SabbaticalHomes.comReviews of sabbaticalhomes.com

Sabbatical Housing is sharing a clever rental market strategy, with great one-on-one communication. The posts are based on your honesty without any hidden fees. How refreshing! “Rare Find”. I stumbled across Sabbatical Housing because I wanted to host scientific and academic people worldwide, by giving them an opportunity to do work in Canada, by making it affordable and laid back for scholars. Something different I thought, and a great way to meet amazing people! I wrote the company over a little glitch and got a personal response right away. (from a real person). Within a short time, I had two requests. I have now posted a second rental creating a Belize research base. In a world of AI, call centers god knows where, automated responses they get 5-Stars*****

As a prospective tenant, I got scammed on SabbaticalHomes.com TWICE in 1 week!! Despite SabbaticalHomes' claim of prestige and transparency, both the listings and the platform itself were highly untrustworthy. (Not to mention SabbaticalHomes forcefully charge you $50 for every "match".) 1. Illegal landlord actions: The platform claims to maintain "high standards", yet I have encountered numerous instances of illegal behavior from landlords. First scam: the landlord attempted to sublease to me secretively behind the owner's back. Luckily, I ran my own due-diligence and discovered that the owner had no knowledge of the sublease arrangement whatsoever! Second scam: the landlord suggested we "work out" a lease term shorter than what is legally permitted by their condo building. She asked me to sign a "fake lease" to present to the condo building, then "just leave" halfway. In both cases, I would have been evicted, and still be responsible for paying rent! 2. Highly overpriced: SabbaticalHomes' business model is "exploiting the tenants". Notice how all of their neutral/positive reviews are by landlords, where tenants gave them negative reviews? That's because the landlords pay SabbaticalHomes an annual fee to advertise their overpriced homes that would've been unwanted on any other platforms. Prices of sabbatical homes are Airbnb prices, yet they expect you to commit for 4~8 months. The same units rent for 40% cheaper if you found them through other platforms such as Kijiji, Facebook Marketplace, or Realtor.ca. 3. Lack of accountability: I have brought the issues above to the SabbaticalHomes customer service team (who did not even give their names and hid behind the alias "SH", again highly shady despite the platform's hypocritical claim of transparency and trust) repeatedly on several occasions, yet they firmly sided with the owners, claiming my concerns were "unwarranted". They knew about the illicit business, and they blatantly stood behind it. Action speaks louder than words. SabbaticalHomes has unambiguously shown us that making a quick $50 is more important to them than integrity. ----- Given how unethical SabbaticalHomes is, I expect their founder, Nadege Conger, to post a gaslighting response below to somehow claim it was my fault.

I highly recommend SabbaticalHomes, as I have been registered on the platform for over two years and have had only positive experiences. The annual fee is very reasonable and affordable. The platform charges only when you connect, and a modest match fee to both the host and the tenant whenever a match is made. In a world that can often feel overly capitalist, SabbaticalHomes stands out as a more humane option compared to platforms like Airbnb. The people I have encountered through SabbaticalHomes have been very nice, and every interaction I've had has been respectful and pleasant. Most importantly, all the guests who stayed at my place were incredibly nice and considerate. Nevertheless, every time I host someone, I still make sure to secure the deal by requiring a non-refundable deposit when we sign the contract.

We have had 3 listings on Sabbatical Homes for over 10 years. The quality and quantity of tenants, mostly visiting scholars and students, who come our way through Sabbatical Homes cannot be matched. Some of our tenants are even repeat tenants, returning semester after semester. We list on other platforms, as well, but the overwhelming majority of our tenants have come through Sabbatical Homes and each and every one of them has been uniquely special. What an amazing service, deeply appreciated!

I have had two very negative experiences back to back with Sabbatical Homes as a home owner. Two sets of guests found me through the site, they appeared to be quality matches and signed leases to stay in my home. Both guests then changed their mind and reneged on the lease despite it being a legal contract. One decided before moving in they wanted 3 weeks not 6 months noted in the lease and one decided not to stay altogether at the last minute. They both left me out of pocket, scrambling around to find replacement guests. The quality of guests searching for accommodation is low on this site and guests don't feel they need to see out their commitments. Sites like Airbnb may be more expensive but you get what you pay for - you can vet quality guests and the paperwork is done for you. I will not use Sabbatical Homes again.

Professional customer service, but my listing received no inquiries I originally paid to advertise an apartment on SabbaticalHomes expecting exposure to a relevant academic and international audience. In practice, the listing generated zero inquiries and no rental opportunities. Even after remaining active and receiving additional views, there was still no direct interest from potential renters. That said, I want to update my original review to reflect the full experience. After I raised my concerns, SabbaticalHomes responded professionally, refunded my listing fee, kept my listing active, and added new information to their FAQ section regarding academic housing demand patterns based on my feedback. I appreciated the respectful and constructive way they handled the matter. I also recognize that the lack of inquiries may not be entirely the platform’s fault. My listing was in Israel during a period of significant regional instability, and that may very reasonably have affected international academic demand. However, my main concern remains transparency before purchase. If certain locations, time periods, or external conditions are likely to result in significantly weaker demand, I believe advertisers should be made more clearly aware of that before paying for a listing. Overall, my experience with the listing’s actual performance was disappointing, but the company’s customer service and willingness to respond to feedback were fair and professional. For that reason, I am updating my review to reflect both sides of the experience.

Let me say how much we appreciate Sabbatical homes. We’re into our 10th year on site and have had wonderful rental experiences - folks becoming close friends locally or away, some who have rented then stayed and bought their own homes. After all this time and all the different tenants, our place looks as good now as when we finished restoring and renovating it. The Sabbaticalhomes website is so easy to use and clearly explains responsibilities for both sides, we renters and the managers of the site. The annual fees are so low and we pay a minimal amount if a potential renter is found. The fact that we, as owners, are solely responsible for vetting and confirming tenants gives total flexibility when deciding who to accept into our home and our community. The smaller exposure on Sabbaticalhomes when compared to the big rental websites such as VRBO seems to be made up for by the serious type of people looking for accommodations. Highly recommended!

Sabbatical Homes has offered me for some 15 years to find a home abroad and to have my home looked after by colleagues, both academic and independent. The service by the SH team is great, with the personal touch and swift communication being very helpful. The service that Nadege, the founder, offers is unique in this personal touch, the intent to enable exchange of homes - not professional lettings of which there is too much in this world. I thoroughly recommend Sabbatical Homes!