Alex was very sweet and communicative throughout the entire stay. However, the unit was...unfortunately disappointing.
Pros:
-Great communication (Alex lives right next door)
-Location
-Allowed for a later checkout at 2pm (usual checkout is 11am)
Cons:
-Shower faucet would not turn off the first night I tried to shower. I had to stop showering, put my clothes back on, and have them come in to check it out. It was 11pm at night so that was a bit uncomfortable as I was exhausted and having 3 people in a very small space was bit worrisome considering COVID precautions. They found a way to shut it off so it wouldn't leak/drip all night and said they would call a plumber the next day. I didn't want someone go in and out of the unit due to COVID precautions so I requested the plumber to come after my stay. I showered only once thereafter because every time I did, the entire bathroom floor would be completely wet and the bath mat would be soaking and dripping. I had to literally put the bath mat out in the front right after I showered so it wouldn't feel wet and moist the whole night. They gave me a new bath mat every time so that was nice but it was overall very difficult to simply take a shower.
-During the short shower I was able to take before this commotion happened, I noticed a piece of dried up phlegm on the shower floor. This meant that they haven't really cleaned up the place all that well. After they left, I just took a paper towel and cleaned up the now moist loogie...
-The bathroom sink is 1/3 the usual size so it was VERY crowded with an antique (pretty but big) faucet towering over the sink and taking up space that is already limited. Ended up using the kitchen sink for my entire stay to wash my face, etc.
-The towels smelled a bit like wet rags and I don't know if it's all the moisture from the bathroom, lack of ventilation, etc but not that great... bought a candle just to block out the smell for the duration of the stay.
-There were 2 seating arrangements (1 loveseat and 1 swivel(?) chair). The swivel chair had a small dead bug on it and the loveseat had crumbles within the stitching... Had a travel blanket with me so laid it on top of the loveseat and only sat on that for the entire duration of my stay.
-Wanted a late night snack so I reached up to get some utensils and found a piece of dried up food particle on a fork... Ended up using my plastic to-go utensils instead.
-Residential street parking: I always came home between 8-10pm. Alex gave me a residential parking pass to hang inside my car but the parking spots were almost always full by this time frame so I parked a good 1.5 block away. Not a dealbreaker but something to consider if you had takeout, 6 pack of water, backpack, etc that you wanted to just take into the Airbnb unit in one go.
All in all, sad to say I do not recommend this Airbnb. Alex was very accommodating but the unit itself was a disappointment. The location was the ONLY reason why I could justify the total cost. I was very busy during the trip and it was relatively short (3 nights) so I just stayed at the Airbnb but if I had some leisure time and/or the trip was longer, I definitely would've cancelled the reservation and found a new Airbnb for my trip. With improvements, it could be a very good place to stay.