The unit had a problem with the heat that should be in the description so it is known before renting.. The heat is central for the building. It was oppressively hot. Ali’s solution was to open a window. There were problems with that. Either the room was too cold or too hot. Adjusting the window regularly was bothersome, especially at night. Moreover, I’m order to let air in with the window open the blinds needed to be up.As there are floors of apartments looking in, this was an issue. Also, leaving the window open let in rain. Of course, it rained a lot.
Those factors are not in and of themselves an issue. The issue is that we did not rent under those conditions. Had that been disclosed, others may well have found the compromises acceptable because of the good quality, good price and excellent location. We would not have rented knowing the situation. It is not possible that Ali did not know about this. When we pointed it out to him he explained the central heating for the building and told us what to do.
We said we found this unacceptable and would leave. We found an alternative starting on the fourth day of our stay at the unit, the last day. A day after we informed Ali we were leaving he offered another unit. That would have been acceptable had he not delayed because we found an alternative. Again, he was clear there would be no refund and did not indicate he would offer an alternative until time passed and we had made other arrangements.
Had it been me, and had I not disclosed the heat issue and had the guest pointed out that what was contracted was not what was delivered, I would have apologized and offered a refund for days (day in our case) not stayed. Ali was clear that would not happen. I consider that short sighted and a mistake.
If you think this is a bad review of the unit or the pricing, read it again. For many, the value proposition is very good. The issue is lack of disclosure and unwillingness to be fair. Offering an alternative a day after we said this unit was unacceptable, a day after we said we were leaving and after we had made other arrangements to stay elsewhere was a day late and a dollar short, as the saying goes.
I think Ali needs to disclose the heat issue as a caveat to prospective renters in order to be honest. And I think he needs to repair his reputation by offering a 1 day refund. Incidentally, I have no intention of pursuing the refund issue with Airbnb or the credit card company.
Lastly, there is no reason other guests should not read this. This was sent to Ali privately and is posted publicly. Note, I clearly think the value proposition for many is good. What is not good is the lack of disclosure of the heat issue.