I believe in leaving honest, yet fair reviews. With that being said, this stay was... Interesting and a bit frustrating.
The first thing worth mentioning, Bellanger isn't the host of this Airbnb, a woman named Theresa is the owner and host. She isn't very tech savvy, so I'm assuming she bought the property and has Bellanger taking care of the digital part. I only spoke with Bellanger once after making my reservation, and that was so he could connect me with Theresa.
The unit is brand new. So new that it wasn't completed when I booked (apparently, it was accidentally listed before completion). There were no curtains, beds, appliances (refrigerator, stove), or wifi. After I booked, I contacted Bellanger to ask if there was a refrigerator and stove (I didn't see them in the pictures), and that's when he told me that the unit is still being furnished and offered to cancel my reservation and provide a full a refund. Since I already made the reservation and would have been inconvenienced having to wait for a refund and find another place, I asked if I could keep the reservation, but at a discounted rate. I figured that would be a fair trade off, and would also benefit the host so they wouldn't have to cancel and lose out on a month long reservation. It was at this time that I was put in touch with Theresa and she offered me to come take a lot at the unit to see if it was suitable, sans the amenities.
The day of check in, I met with Theresa to look at the unit, deemed it satisfactory, then we agreed on a $100 discount. While checking out the apartment, I met Fabian who lives upstairs and lent himself to help with anything that I may need. Also while there, Theresa was doing a few last minute things and asked if the other guest and I would mind hanging pictures in the unit. We agreed to help with minor things and Theresa also advised that the refrigerator would be delivered in a few days, the stove would be delivered at the end of the month, and the blinds would be installed within that timeframe as well.
The day after we checked in, Theresa came by with a friend to deliver one of the beds and a TV, then came by a second time with an additional friend to deliver a dining room table and chairs, all of which I helped bring in to the unit. She said she'd have someone come put the table and bed together, but I offered to do it, because honestly, I was ready for everyone to leave. While they were there, Theresa took the opportunity to show her friend through the unit and kept making comments about how I should treat her furnishings and decor.
A couple days later, Theresa came by around 6am to meet with the delivery men who delivered the refrigerator, despite us agreeing that she didn't have to stop by because I would be there to receive the delivery. While there, Theresa made comments about how much stuff we had (we had three bins full of food for our month long stay, a large cooler, and our own mini fridge), asked me the name of our storage facility (I shared with Theresa that we just relocated to Chicago and had our things in storage), asked me where our storage unit was located, asked me if we had found an apartment yet (mind you, we booked a MONTH LONG stay and had only been there a few days), then asked me what we were going to do after our 30 days because she's "booked through the end of the year" (out of curiosity, I checked the calendar for the unit and there were NO bookings! lol). It was almost as if she didn't believe we had storage and was looking for an apartment. It also felt like she didn't want us to stay there, despite us booking a month. Also while there, Theresa made a comment about the dining room table that I hadn't put together. I explained to her that I thought I had my tools with me, but they were in storage. After that, she mentioned several times that she would have had someone come put "her table up" if I wasn't going to put it up. The entire time she was there, she made comments about "my this", "my that". Even went as far as telling me that nothing is supposed to be on "her" ledge in the kitchen aside from "her" vases.
Fast forward a few days later, I get a call from Theresa in which she starts "you know I got cameras, right?" I immediately became annoyed and frustrated because 1. I didn't know she had cameras because it wasn't mentioned in the listing, and 2. I didn't appreciate how she started the conversation. She was calling because one of us looked in the mailbox because we were waiting on documents from our family. When I told her I wasn't aware she had cameras at the unit, she went on to say that "one of her guys" told her we were in the mailbox and she "don't like nobody in her mailbox". Mind you, she doesn't live there. I explained to her that we were waiting on mail and that we were going to ask if we could hang the mailbox that was sitting on the floor, but it slipped my mind. She began to question me about receiving mail and packages at the unit, saying "you're only there for 30 days" and asking "you gonna get mail there before you leave in 30 days?" I responded saying that 30 days is a lengthy time and that I didn't think it would be a problem to receive mail and packages. She went on to say that she manages several Airbnbs and she's never had anyone get anything sent to a unit.