I have had asthma since i was very young and air quality is the #1 thing that sets it off. This includes cigarette smoke, mold, and dust. I travel almost weekly for work and several times a year for pleasure. Wherever I go the first thing I check is for things I know that will set off my asthma. Those things are checking the bathroom for mold, checking the vents for dust, and in general any smell that can set it off.
The first thing I checked here was the bed for bed bugs - That was good. I went to inspect the bathroom and there were long black hairs on the toilet, block mold on the ceiling, dirty vents, and mold in the corner by the tub. The cigarette smell was evident and that's when I contacted the host. The smell was coming from the living room and the couch. It's visibly dirty.
So while most of guests would have been happy to stay here for me it's a non starter. I can't be in rooms with those things. If this were a hotel I would have asked for a different room.
The host offered to have it cleaned but my wife and I had dinner reservations for our anniversary dinner at a very nice place. We needed to be able to get ready for it. The room that night was unusable for us. I had to find us a place where we could get ready and stay for that night. If he had the room cleaned thoroughly I wouldn't have been able to stay in it because of the mold and dust being released. It is truly a health issue for me. The dirt around the door handles and the filthy back porch are secondary issues.
So here I am.. stuck without a room to stay in without it affecting my asthma and I had to make a decision. I chose to cancel my reservation and move on with my evening to a more expensive place. The host offering to clean after the fact does not make this situation right. I asked Brad for a refund and refused to compensate any money unless he could successfully rebook it. I'm in sales and also a small business owner so I get that returning money hurts. But honestly Brad's airbnb should have been pulled off as a listing to allow a thorough cleaning and repairs. This trip left a bad taste for me for ever using Airbnb again.