Tony was a nice guy and great host. He made sure we had the fridge stocked for breakfast and coffee in the morning. He even offered us a pair of symphony tickets that we were unable to take advantaged of. The pets around the house were awesome. His scifi/fantasy artwork was impressive. He really tried everything he could to make our stay comfortable. He even let us check out later so we could leave our luggage there before our flight.
The place is definitely Austin weird, it can border on creepy for those who expect 4 star hotels as we had some in our party. But if you are into Gothic/scifi/ fantasy themes, this is the place for you. The house doesn't have a floor plan that flows well as additions were made to maximize space. One of the two bathrooms did not have access from the main building. So there was only access to one bathroom in the main building and to get to one of the rooms. You had to go through the bathroom or access through the back yard. As for cleanliness, tony did his best to clean the property. If the condition of motel 6 rooms aren't for you, this property might not be a right fit.
Unfortunately we were in Austin during rain storms and were not able to take advantage of the yard. This was probably the place at the property where larger parties could hang out. To be fair tho we did have 12 people on the property which may have been too many. The El Niño weather has created a lot of mosquitos and water bugs. Some made their way into the house. The koi pond and standing water in the buckets didn't help. The back yard would have been awesome if we attended during dry times. Tony put a lot of time into the backyard and Shelley the tortoise was a blast for the kids. The koi fish were awesome too.
With all that said, I think we used this property at a bad time during flood warnings and such. If you attend Austin at better weather. I think the use of the back yard would make this property awesome. I was ok with the property because I booked it but since it's for larger parties, just make sure your other guests have the appropriate expectations of this property. Tony does lay most of it out in the property descriptions.