We had a good stay and didn't experience any major problems. This house is in a tightly packed cul de sac in East Palo Alto. There's not really anything within convenient walking distance, so it's highly car dependent. The house is in good shape but shows wear, and could use a refresh. To be clear, there's nothing truly wrong here; we simply didn't have a GREAT experience.
We appreciated the host's quick response to the question we asked.
I took a few notes throughout the stay on things that the host might change to get to a great rating.
Cheap and easy to address:
• No toaster and no non-Keurig coffee (we bought and left a $33 coffeemaker)
• Kitchen pans, tools, and utensils very cheap and worn out
• Zero herbs, spices, sauces, etc
• No patio furniture or grill (probably locked up but we didn't have a key)
• No laundry detergent
• No backup toilet paper or paper towel
• Garage door opener light is out
• Kitchen sink hot/cold installed backwards and fixtures are loose
• Master bathroom towel bar loose/falling off wall
Medium cost to resolve
• Stained carpet in master bedroom
• Very worn wood hand rails and finishes in high-traffic areas
Expensive and/or hard to change
• Single zone HVAC: cold downstairs, hot up in bedrooms
• Curb lip to driveway is super steep
To be clear, the listing is accurate and we didn't have a bad stay; it's simply that this isn't a cheap listing, and an upgrade to guest experience and a fairly inexpensive refresh would make a big difference.