Misleading Listing Description
Submitted: August 9, 2011
Stayed: August 2011
I found the owner of this, so called, 'sunny cottage' to be misleading in her representation of the property. The location of her house is very wooded; there is little sun, as bright as the pictures seem to be. The entire interior of the cottage is the framing of the house; only the exterior wood paneling separates you from the moisture and the natural environment. Some individuals might appreciate this, but others might not.
From the moment of making my initial inquiry, the owner made sure I rushed into my commitment by telling me that she had someone else interested, and then, after I paid, she asked for an additional tax amount that was not listed in the cost of the weekly rental.
We were allowed to bring our two small dogs, and when we arrived, after making sure we didn't arrive early because the confirmation letter told us that maids would be cleaning until 3pm, the house was dank and dirty. There were cobwebs everywhere, and when we moved the beds to make them it was filthy. There were also containers of ant poisoning everywhere. Our dogs were drawn to it, and it was very worrisome. When I told the owner about my concerns she said that no one else has ever had a problem. She also said that the property had been empty for a week and that that may have been why there were cobwebs.
Furthermore, the only two bedrooms were on the second floor of the property, and it is more like an attic with only a ladder available to get to them. This is described as 'open stairs' in the owner's description, and only elderly individuals are warned that this rental might not be appropriate for them. The owner did describe the low ceiling, but that does not properly describe how limiting the bedroom environments are. We could barely get our luggage up there and my 16 year old son, linebacker sized, was afraid he'd break the ladder. I was just glad my very youthful mother, 65, wasn't with us, because she would never have been able to navigate the ladder to the bedrooms.
Extremely disappointed, we tried to get a hotel nearby and were out of luck. The icing on the cake was the coffee maker not working the next morning; of course, the owner blamed me for this problem, saying that her sister was able to work it just fine after we left.
After telling the owner she needed to be more honest in her description of her rental, she only reacted defensively, not proactively.
Renters be warned!
Recommended for:
Adventure Seekers,
Sightseeing
Owner's Response: My husband and I regret that Ms. H. was unhappy with our cottage. However, we feel that her characterization of our cottage and our interactions with her require a response.
After her inquiry I sent her the rental terms and price including tax. After she agreed to everything, I told her where to send the deposit. The interval between her inquiry and sending the check was several days, ample time for her to review the text and pictures and resolve any questions she might have.
I called the morning after her arrival to check that she was comfortable with the cottage. She was unhappy, expressing concern about her 300-lb. son using the staircase, among other things. It became clear that she had not paid attention to the text and pictures on the website.
Because some people may be uncomfortable with the staircase, it is pictured and described on the website. The stairs have 6-inch deep treads with sturdy handrails all the way up.
As shown, the walls are beaded board with open studs; the kitchen and bathroom walls are fully finished. The cottage is dry, with no mold or mildew, and the thermostatically-controlled propane stove keeps it comfortable. The second floor is not full height; the exact height dimensions and pictures are shown. Her use of the word 'misrepresented' came into use only after we pointed out the information on our website.
When the sun is shining, the cottage is bathed in light from early morning until mid-afternoon. Later, the back deck is shaded by trees and the front porch by the cottage itself. Ms. H. arrived about 3:00 p.m. and it rained the next day.
I learned that Ms. H. left the cottage 24 hours after the fact. The cottage was inspected within a few hours; it was clean except for dust under one bed and a couple of cobwebs. The coffee maker, which I had offered to replace, worked. Ant traps are in common use in summer cottages, and previous renters with dogs had no problems. Surprisingly, Ms. H. left a plastic bag with dog feces on the front porch table.
We have rented this cottage to vacationers since 1988 and use it ourselves. It provides us with much pleasure, and the reviews on this website show that many others feel the same way. It is our goal and in our best interest to represent this rental property accurately and to do all that we can to make people's vacations here enjoyable. We will continue to work to achieve that.
Helpful votes: 1/1
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