Warning: this owner has proven himself incapable of even minimal self-responsibility, reasonable responsibility, or any of the norms of quality hosting (or even human kindness). Do not rent from this person with any confidence at all.
We are a family of four in between long term rentals. We reserved this "Amazing Beachfront House" for a week only to find that beyond being only tolerably appointed, questionably clean, and boasting hot-tub water quality as inviting as a mop bucket, all of which we could have lived with as we had no energy to move again, we awoke the first morning to construction workers just outside our window at 7AM commencing with non-stop full-on construction noise for the following 9 hours in the connected contiguous row house just adjacent.
We are not complainers and we always give others the benefit of the doubt, but having initially politely reached out the first thing that morning to alert the owner of this massive disturbance to anything like reasonable vacation rental peace, the owner proceeded to real himself to be testy, rude, and markedly uncaring.
With audio/video proof in hand and no even polite or diplomatic apology for the obvious upset and concern (this was day-1 of seven and our kids we’re already stressed by the incessant banging, pounding, and sawing), he asked for some time to “do his research” and we sat for the next 6 hours waiting for follow-up that never came. After pursing him with texts and calls (as our window to book last min alternative accommodations was quickly disappearing) he finally got back to us with a cavalier and ridiculous reply:
- He was incredulous and unapologetic.
- Since his friend next door doing the work would not start till 8 and be done by 4 this should be no problem.
- This callous and selfish individual went on to dismiss our experience,
- told us that "as a construction worker I can tell you that the sounds are no big deal, ...just use the other side of the house... I've had others there and they didn't complain..."
- and proudly asserted that we were not due any apology, or special resolution, and certainly no refund.
- that he had no way of knowing "when they would start construction again", was "not obliged to change his ad...and San Francisco is a noisy city...get used to it"
- that we could take it up with Airbnb but that he was done with us.
So there we are. We of course offered to pay for the day we stayed (most of the time waiting for him to get back to us) plus clean, etc. and write a maximally fair review, highlighting the reasonable equitability and fair-play we were anticipating. No go. This guy wants to keep the balance of over $6k as an unearned windfall after the construction his buddy is running next door made anything that might have been “Amazing” about this otherwise humble part of town and tired location unworkable and chased a kind family away.
Now to Airbnb’s protections to make right when a selfish host seems unwilling to demonstrate any human-level mutual care, honest equitability, or the kind of reasonable integrity for which Airbnb is otherwise famous.