I am not sure where to begin with this property as we had so many problems. We traveled all day from Michigan with 3 small children, 3 and under, and drove right into a sign that said the road was closed to our only parking and Garage from June 22-July 2nd. We immediately called the property manager/owner who claimed she had no knowledge of this but in the very next breath said the contractors had worked out parking at a hotel blocks away; indicating she clearly knew about the construction, and had received notice. The construction continued our ENTIRE visit from 7a-4p, we called Orion Construction ourselves and they informed us that everyone was given ample notice and they had an email they could forward us showing they also emailed the homeowners informing them of the work to be done. If we were informed of this we would have made other arrangements or flat out canceled our trip. With covid we had the option to cancel 24 hrs before our reservation and I believe the owner knew this and completely deceived us waiting until we arrived for us to be too late to make any changes. Once it fully sank in what a nightmare we were in we immediately got online looking for a new rental and unfortunately there were none available. I cannot even tell you what a nightmare it was. Jack hammering for hours all day every day. My children were unable to nap because of the noise so that threw everyone into a hectic tired schedule. Walking 4 blocks with 3 small kids and all our stuff for each day was beyond tedious when we were led to believe we would have a 2 car garage and a parking spot in front of the garage at the property. Also, we couldn’t park at the hotel over the weekend so attempting to find parking was very stressful and basically kept us hostage and fearful to leaving the parking spot in fear we wouldn’t find another. Imagine 4th of July parking at the beach!!!
Next problem. When we arrived we were told the refrigerator was not working but again she could have informed us of this 3 days earlier when she said she found out but chose to hit us with it the day we arrived! (deceived again) She informed us it would be repaired in 2 days. Initially, no issue; refrigerators go out at times. The manager/owner informed us she had put dry ice in the fridge and freezer for our groceries in the meantime. When we got there, there were towels on the floor because it wasn’t dry ice, it was just bags of ice that were melting everywhere. (picture enclosed) Sears repairmen come and tell us they can’t fix it, that this model is so old they don’t even make it anymore. Meanwhile the property manager is trying to tell us it’s only 2 years old; another lie. She ends up having a refrigerator delivered to the garage so now every day multiple times a day, anything we needed, we’re walking up and down the stairs. Not exactly what we expected. Meanwhile, because of all the ice she put in the refrigerator, this awful moldy smell permeated throughout the house. We had to hear this anytime anyone came to the house “what is that awful smell?.” We had to clean it ourselves, mop up the floor and air out the doors at night until the smell finally disappeared 3 days later.
Next problem. The house was not clean at all. My kids feet were immediately sandy and dirty when they walked around barefoot. The coffee filter from the previous guests was left and had moldy grounds in there. The beds looked like sheets had been thrown up on, a comforter loosely thrown on and a throw pillow to make it look made.
We should have bailed the second we saw the construction. But the homeowner swore it was going to end on Thursday. It didn’t and we just encountered more and more problems. When we looked on air bnb there wasn’t anything left to rent except some scattered properties in La Jolla 1k or over a night. We’ve used Air Bnb multiple times and this was truly the first time we felt duped and had any issues at all. Despite problem after problem, she never offered us any kind of compensation for our troubles. So what was supposed to be a relaxing beach vacation was a complete unrelenting nightmare. We even left for Palm Springs for several days just to escape the noise and try to get some peace and relaxation. Those were the only 4 days out of 15 that we actually felt like we were on a vacation. After we had checked out the owner literally sent us a text (enclosed picture of it) accusing us of stealing packages that were left in the garage (enclosed picture) and were found by the owner after the accusation. We are not used to being treated like this and demanding a full refund. Whether airbnb decides to do the right and refund or we have to file a lawsuit for our money back, so be it! Lastly I would advise all to rethink dealing with this property and be aware construction is going on all around this neighborhood.