[Harkins]

I've been on the road six months so far, and have been using Craigslist, AirBNB, HomeAway, and VRBO.com. (Though these last two nearly never have sane prices.)

You absolutely have to haggle. Every time. Even if you're only staying two days, ask for a discount because you're a quiet computer programmer who knows how to clean up after themself. Other good reasons include last-minute offers and long stays. I've knocked 50% off of ~50 nights so far, the usual discount for even trying anything is 25%, and only once has none of the half-dozen places I've contacted not taken something off the price.