I've used AirBnB for over a decade, and this was by far the most stressful experience I've had. My husband and moved from Chicago to North Carolina a little over a year ago, and we try to get back to Chicago every 8 weeks or so. We travel with our sweet, well-behaved dog, River.
River is a country dog, so it's really important that we have a private outdoor space where she can do her business without all of the loud noises and distractions of city life. Ami's place was listed as pet-friendly and featured a large, fully fenced grass yard with a patio and fire pit. There was a $140 pet fee, but was high compared with other AirBnBs, but it seemed worth it. The listing specifies that the names of all guests, number of parking permits requested, and pet name, breed, weight, and vaccination records must provided in advance of your stay. Immediately upon booking (a month in advance of our reservation), I sent Ami all of the requested information except for River's vaccination records (I had to get them from the vet). A short time later, I received a message requesting all of the information I had just provided. I responded to confirm that my original message had been received, and Ami confirmed and explained that the message I had received was an automated one. Great! I didn't hear anything else for a month.
The Wednesday prior to our Saturday check in, I sent River's vaccination records and asked questions about the yard and parking permits. Ami responded parking permits were $15 per day, making our fee $45 for a 3-night stay. It is important to note here that, as former residents, we are well aware that street parking permits are $8 for 15, or $0.53 cents each. He said he was unable to grant our request for early check in but could offer late check out, but we had not requested either at any point. Ami also that our reservation did not indicate that we were bringing a dog and that we would need to Venmo/Quickpay $140 immediately. This was untrue; however, even had there been an error in our reservation, I sent the message with River's name, breed, and weight a month prior AND confirmed that the message was received. Why would this not have been communicated at that time? I informed Ami that I had, in fact, booked with a pet and paid the $140 pet fee. I sent screenshots. Ami responded as though I was refusing to pay the pet fee and threatened to cancel our reservation if we did not send $140 right away. He also informed me that if River so much as peed in the yard, we would be fined $500 due to the "prize roses/azaleas," and we would have to take River to a nearby dog park to relieve herself. I reiterated that I was not refusing to pay the pet fee, but rather had already paid it.
I then contacted AirBnB support, and they confirmed that the fee was paid at the time of booking. When I shared AirBnB Support's response with Ami, he went radio silent for 18 hours - which left us unsure of whether our reservation was confirmed or canceled. We began working with AirBnB to see if they could issue a refund or rebook us elsewhere. Before those arrangements were complete, Ami finally responded. He apologized for the belated response and said they had been on a plane to Puerto Rico to oversee the renovation of their properties there. He also said he'd just spoken with AirBnB and that AirBnB sent him an incorrect receipt, which led to the confusion. He confirmed our reservation, and given that we had under 48 hours before our arrival in Chicago, we agreed to go ahead.
When we arrived Ami's place, it was clean and the three window AC units were pumping full blast. The space was smaller than we had expected from the listing, and there were several large gouges in the walls. We couldn't get the living room light and ceiling fan to work despite the remote lighting up when we pushed the buttons. Many of the convenience items pictured in the listing photos were missing, particularly kitchen items. This was not a big deal because we had brought with us everything we needed. The balcony facing the yard was very large and semi-private. We appreciated the string lights and furniture, though the high top table was so wobbly as to be useless. The dog park was, in fact, very nearby but still less convenient than the yard (which we never accessed for fear of a fine) and noisier/more stressful for River (who couldn't eat or pee for 36 hours due to being overwhelmed, poor baby). Overall, the apartment was serviceable, but not outstanding and not as advertised.
On our last morning, we followed the check out instructions and loaded everything into the car to begin our drive back to North Carolina. When we attempted to start the car - which had been parked immediately in front of the AirBnB the entire time - the engine made terrible noises and the check engine light came on. We found a nearby auto repair shop, where the mechanic confirmed that the catalytic converter had been stolen off of our car while it was parked in front of the AirBnB. Thankfully, they were able to replace it immediately, and it's covered by our insurance; however, I messaged Ami to let him know for the benefit of future guests, and he never responded.