We had a nice stay at Brian's place and stayed for about a month. The keyless entry, garage, smart TV, laundry facilities, and space, and equipped kitchen were fantastic. If we had brought our dog, they would also have had a fenced in yard so the location provided us good flexibility. I worked from home for a week and worked on the bar in the kitchen—it was a good set up.
The location was great — a quiet street next to a park within short distance to Highway 7. Since it was in St. Louis Park it was 10 minutes into Uptown, and had quick access to the other major MSP highways.
Diane and Brian were very responsive, and graciously allowed us to stay one extra night after I made an error on the reservation.
One security issue that made me uncomfortable was that there was not a lock on the door connecting the house and the garage. Since garage doors (even with codes) can be broken into, I felt uncomfortable with the fact there wasn't a deadbolt or lock on it. Several family members commented on the lack of a lock after visiting. After communicating this concern to Brian and Diane, I received a statement assuring me that it was safe but I still ended up ordering a portable lock on Amazon to add to my bedroom door at night (the door connecting the house and garage opens outward so the portable lock did not work on this door).
The location was clean except for the carpets in the basement. We found some trash (bits of plastic such as those used on clothing tags, a metal fastener, etc) in the downstair carpet and an odor.
It's a duplex, so you'll hear the neighbors walking around (it sounds a bit like there's somebody in the house). You can also hear basketball players from the park—it was more pleasant than anything. I was woken a few times early in the morning by the train.
My mom found the upstairs bedrooms' 2 mattresses thin and uncomfortable (probably good for kids or teenagers)— so she moved into the basement bedroom (much thicker mattress) so that's a consideration.
Overall, a nice and solid place to stay in Minnesota though there is room for improvement (comfort of mattresses, locks added to bedroom doors and garage door, garage opener, providing a lingerie bag for laundry, etc).