On paper this apartment seems great; looks well maintained, stylish, reasonably priced... but in reality this is the lone airbnb in a residential complex, creating a huge distraction for the residents and putting the apartment on display (It's also littered with bug infestations but I'll get into that in a bit).
I chose to stay at The Sunset Palms because it was near a neighborhood I needed to be in for work travel and was reasonably priced for a 7 night stay. I arrived at night and within 20min of me getting settled, a resident came to the door to ask details about the apartment and if it was an airbnb and was I traveling alone (I was)... right out of the gate it was clear that this apartment was always turning over and had become a distraction enough that the residents were watching it/curious about it.
The following day I was greeted by an off leash dog who chased me through the parking lot. The owner was really apologetic and very nice, but I honestly thought I was going to have to fight off a dog attack. Shortly after that, I was approached by a resident asking if I was alone and wondering if I was dating anyone... all of this just reinforcing the fact that the constant stream of new faces in this apartment was distracting to people who lived there.
I felt constantly watched (and say nothing of the fact that someone definitely came into the apartment to fix the sink while I wasn't there and no one told me it was happening... I had to piece it together from the debris that was left behind and the newly functioning sink).
Now the bugs. I should start by saying that the place is legitimately well maintained. It's clean and stylish as pictured but it absolutely has a bug problem.
Cockroaches (the small kind that infest) are EVERYWHERE. You move a glass, there's a cockroach. You lift a towel, a cockroach falls out. And I'm not squeamish about bugs (in fact I'm even willing to acknowledge the intense rain was driving them inside) and if it had only been the roaches I might have been able to deal with it, but it wasn't... it was also the fruit flies and the gnats that CRAWLED ON MY BODY while I tried to sleep. I had to kill several of them to fall asleep but woke up to more. And lastly on the bug front... don't leave anything on the counter, even in the container. I purchased blueberry muffins for the morning and when I woke up they were covered in tiny ants inside their plastic container.
I really wanted to like this place. Ames was really thoughtful in communicating ahead of time and responding once I told her about the bugs but I just didn't. I went out of my way to stay away from the place longer.
My recommendation to the management company: Tell the residents what you're doing with this apartment. Demystify it so it's not so disruptive to them. Additionally, tell the vacationers about the complex. Lastly, you have a bug problem. And maybe it's the whole complex, but it's there (I even peaked at the rental agreement where they call out bug problems).
I really think this place has potential to be a great stay (I'm a big fan of the decor aesthetic) but I think next time I'm in town, I'll opt for something else.