Vacations for Veterans is a nonprofit created to provide recently wounded veterans free lodging donated by a vacation home owner.
Regardless of your views on our foreign policy, I think everyone can agree that what our veterans do for our country is incredible honorable and they are not recognized enough for their service.
As vacation rental owners, we are in a unique position to offer our homes up and to give our wounded veterans a brief respite when they need it most. If you do offer your vacation rental, you have the final say on what dates your unit will be available.
On a personal note, I had the opportunity to offer one of my beach condos to a veteran a few months ago. VFV does the work to verify the Purple Heart status of the veteran and, if you wish, will put you in contact with the veteran directly. It was immenesly gratifying to not only offer my condo up to this veteran and his family, but to receive the thank you note from him and his wife after their trip.
This holiday season, please think about giving back to this outstanding organization. FindVacationRentals.com, FindBnB.com, and VacationSpaces.com are proud corporate sponsors.
Please visit VacationsForVeterans.org for more information on this organization and to learn how you can help. And while VFV needs inventory, they also are in need of financial donations which go directly to support the travel expenses of those veterans in need of financial aid.
Submitted by Jon M, http://www.FindVacationRentals.com
John, thanks for sharing. I signed up right away for at least two off peak weeks. I always have given veterans a break but this is an easy way to give back. One question, Since I will have to suck up the cleaning costs do you think I can safety deduct the fair market value of the week? This way I can at least cover most of the cleaning costs.
Andy
Andy – I’m sure Chris & Peggy (the founders of VFV) are grateful for your generosity!
You can deduct any “real” cost you incur. That is, you can deduct the cleaning (and linen service if you do that separately). I am not sure you can deduct any loss of rent. I would talk to your CPA, but I doubt that’s allowed under IRS rules.
When I donated my condo, I talked to my local manager and cleaning crew about my donation and asked if they would reduce their fees at all for that stay. They offered to waive the cleaning fee completely. So – you might want to see what your housekeeper will do for that particular stay. You never know!
Jon M (FindVacationRentals.com)