in a colour I hated, but she loved); a water cooler and other various items that I have no use for.  All of the people were really grateful (as was I) — I’ve met some really interesting people, too. I feel great knowing that I’ve helped someone else, and I love getting rid of the clutter in our house.

Who doesn’t love a great deal? It’s even better when it’s a great deal, and you keep unwanted items out of the landfill!