I stayed in Laurie's house this summer while I had a 10-week internship. Laurie is a wonderful person, and takes good care of her guests. She washed my sheets when she was washing hers, emptied the trash in my room, and let me eat some of her leftover dessert. She even invited me to go out with her some evenings to see the Garland and Dallas area. This house was in a wonderful location. I felt safe in the neighborhood, and there were lots of shops nearby. If it wasn't so hot outside, I'm sure I would have loved walking around the lake or strolling through the arboretum.
However, there were some things that were not quite what I expected, and I want future guests to know what to expect.
1. The house is very warm. The listing says she has A/C, but it doesn't reach the bedroom or bathroom, or she chooses not to run it at all. There were many days when I would get to the house and the thermostat said 86 degrees. My first couple weeks, I was very uncomfortable- I had trouble sleeping, and I would be sweating before I even left the house in the morning to go to work. I told Laurie, and she put in a wall A/C unit which was very thoughtful and made the bedroom much more comfortable.
2. I found spiders or other bugs in the bedroom daily, and often got new bug bites when I was sitting in the living room.
3. If you are looking into a long-term stay, Laurie may add additional rules that are not listed on the Airbnb listing. Here are some of the rules that Laurie provided half-way through my stay:
"Please do not use the area to the right of the stove for food preparation, (cutting veggies, mixing ingredients, etc.) Use the counter to the immediate left of the stove, inside the sink, or on the glass dinette after removing the center piece...If you cook eggs, spray the pan while in the sink. Use the round splatter guard while cooking. If you cook eggs, make sure you break them in a bowl first to scramble them to put into your pan or lay them on a plate if you plan to sunny side up them. Be sure to scrub the side of the pan well if you just sunny-side cooked eggs...Fridge: No cartons except egg ones. No styrofoam boxes more than one night in the fridge. No plastic grocery bags...Clean up: If you use the stove, please clean below the grill if there is debris or grease. Always spray clean the stove top and surrounding counter top or kitchen table after food prep or eating....Living room: Please, no bare feet walking around the house and then on the furniture. That is what the house slippers are for. No electric cords (chargers) on top of the furniture. No cell phones laying on the leather. No purses on the leather furniture."
I am a clean person and usually one of the cleanest people in my apartment when I am at college, so these expectations were new for me. It's her house so she can make her own rules, but I want people to be aware that this house is best suited for someone who is tidy and always cleans up after themselves.