The apartment was great, although quite small, it was modern, well equipped as advertised, and spotless clean. Great location and the building facilities were very nice. Communication with Rajan (owner) were great. I would definitely stay here again and recommend it.
The only issue was with the check in and I think it's important that future visitors are aware of what I experienced and make sure in advance with Rajan that he has addressed these issues with the company he uses to manage the apartment (that's what he told me he will do).
The check in process was extremely cumbersome, apparently due to the fact that Rajan hired a local company to manage the process. Other than communicating with Rajan (who was fine), I was then contacted by a total of 3 different people sequentially to schedule the check in. Each one handed me off to the next one, not sure why only the actual person who met me couldn't contact me.
The actual check in person arrived with a lengthy inventory list which I was asked to sign, as if I were going to count the spoons. Whatever. Then the guy asked me for a $500 cash deposit! He even has this pre-printed deposit receipt ready, as if this was a normal standard request. This is where they crossed the line and I told him this would be reported to Airbnb immediately. He called his "office" and then backed down from the request. Very unorthodox.
They also left me with one key even though this was a 2-bedroom apartment and I was there with a colleague. Again at first when I asked for a second key he said I would need to give a $250 cash deposit. When I again I'd complain to Airbnb he said he's check with the office and ended up providing me with the key "free of charge".
Guests need to be aware of their rights and how the rentals work so they don't get "duped" into parting with cash deposits which who knows what happens with them.