Repeat after me:
ON HOMEEXCHANGE, I SHOULD NEVER PAY ANYTHING BEFORE MY STAY
Not the security deposit (it’s handled automatically through the platform), not cleaning fees, not tourist taxes—nothing . Ever. HomeExchange will never ask you to pay anything in advance of my stay (aside from your annual membership, of course).
If your host requests a cleaning fee or tourist tax , and you agree, these must be paid upon arrival or at the end of the stay —never in advance .
“A member is asking me to pay before the exchange or outside the platform—what should I do?”
First, contact us. HomeExchange will never ask you to pay outside the platform—not by email and not through a third party.
All payments related to your membership take place on the official website only.
Let’s stay vigilant together
No platform is entirely immune to scams or fraud attempts. Stay safe by following these precautions:
If you receive an email or message asking you to pay on a website with a domain name different from HomeExchange.com, please contact us immediately, including the member’s ID or email—or report abuse directly from the member’s profile.
We strongly recommend keeping all your communication with other members within the secure HomeExchange messaging system.
If you’re ever unsure, don’t hesitate to reach out to us before finalizing an exchange—especially in the following situations:
- Upfront payments or deposits: if a member asks you to send money through a third-party payment service
- Phishing attempts: emails or links that mimic HomeExchange’s branding to trick you into giving away your login, personal, or banking information
- Travel scams: offers that seem too good to be true (e.g., unusually luxurious homes), especially when they involve additional payments like large deposits by bank transfer or international payment
To help prevent scams, you may also see a reminder in your message inbox: all exchanges must be finalized on the platform, and no payment should be made via third-party services.
Important: Any exchange completed outside the platform violates our Terms of Use.