I booked Fahri's place after seeing the reviews and checking the location. It is centrally located in Fatih, very close to the beautiful colourful houses of Balat. Location-wise, it was a nice place.
The house itself was not very good. Everything is made of wood, which makes the place look very nice. But, it is awful to stay because you can hear anyone walking upstairs. The whole night people living upstairs kept walking about, moving furniture, and talking. Because all the floors have wooden flooring, you could hear even the slightest noise. When people walked, it sounded like stomping. It would echo through our whole house. We could not sleep even a wink that night.
Additionally, the house is right above a busy street. It is noisy till 10PM and then early morning you will be awoken by a nearby mosque. Overall, it was a very noisy apartment and we got no sleep.
Also the apartment we stayed at was located on the 2nd floor, you have to climb 3 flights of narrow stairs with your bags. Very tiring.
The kitchen area and dishes were dusty. They could have been cleaned a little more. The wifi at the house is an open network not protected by password, so beware if you are sending out personal information - it could get hacked.
Amenities-wise that house was ok. It had a washing machine, a comfortable hot shower, kettle, television, and most importantly a room heater. The apartment is actually very pretty and comfortable, if not for the stomping upstairs and the noise from the street. Also I think the host should spend more time cleaning the apartment.
As for Fahri, I was very disappointed with her. She was not communicative at all. She would not respond to my messages on Airbnb or other platforms. She did not send me the address to the location until a few hours before check-in. I had to repeatedly remind her to send me the address. She was not helpful in guiding us to the location either. Not an easy person to communicate with.
Overall, if you are looking to stay specifically in Fatih or Balat, this might be an ok choice. But I am sure there are better options nearby. Also the food in this area is overpriced compared to other parts of Istanbul like Beyoglu or even Taksim.