I know I will not be back to this place but readers can decide. There are many reasons that put me off and I left two nights before my checkout.
1) Gordon has an unacceptable way of cleaning his place. On my first day, as soon as I reached his home after my flight I went in the bathroom to freshen up. The bathroom was lacking freshness and was smelling like stagnant water. There were hair all over. I messaged him to which he responded saying he is using the same mop to clean his kitchen. I was stunned at that response.
Before booking his place, I checked with Gordon about his cleaning policy for long term guests. He first started with asking me to pay $40 for weekly cleaning and then in few minutes he came down to free. After two weeks, I reminded him of his words. He came back and in few seconds he vacuumed the hair from the floor and that’s it. He calls that cleaning. So no antibacterial soap or anything like that - so think where you will land. Place full of bacteria
2) I requested Gordon if I could park my car on the side other than the one I chose. He very rudely said that I will tell my daughter (7-8 years old) that we have a VIP at home. Gordon and his daughter, they live on the 2nd floor and every day she climbs up and down several stairs. My reason tomake that request was because my spot was under the tree and my car would be full of pollen. Parking close by is not available because streets are narrow and almost taken. So, also beware of parking issues
3) The light bulb outside the door was not replaced nor there was any lights on the garage door. So, if you were to come in after day light then you have to rely on either neighbor’s light, street lights, or phone light. I tripped many times because of poor light conditions. The neighbor has a dog and was kept unleashed and I was almost attacked once. So safety should be a concern.
4) I was at this place during the PG&E power cuts and I was checking if he has made any contingency plan after he informed me about the likelihood of losing power. To which, he said he would gladly accept if I was to provide a generator. I was stunned again to hear that.
5) His washer and dryer are quite old and take very long time to do job. In the last week, I tried to wash but couldn’t start so I asked him to check. He did a poor job of communicating about the status. He kept on playing with machine that lead to my clothes floating in the water. There was no work done on the machine until the last three days and ultimately, I had to take clothes out and dry them so I could pack and take it to a coin based laundry.
6) Gordon has a weird way to respond when you notify him of any issue. I reported that the Internet is unstable. To that he responded saying software engineers have used and they don’t complain. I have an expensive modem. I was so frustrated by then. I decided to just vacate the place.
7) The room is small and packed with furniture. So, no place to move around. Some furnitures have sharp edges and I cut my finger once.
8) There are not real good restaurants around. The highway is about 2 miles away.
9) the nightly rate could seem reasonable but be sure the check the breakdown at checkout. You get charged for occupancy taxes.
The only thing I will say is a plus is his place is quite and that there not too many people to get in your way.