A LITTLE CLOSER. THOUGHTFULLY.
Your home is personal.
So is your trust.
Swapping a family home starts with knowing what you’re sharing, who can see it, and what has actually been checked.
A clear boundary around family life.
Use a family nickname. Keep children’s names, birthdays, schools, and photographs out of your listing and conversations. The age labels on a home describe the setup you offer, separately from the children who live there.
| Information | Who can see it |
|---|---|
| Example homes | Anyone. Families and home details are fictional. |
| Your home, photos, neighborhood, suitability & family nickname | Approved community members when you list your home. Community reviewers can also review draft listings. |
| Your application and review feedback | Your household and community reviewers. The inviting family cannot see your application or its decision. |
| Your family’s child count, age groups & must-have equipment | Your account. Used privately to check whether a swap fits. |
| Swap conversation & agreed plan | The two participating families. |
| Exact address & arrival instructions | Your account, and the other family from three days before a confirmed stay through checkout. Cancellation removes their access. |
| Your invitation labels & links | Your account. The invited family sees your nickname after signing in; accepting shares their nickname with you. |
Someone may remember or copy information they’ve seen. After a stay, change any temporary entry code and remove guest access from connected devices.
Three ways to begin.
Accept an invitation, apply without one, or explore fictional example stays. Invited and applying families follow the same community review. Approval opens member homes, publishing, and new swap requests. Pending families can prepare a draft home and try the demo.
“Invited by” records an accepted invitation. It does not mean someone personally vouched for a family. We don’t infer mutual friendships or publish referral chains.
A real home takes more than a photograph.
My Family Getaway does not independently verify identity, home ownership, access, or permission to host. A referral is a personal introduction; it isn’t a verification or a guarantee.
Before a real swap, both families should arrange a walkthrough together, confirm the sleeping setup and home considerations, and agree on the key handoff. We won’t display a “verified” badge without a completed, clearly described check.
A shared yes, before either home is reserved.
You need a listed home to propose a real swap. Both homes must be available for the same dates, fit each family’s guest count, and meet their saved equipment needs. The receiving family reviews and accepts the proposal. Changing a listing requires renewed agreement before confirmation.
Your requests stay in your plans. Either family can cancel a swap; both reservations are released. Demo stays and introductions do not establish a family’s reliability.
The small privacy details matter.
New photo uploads are re-encoded in your browser, and embedded metadata is removed again before storage. That doesn’t remove visible children, school names, documents, or street numbers. Review each image before listing it.
Describe how a guest will control a baby monitor and disable host remote viewing. Agree that indoor cameras and recording devices will be off throughout the stay, and disclose any outdoor devices. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth labels alone don’t tell a family who can watch or listen.
Address lookup and nearby suggestions.
If you use address autocomplete or place search, your search text is sent through our server to Google Maps. Nearby searches and optional walking estimates also use the home location you select. You can instead enter your address and guide manually. Lookup does not verify that a home exists or that a family has permission to offer it.
Your listing shows the neighborhood you confirm. We keep your exact address separate and do not publish home coordinates or Google walking estimates. Selected Google places are saved as place IDs with your own tips and recommendation choices; their display details are fetched when needed. Google’s Privacy Policy applies to its processing. Read our terms of use.
Your circle stays yours.
Invite a family by sharing a personal link yourself. No address book upload or email address is required. Invitations expire after 14 days, can be replaced or revoked, and can be claimed by one family. Your invitation list isn’t published. Community administrators can see invitation status and the families involved, and revoke unused invitations when needed. Your private invitation labels and link tokens are not included in their referral list.
If something doesn’t feel right.
Signed-in members can report a listing from its home page. Reports are kept separate from the family’s public listing. My Family Getaway does not provide an emergency response service or independent verification. In an emergency, contact local emergency services.