Here's the summary: Our car was stolen in front of this house about 3 hours after we checked in and the property manager couldn't seem to understand why we checked out the next day...
Here's the story: My traveling companion and I drove our rental car down Thrill Place (street name, no joke) in the evening en route to check in. It was around 6:30 PM as we passed rows of old, small houses. Some had bars on the windows, others were in great need of care, while a few sung quiet praises to their owners. As we parked on the street in front of this Airbnb, we heard no quiet praise. The lawn was overgrown with weeds and the house was a bland, weathered shade of brown. As we approached the door, we held out hope that the interior would reflect the charming pictures that attracted us to this listing. When the door swung open, our hopes were realized - the interior was bright, spacious and charming. We were pleasantly surprised. I laid down to test the bed's comfort and practically melted - very comfortable. We walked out to the backyard and were greeted by two old, dilapidated couches with full trash bags on top. They sat there waiting to be taken away. Had they been there a week? A month? Who knows. The eyesores just sat there. We looked out into the backyard to see more weeds as a backdrop to the patio furniture, which had seen better days. "Well, at least the inside is nice," I said. We unpacked, ate dinner, watched tv and called it an early night.
The beds were comfortable and the next morning came quickly. The sun was just rising as we woke up. I brushed my teeth and heard commotion from the living room. I walked out and my shocked traveling companion said, "our car is gone." We both paused. I looked out the window and the car was in fact, no longer where we parked it...or anywhere else for that matter.
We walked outside incredulously, searching for signs the car had been towed. Many cars were parked down the street as ours was. This led us to one possible conclusion: our car had been stolen in front of the house. We called the police and filed a report. I messaged our host, Samuel, and told him what had happened. Samuel checked the doorbell cam footage and said the car was in front of the house at 9pm but not by 10pm. He apologized, said this hadn't happened before, and added he would advise future guests not to park there.
My traveling companion and I already had a full schedule of obligations we were running late for. We decided later that afternoon that while we may have just been unlucky, and while the car was a rental, we didn't feel safe continuing our stay at this Airbnb. Our car was stolen about 3 hours after we checked in and before 10pm on our first night there! It was too brazen a crime for us to feel comfortable sleeping in those beds for another 4 nights. We returned back to the Airbnb, packed up, cleaned what little mess we made and left. I messaged Samuel and asked if he would consider a fair way we could check out early given what had happened. While I'm sure this caught him by surprise, the communication deteriorated. He told me his neighbors have had their car stolen downtown so essentially, it could have happened anywhere. While his neighbors may very well have had their vehicle stolen downtown and yes, car thefts do happen in many places, this particular car theft happened in front of his rental, where he is the host, and in a parking spot that was listed as a safe place to park.
The last communication he sent was to tell me the only refund I might get would come if I called Airbnb, opened up our remaining nights and then someone else rented those nights. Considering we had only spent one night in this place and there were extenuating circumstances, I had hoped he would be open to greater flexibility. A crime had been committed in front of his rental and while it certainly wasn't his fault, I would hope a reasonable host would be more understanding. Surely, we shouldn't be charged for 5 nights! I suggested as much but Samuel never replied.
I called Airbnb and explained the situation. The representatives were sympathetic and reached out to Samuel asking if he'd consider a fairer refund compromise. He apparently was unwavering in his position. Eventually, Airbnb checked us out and opened our reservation up for someone else to rent. While I assumed no one would be coming to rent our nights, Samuel never bothered to reply to my later question asking as much.
So there it is. An unfortunate, maddening and incredibly expensive night on Thrill Place...I won't be back.