Renting Outside Airbnb Leaves Guest with Mud, Mice, and Ants

My hubby got a job in Tennessee and needed a quick place to stay, reasonably priced. The host I found on Airbnb texted me and told me to call her. She gave me her number in three different messages so that it could get through, i.e. first text or call XXX, second call XXX, third call XXXX to beat the ‘no sending phone numbers’ rule from Airbnb. We discussed prices and she said if I paid three months in advance she would take money off the price. She also canceled my reservation on Airbnb and told me to send her money via PayPal since we are now friends… she asked me to send it to friends and family so there are no fees for her on PayPal.

The hubby showed up at her house November 11th to stay for three months. The house was obviously in need of repair. There was mold in the shower, the toilet didn’t flush properly, and the sink didn’t drain. If there was water running anywhere the pressure in his room (a converted garage) trickled. There couldn’t have been more than dripping from the shower head. This is not a problem if the rest of the house knows you are taking a shower and doesn’t use water anywhere, but since there are four roommates that keep to themselves, the water pressure is a problem.

The owner does not lock the doors to the house. It is always unlocked. Although she did provide a key it was a bad one and didn’t unlock the doors; the house was never secured. The parking is not very good. If you are not the first two people home you have to park in the dirt. This was a problem since my husband was in a car accident that left him walking with a cane for the last four years. There were always slippery leaves on the porch. I wrote to the host and asked if I could stay for a few days when I came to visit. She agreed if I provided a few hours of housecleaning. I understood why when I got there.

The entire house was dusty; it had not been vacuumed for a long time (several months at my best guess). I sat down with her and shared only a few of my concerns. I told her that since my husband had a cane and needed it to be safe for him, she needed to get the wet leaves off the porch. She told me where a broom was and that I could do it myself. She also was not happy when I complained about the toilet not working properly. She said to me, “Perhaps the Morningstar House is not best for your husband. Maybe he needs to be moved to a treatment facility.” Really? because we didn’t like the dangerous slippery leaves?

There were mice in the house and mice feces in the closet. I told her about it and she said, “Yeah, but those are like a year old.” Oh, so that makes it okay? Obviously she knew there were mice because she admitted the feces were old. She told me that since she provided stuff (electricity, singly-ply toilet paper, and dish soap) that the price my husband was paying for what he got was a good deal… in other words, don’t complain.

After he was there for two months she asked for the next month’s rent. Even though we had paid three months in advance, she ‘required’ (didn’t tell us until he got there) that rent be paid 45 days in advance. She also wanted a cashier’s check. I told her that she’d have to wait until Monday for me to go to the bank so she said to pay with a credit card and that we’d have to pay the credit card fees. I told her she was going to have to wait then because I was not paying the credit card fees. Finally she said she’d take the payment and lose the fees herself, like it was killing her to pay the fees. She already had been paid in advance… this was just another way to get money fast.

There were cockroaches in the house, and ants in every room. Other roommates complained about ants in their rooms as well. The next month the host asked my husband to leave so she could rent the room to two female nurses (most likely to get more rent). She told my husband she would gladly refund him anything he had overpaid for. The following month she said that he could stay because it didn’t work out with the nurses. Basically, whatever was best for her was what she was going to do.

The last straw was the third time she went into my husband’s room and removed furniture that was suppose to be included in the room. When I texted her about it she said, “Sorry, I just wanted to paint my wicker.” When one of his roommates moved out she came to the room and asked for her table back. Apparently the host just gave him someone else’s table to use without asking the owner’s permission.

There was supposed to be an Apple TV box but it was password protected and could not be used. There was no cable, but she did provide wifi. When my husband moved out, the host refunded (in payments) $950. There is a balance due of $138.34 which she refused to repay, stating that she doesn’t rent rooms for partial months (it is a daily rental listed on Airbnb). I gave her ample time to refund the money amicably but she has refused and will not return my texts or calls. She doesn’t live in the property but she does have ‘circles’ with music and peace pipes, and weird religious stuff. She also has a library of books about goddesses and other religious media at her home. If this sounds like the place for you, feel free to rent it out.