I have been staying in AirBnB homes for the past fifteen years, and all of my experiences have been excellent until this one. Until now, I have had the good fortune to write only positive reviews that detail great locations, kind owners, and pleasant accommodations. This is the first time that I have written anything negative in a review, but it's important for others to know about our situation before they make a commitment to stay in this apartment.
On the plus side, the apartment is clean, quiet, and well-located. The bed and bed linens were very comfortable.
On the down side, communications from the host were slow to nonexistent, to the point that it stopped being just an annoyance and became a true concern. I don't know what we would have done if there had been a serious problem or an emergency, because neither Pierre nor the apartment management company responded to my multiple text messages and voice mails until days after I sent them.
We felt that there was nobody to call or message with questions or problems. This was exacerbated by the fact that, at the last minute, Pierre texted me that we would do a "self check-in" because he was extremely busy. This would have been fine, but the house manual was not complete and we had several questions about the place that could not get answered.
The week before I left, I sent Pierre a message with a couple of questions about the neighborhood, and it took him four days to respond. While it's okay to wait for a response when you are in the comfort of your own home, it is something entirely different when you have just arrived in a foreign country. Messages I sent when I arrived on Thursday (and again on Friday and Saturday) were not returned until the following Monday. Additionally, I could not get any response from the apartment management company that wrote the house manual. I emailed and called the company when I didn't hear back from Pierre, but they never responded during my entire 10-day stay.
Finally, on Monday, four days after my original message, Pierre texted me, and offered to stop by the apartment. I was thrilled, and let him know that we were just about to go out but could arrange to be at the apartment when he arrived. I asked him to text me his approximate arrival time. I did not hear back from Pierre for close to an hour, and then, finally, he wrote that he would be coming soon. We waited some more, and finally a young man (who identified himself as a colleague of Pierre's) stopped by to replace the lightbulb, but he seemed disinterested in helping us and actually gave us the wrong information on how to turn on the stove. Pierre had never informed me that someone else would be coming in his place, and he never followed up with us to see if his "colleague" had helped us or not.
We had several legitimate issues (a lampshade that was broken on arrival, a burned-out bulb, inability to turn on the stovetop or work the coffee maker) but I could not get a response from anyone in a timely manner. Curiously enough, the day we checked out, Pierre told me again that he would be coming by, but a different "colleague" showed up. This fellow was quite nice and helpful, and finally showed us how to turn on the stove. It was too late at that point, though, because we were leaving!
The apartment was clean and pleasant, but it appeared that the owners had never lived in it. There were no paintings or photos on the wall, the bathroom lacked an electrical outlet and rack for hand towels, and the kitchen had no cutting board. The two half-rolls of toilet paper that we were given were of the cheapest quality possible. All furniture and plates were standard Ikea-issue, and one chair came unscrewed while I was sitting in it.
It appears to me that this apartment is just a money-making venture for Pierre (whom I never met or talked to) and his "colleagues." There was no pride of ownership or interest in helping their guests. With so many quality places to stay in Paris, I recommend choosing a different apartment whose owner has a proven track record of responsiveness and positive customer service.