This place wasn’t the worst place I’ve ever stayed at, but that said, I’ve camped in remote areas that were more comfortable than this spot.
Erick’s place is certainly VERY, very spacious for the price you’re paying, and it could be a very charming little spot. The neighborhood is lovely, and my partner and I had no trouble navigating the city from this place: transit was easy to find and hop onto, there were lots of little food and coffee spots within walking distance, and we felt totally fine walking around the neighborhood at night. All of these are perks to the spot. Unfortunately, the cons (in my opinion) outweigh the pros here, and I wouldn’t personally recommend this spot nor would I opt to stay here again.
First of all, the apartment was filthy. I mean, it was really dirty: the floors all throughout the unit were unswept and seemingly i mopped, and we found old pretzels, dead bugs, and rubber hair ties all over the floors all throughout the house. There was also dust and dead bugs all over the window sills. Now, I’m no novice to an old building: it’s hot, summer just ended, and I can ignore a few dead bugs here and there… but there were also splattering the entire bathroom ceiling, including surrounding a bathroom vent that was nearly orange and caked in dust.
Secondly, the dining room AC unit had mold in the air vent, and I mean quite a bit of mold, so we avoided using it completely. There is a “white” refrigerator in the kitchen that also was growing a colony of black mold and it was overall disgusting. The entirety of it was covered in food and grease stains and streaks, but the water/ice dispenser was the worst of it and where the mold grew. There is a second fridge to use in the kitchen, and it’s a little newer and nicer, but the fact that the other fridge remains in there is kind of gross and definitely an eyesore at the very least.
Furthermore, we found a giant hairball hanging from the shower bar, a few cabinets full of old, opened food items, and some of the kitchen shelves were as unclean as the fridge. We just completely avoided using any of the dishes, because they were still sitting in the drying rack when we arrived (and based on some of the previous reviews, there was some hesitation). These last few bits are pretty minuscule in comparison to the first things mentioned, but I honestly have no idea what the cleaning fee we paid was for besides the beds being made.
The biggest issue wasn’t even the uncleanliness of the unit. The MOST alarming part here was the fact that the neither lock on the back door worked, and the door doesn’t fully close. We tried to push the door and get it to lock as best as we could, and the deadbolt would not lock in place; the doorknob’s lock didn’t work either way we turned it. So the back door remained unlocked our entire stay (which was ironic, given that Erick was very particular about us making sure we locked the front door). It made us feel super uneasy during the stay, especially knowing that other folks were also staying in the building, knowing that they could easily enter the unit through the back if they tried.
Another review mentioned that it’s really a shame because this could be a 5 star place for its price, and I have to agree. It has a lot of potential to be a good place to stay, and for what it’s worth, this place served its purpose for us: we had an affordable place to sleep while visiting Chicago. It wasn’t the best- clearly- but it wasn’t the worst.
For real photographic reference:
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMRpb1Y48/