Host was very welcoming. She made sure that we had everything we needed, even making us a pasta dinner one night (that was delicious). She lives in a studio next to the house, but was very hands off and respectful.
The yard is really the highlight of the house. There is a nice pool, lots of beautiful plants including various herbs and even a lemon tree. We had 2 children (who were carefully watched as the pool is quite deep), and they had a great time swimming etc in the pool, and playing in the yard. We ate outside most days in the nice patio area in the back. It felt very private, and is quite pretty. There is a really nice hammock outside as well that we all enjoyed.
There are two really great parks for kids really close by, one that is just a block away. We really enjoyed those parks. The grocery store/other restarurants are about a mile away, and everything was quite convenient.
The kitchen is huge and has all the tools/serving utensils/plates etc you could want. I found everything quite clean, although of course older.
There is a laundry room downstairs, although no dryer (lots of clotheslines etc for drying), but the california sun is so quick, it dries everything very quickly.
All of the bedrooms and bathrooms are upstairs. There is one bedroom with a fantastic and large desk (for working from home) and quite a nice view. My husband was working from home and was very comfortable. There are actually 5 beds, and they are all very nice. The master bedroom has its own bath and closet, and the other bedrooms share the one bathroom.