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When I tell them, people find it hard to believe that the most difficult question I’m frequently expected to answer is: “What are my chances of getting a home exchange?”

There are so many variables involved, I would have to be thoroughly dishonest to even pretend to provide an up-front answer to that question.

Instead, I realized a long time ago that I can best help whomever is asking this question by providing them with a list of points or questions of my own:

1. Have they checked out our database of members to see how many are located wherever it is they hope to visit? Are they prepared to broaden their horizons a little?
2. Are they flexible with their exchange dates? Rigidly expecting to exchange between dates that are set in stone will undoubtedly reduce their chances of locating a swap substantially.
3. How much effort are they prepared to devote to their membership? Hard work and success invariably go hand in hand. A member who prepares a well written, informative contact email which he then takes the trouble to personalize to each individual inquiry boosts his/her chances of success enormously. On the other hand, someone who joins, views his membership as nothing more than an advertisement, and sits back expecting dozens of offers to fill his mailbox, will invariably be the one complaining that her membership with XYZ club was a total waste of time.
4. If they themselves live in a less than well known location, have they done their homework and prepared a list of features that will make it captivating and entice likely exchange partners?
5. Are they offering a car exchange as well? Car rentals are prohibitively expensive and a willingness to offer a car will definitely add extra appeal.
6. Are they on the ball with checking and responding to their emails? If they are corresponding with a fellow member who has to wait several days for an answer to a question, that member will very likely loose interest, especially if she’s received other potential inquiries.

I suggest that the person asking my opinion on his or her likelihood of obtaining an exchange reads those questions carefully and if they can truthfully answer “YES” to all of them, then they can conclude that their chances are excellent.

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