The Wiki Man

14 February 2009

A fortnightly column on technology and the web

This is an important insight, and it applies to more than just books. When so many things are readily available at short notice through the internet, should we attach less importance to owning things? How many of the films in your DVD collection will you watch again? (Has anyone ever rewatched Citizen Kane?) Join lovefilm.com and declutter your shelves instead.

The same applies to property. When prices are stagnant, why do people still want to own a second home? The maintenance costs alone would pay to hire the Hefner mansion. Plus anyone with a passable knowledge of the web can find really interesting places to rent with just a few clicks.

One caveat. Unlike Amazon or eBay, most property rental sites have no established buyer-rating system and photographs can be misleading. My crafty rule-of-thumb is only to rent a property if it’s listed as having broadband installed. That’s nothing to do with the broadband itself (although that’s always a plus) but simply because the presence of broadband in a holiday home is a useful clue that the owners of the property sometimes stay there themselves. It will therefore be cleaner, better equipped and better maintained than houses owned as a money-making racket.

When renting overseas, the presence of broadband also increases the odds that your property is owned by Scandinavians. Not only will it then have attractive contemporary furniture, but there’ll be something better than Bloomberg on the satellite channels once the children have gone to bed.