Shared housing in Paris?

I travel to Paris at least twice a year and I am looking for a way to keep from throwing money away on hotel rooms and rent. Any ideas out there? I would like to get some kind of return on my investment so I do not want to do a time share.

Thanks

Difficult to give you a good solution.

If you rent a studio or even a single room, you will pay at least 400 or 500 euros each month.

Maybe you can find a hotel and make an arrangement to pay less if you tell them you come often there.

Some hotel have fidelity programs, for example the Accor chain :
http://www.accorhotels.com/gb/home/index...
I think you can have some gift from time to time or some free night...

The last solution would be to have a friend in Paris with a spare room where you can come and stay from time to time...probably difficult to find!

Hi Ray Ray,

There are always new ways of doing things, and it's possible to find a solution to your visits to Paris.

It depends on whether your long-term plan is to actually buy a propery, or be a part-owner of a property.

I think a good first step would be to post your request on CraigsList Paris:

http://paris.craigslist.org/

You could post a message every couple of weeks and be explicit with what you need, and see what kinds of responses you find. There well might be someone with a room to rent on a more permanent basis, or looking for someone to buy into a place.

If you're just looking for less expensive accommodation, this is also possible. Check it out on Craigslist and also visit French expat forums like:

http://paris.angloinfo.com/forum/

I've found studios for around 300 euro for a week, which is much better than a one star hotel.

There are also B&Bs, private homes and all kinds of other options - it may be that someone is looking for someone to housesit which coincides with your trips.

Do you like cats? Here's a website with members worldwide - including France - where accommodation's always free as long as you care for the cat/dog of the house in the owner's absence:

http://www.mindmyhouse.com

There's nothing available there in Paris right now, but keep checking.

Also, I was wondering if there is a product or service you can barter with? Think about what you could offer to sweeten a deal.

Best of luck!