We did three home swaps in Montreal and though we wanted to find a family with whom we could build an on-going home exchange partnership, so far none of the apartments was appropriate for our growing family.
The fourth couple we exchanged with had a house. Even though it was under renovation and could most charitably be described as a work in progress, it had a lot of potential. We liked the swappers and their taste and decor.
When the first exchange was over we kept in touch through the occasional email and by putting them on our holiday card list. The exchangers contacted us the year after our first exchange with them and we tentatively discussed doing our second swap together that April.
Then my mother became sick and everything went on hold until, finally, we lost her. We had not confirmed anything with the Montreal couple. and they certainly understood when we made contact again that home exchange was the last thing on my mind.
This had looked like a promising possibility for an ongoing home exchange partnership, but life was getting in the way. That happens in home exchange because it is a personal relationship between people, not a commercial transaction.
Understanding that people have life circumstances that change is a crucial part of being a successful home exchanger. Making sure your own trials impact your swap partners as little as possible is the flip side to that, however. More details to follow.
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