Not as advertised and bad communication from the owner
Submitted: May 27, 2011
Stayed: May 2011
I recently stayed there for a weekend 5/13 to 5/16. First of all, the owner originally committed to a contractual agreement allowing us to check in on 5/12 and checking out on 5/16. Then, 2 weeks before our check in date, the owner told us that double booked us and that we had to find another place to stay for one night. He did not offer to help us or accommodate us at all, which would have been the honorable thing to do since it was his fault. So with 2 weeks until we arrive in Miami, we scrambled to find a hotel, which of course was more expensive per night than the rate at the house.
The house was nice, until we got to the pool. We rented the house with the anticipation of relaxing by the pool and doing some swimming. We were not able to use the pool due to the yellow slime and dirt at the bottom of the pool as well as the debris floating on top of the water. I understand leaves and pollen may float on top of the water, however this was far beyond that. In fact, we contacted a neighboring property manager to see what they would charge to clean the pool. The property manager indicated that this pool had not been serviced in at least a couple of weeks if not months and would take a couple of days to clean. By then, we would be gone. So, we were not able to use the pool for the entire stay. We even emailed the owner while we were there, and to this date, he has never responded.
The advertisement for the property says it comes with a gas grill. However, you must have a filled propane tank to use the gas grill. The tank that the owner had attached to the grill was empty, so we ended up having to buy a propane tank at the nearby store, which we of course had to leave there.
The size of the property is nice, but the attention to details and the lack of responsiveness from the owner made this trip not as pleasurable as it could have been.
Owner's Response: Guest:
I recently stayed there for a weekend 5/13 to 5/16. First of all, the owner originally committed to a contractual agreement allowing us to check in on 5/12 and checking out on 5/16. Then, 2 weeks before our check in date, the owner told us that double booked us and that we had to find another place to stay for one night. He did not offer to help us or accommodate us at all, which would have been the honorable thing to do since it was his fault.
Owner:
I did inform the customer about the double booking same day after deposit was made. I offered a refund but customer assured that the mistake wasn’t a big problem, he would have only four guests in his party over the first night and a hotel would just be fine.
Guest:
So with 2 weeks until we arrive in Miami, we scrambled to find a hotel, which of course was more expensive per night than the rate at the house.
Owner:
I did help the customer finding a hotel closely to the house
Guest:
The house was nice, until we got to the pool. We rented the house with the anticipation of relaxing by the pool and doing some swimming. We were not able to use the pool due to the yellow slime and dirt at the bottom of the pool as well as the debris floating on top of the water. I understand leaves and pollen may float on top of the water, however this was far beyond that.
Owner:
The pool is cleaned and maintained every Tuesday from a professional pool cleaning company. There is an external pool vacuum on site to use if necessary (occasionally we experience strong winds). I have had not installed a permanent vacuum because I felt that the hoses get in your way if swimming. I did install a permanent Hayward pool vacuum after the complaint.
Guest:
We even emailed the owner while we were there, and to this date, he has never responded.
Response:
I was out of country attending a funeral and I did informe customer in advanced of my absence. I left guest with two alternative numbers to call if problems arise.
Guest:
The size of the property is nice, but the attention to details and the lack of responsiveness from the owner made this trip not as pleasurable as it could have been.
Owner:
I am very sorry to hear that the guest didn’t have a good time. I have been renting the property for over five years and received nothing as compliments. Please read all my other reviews. Hope to see you soon. Life is good!
Cheers
Heiko
Helpful votes: 10/10
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