DO NOT STAY HERE.
Lack of cleanliness —-
This home was filthy and not professionally cleaned. These are the issues I found upon arriving:
1. BLACK MOLD in the grout of the shower tiles and fuzzy black mold at the highest point of the tiles. (I draw the line at black mold).
2. Floors were filthy. Dust bunnies throughout the apartment.
3. Hairs throughout the bathroom.
4. Stained bath mat.
5. Stained table cloth.
6. Splatter on the fridge and around the stove. Gunk in the strainer in the kitchen. Refrigerator not wiped down inside.
Home was not as advertised —
There is not a pull-out sofa as listed in the description and there was not extra bedding for the futon that was there.
Host’s demeanor—
Initially, the host was very friendly and communicative. However, upon raising my concerns, he was entirely disrespectful and resorted to name-calling (“sneaky” and “overly sensitive” for describing the issues I found, including the black mold) and told us we could leave if we did not like the place. While he did offer to credit us for the purchase of a new blanket, he did not offer a resolution to the cleanliness issue. He accused us of false allegations despite photographs — as if uprooting our stay at the beginning of our vacation and after a 14 hour drive was to our benefit?
A couple of red flags from the get-go was that he urged us to park illegally on his block and leave a note that we are residents — folks, his block prohibits overnight parking except for those with permits and Chicago parking patrol will not accept a written note; you could face a $200 fine. He also informed us that his neighbors and landlord don’t like that he does AirBnB, so he instructed us to pretend that we’re his friends.
I have never left a negative review in the approximately 7 years I have been using AirBnB.
It seems David is just looking to make a quick buck and the condition of his apartment and his behavior demonstrated that he’s not interested in providing a comfortable, cleanly, safe feeling stay. So, if you choose to book, know what you’re getting into.
There are other AirBnBs and hotels at comparable rates if you look out for deals.