Italy is home to a very large selection of vacation rentals. Most people should be able to find a property that they like and that is within their budget. Please be aware that prices are generally high and cheap properties will usually keep rather low standard. If you want a decent property you will have to expect to pay at least USD100 a night. A high end property will set you back at least USD 300 -500 a night. There are a lot of properties that cost a lot more than that.
You can usually expect a considerable lower price if you want to rent a property long term.
In this article I am going to give you some advice about what to think about before you rent a property.
Know the area
It is important to know the area that you are considering renting a house in. You need to make sure that the house can provide you with the experience you are expecting. If you are looking to enjoy a Mediterranean holiday then you need t make sure that you rent a property close to the water. It is not enough that the property is located in a beach community/city. That might still mean that the property is tens of kilometers from the ocean. It is also important to make sure that there are conveniences close to the house you want to rent. Many small Italian villages can lack any type of stores or only got small stores that are open for a few hours a day. It is common that these stores have a very small selection of things to buy. You might have to drive half an hour or more to find a grocery store.
Knowing the area is especially important if you plan to rent a vacation rental in a city such as Rome and Naples. Both these cities have area that are unsafe after dark and it is important that you make sure to rent something in a safe location.
NEVER EVER use craigslist, classifieds sites
Property scams is a big problem internationally and Italy is no different. It might in fact be a little bit worse then many other locations. There are plenty of scam artist that post properties on Craigslist, Gumtree and other classifieds site. The properties often look very good and are available at an decent price. (although not too cheap). There is only one problem. The scammers are not the owners of the properties. They will ask for a deposit to confirm the reservation (often 50% of the rental price) but once you arrive you will find that the property is not available for rental and your money is lost. You lose both your money and your place to stay. This happens to countless tourists each year and the scams are usually very hard to resolve. You should never use a classified site to rent a vacation rental.
If you find a property you like on a classifieds site then I recommend that you do a Google image search for the images posted in the ad. The images are often stolen from a real listing on a reliable rental site and by using image search you can find the proper listing and rent the property through it.
Use a vacation rental website with a good reputation if you want to rent a property. VRBO.com and AirBnB are two good options.