We chose this rental because of the low rates and the great location, it seemed the best choice for a four-day trip. We had no illusions about it being a resort as the description labeled as “modest.” It actually looked nicer than expected with some apparent updates. As former landlords, we appreciated their work and the prompt responses to concerns. The overarching problem with the owner was in the lack of forethought and organization. Their lack of these qualities made this a frustrating and exhausting experience.
We arrived late on Sunday afternoon after travelling four hours from Atlanta. Our GPS led us to park in the front of the house—impossible as there is no street parking. We drove around the back and found a winding back road with the neighbor’s street number on it. There was no visible street sign for the property as it was lying face down near its cinder block holder. If the owner had forethought, she could have provided a map or video to aid weary travelers to assigned parking. At the very least, get a sign holder.
We were elated to find the house with the code to unlock the lockbox. We tried the code five to seven times with no luck. I called the owner and she answered and tried to help us until it dawned on her that she changed the code. It was news to me because she sent this code in a lengthy email buried at the bottom. We had intermittent access to our email while travelling, so it wasn’t easy to keep on top of last-minute changes. Getting into the house is a very important part of renting, so I would think getting this vital information to the renter immediately is best done with a phone call. I don’t have time to comb through every email to stay on top of last-minute changes Forethought would have led the owner to more effective communication choices and organization would have helped them see this need.
Safety, or lack thereof, was another issue. The stairs from the parking space to the door were dangerous to travel down, especially with luggage. They had no rail to grab onto while navigating the overly steep stairs which seemed angled as to force you forward. There were few solar lights there which placed too far away to light the pathway. It’s a matter of time before someone gets hurt. Definitely would not recommend this house for families with small children or the elderly. I am shocked that Airbnb would even let them list with this issue.
The front porch was a nice feature despite the cacophony from the street—loud cars, firetruck sirens, and loud sounds from the street. The problem here was the many spiders and other bugs which made it difficult to sit there for very long. I’m not an entomologist, but I believe a little organization would have led them to hire an exterminator. Bug bites are uncomfortable, but some spider bites can lead to an ER visit or worse.
The other disappointments we found were the out-of-order amenities we found. We got a message before we left Atlanta from the owner saying the TV had gone out and they would be replacing it on Monday. To our surprise, there was a brand new LG 55” TV there when we arrived. This was a pleasant surprise until we discovered there was no cable TV or HD antenna hooked up.
Instead they offered a Roku-like service which forces you to use your own logins so you can stream using the internet. There were two major problems with this approach. First there was no internet available and, two, It’s not safe to store one’s logins in a rental house TV. We tried resetting the router and wireless access point to no avail. Airbnb said there must be an “outage”. I complained and the next day someone dropped off an HDTV antenna.
They just left it for us to connect it. We did so only to spend hours scanning for channels in LG TV settings. We managed to find found 12 channels. Out of the 12 channels only one had a solid picture. If you wanted to stand in the corner and hold the antenna, you could find five more watchable channels. The final solution was to push the coffee table over to the TV and put the antenna on it flat out. Magically, I got 10 HDTV channels! The internet started working around 10pm on the second night. Unfortunately, the TV’s built-in internet was not connecting to it, so we gave up and just used our phones to stream shows. If you are cross-eyed from reading this account, take comfort in that you didn’t pay to experience it firsthand.

Along with the TV, the clothes dryer didn’t work--marked “out of order”. Would have been nice to do a load so we didn’t have to travel home with a smelly sack of duds in the back seat. We failed to bring our tool chest, so we didn’t attempt to fix it. We also decided to forego cleaning out the hot tub so we could use it. The TV debacle wore us out.

Overall, I wish the owners would do the right thing and refund some of the money we spent but that’s not likely to happen. My advice, avoid this rental until they get their act together.