Life-threatening rental through Airbnb; now being ignored by AirBnB after numerous promises to help
To Whom it may Concern,
I hope you can help me.
I had an incredibly horrific experience staying in a house I rented through AirBnB. That experience is detailed in the attached document, and at this link, which is for a Facebook page I felt compelled to put up https://www.facebook.com/karlosbiglie/ (I have several additional photos, which illustrate the horrible condition of this โhomeโ):
On October 27, I made several attempts to contact the homeโs manager (who initially had represented himself as the owner) to demand he make good on numerous broken promises, and to rectify what the Los Angeles Department of Health and Human Services would ultimately call a โlife-threateningโ situation. I informed him, via text and voice mail that I had contacted that Department. At about 4pm that day, I received the first in a series of calls from Air BnB, informing me that my reservation had been cancelled, and that I had to vacate the premises. I explained to them the following:
โข That I was paid up through November 1
โข That I have three Staffordshire bull terriers (โpit bullsโ) and that it takes some time to find a place that will allow them
โข That I recently had major spinal surgery, and I was in no physical condition to just pick up and move on a momentโs notice
โข That I had initially rented the house for long-term purposes and had numerous possessions there, including furniture, and that they wouldnโt fit in my vehicle
โข I then detailed to them all that occurred throughout the duration of my stay there. This is when I wrote the 7-page document attached, and sent it to them
The AirBnB representative, Jennifer, assured me that AirBnB was characterizing this as an โemergency,โ assured me they would get behind me, and work diligently to insure me and my pups were okay, and that we would be made whole. That was twelve days ago. Hereโs what has transpired since:
โข On October 28, and with no assistance from AirBnB, I rented a U-Haul van in Van Nuys, boarded my dogs, hired laborers and loaded the van. I drove from Encino, where I was renting the house, to San Clemente, where I had made arrangements for a house through VRBO beginning November 1. I hired more labor on the San Clemente end, and unloaded my possessions to a friendโs garage. I drove back to Van Nuys and returned the van, picked my dogs up from boarding and drove back to San Clemente, where I rented a room for the four of us at the Holiday Inn San Clemente, where we stayed for the next three nights. In total, I spent over $500 in doing all described in this paragraph, not to mention several hours lost in which I could have been otherwise productive.
โข Between October 28 and November 3, I spoke with seven โcustomer experienceโ representatives at Airbnb, all of whom promised my situation was a priority, and that I would soon be hearing from their Trust and safety Department, who would address, and hopefully โrectifyโ this whole mess. Those reps, in addition to Jennifer, are Russell, Wilkes, Angelina, Stefan, Ashlynn and Pablo. Iโve not heard FROM anyone there since October 28.
โข I have sent two Facebook messages each, on November 1 and November 3, to Air BnBโs five founders, Brian Chesky, Nathan Blecharczyk, Joe Gebbia, Laurence Tosi and Chip Conley, detailing what transpired. Iโve not heard back from either
In total:
1. Iโm out over $2000 in rental money to what Iโd characterize as an unsafe, filthy, disgusting, wildly misrepresented house.
2. $200+ of that is for days I did not stay at the house, after AirBnB cancelled my reservation
3. Iโm out $500+ in what I described above (U Haul, Holiday Inn, etc.)
4. Iโm out many, many hours, spent writing the attached โletter,โ various e-mails and messages (some of which is posted below), and many additional hours on the phone with AirBnB (listening to the same song over and over) and with reps who ultimately DO NOTHING.
And then beyond all this, there is the frustration, the sadness and the disgust, associated with the debacle this became, most of which is knowing now in retrospect, that my dogsโ lives were in danger for nearly a month.
Will you please help me?
Thank you,
Rick
Rick Bassman
From: Rick B
Sent: Thursday, November 03, 2016 11:31 AM
To: response@***.com
Subject: RE: Airbnb: Your reservation with Karlos
Importance: High
Your e-mail assuring me that your โcolleagueโ โwill be getting in touch with me soonโ is now a week old.
I just did my SEVENTH long hold with AirBnB, only to have to repeat for a SEVENTH TIME to Russell, what I have already told various representatives there, including yourself, Wilkes, Angelina, Stefan (who was incredibly rude), Ashlynn and Pablo.
There has been ZERO attempt at resolution by you, or any contact by the Trust and Safety Department, which you and several others promised would happen โright away,โ as my case has the โhighest priority.โ
I have just updated Brian Chesky, Nathan Blecharczyk, Joe Gebbia, Laurence Tosi and Chip Conley as to the lack of action and broken promises on your part.
From: Rick B
Sent: Thursday, November 03, 2016 10:20 AM
To: response@***.com
Subject: RE: Airbnb: Your reservation with Karlos
Importance: High
Jennifer,
Am I going to be hearing back from you?
From: rick@***.com [mailto:rick@***.com]
Sent: Tuesday, November 01, 2016 2:23 PM
To: response@***.com
Subject: FW: Airbnb: Your reservation with Karlos
Importance: High
Jennifer,
Iโve also now e-mailed Nathan Blecharczyk, Joe Gebbia, Laurence Tosi and Chip Conley.
From: Rick B
Sent: Tuesday, November 01, 2016 2:17 PM
To: 'response@***.com'
Subject: RE: Airbnb: Your reservation with Karlos
Importance: High
Jennifer,
Itโs truly disappointing that AirBnB is ignoring me.
Below is an e-mail I just sent to Brian Chesky. I sure would appreciate AirBnB honoring its numerous promises to me, to deal with this in a summary and timely fashion.
I should not be made to wait on hold again for a lengthy period of time, only to get no help. In the event the appropriate party/department DOES actually get back to me (which they havenโt yet) and Iโm not able to answer, I expect that a direct number will be left on my voicemail for callback purposes. In the interim, feel free to enjoy this Facebook page weโve put up. Iโm about a day away from a major promotional effort to get this page out into cyberspace, and subsequent media space. https://www.facebook.com/karlosbiglie/
Rick Bassman
949 306-****
This is the first Facebook message I sent to AirBnBโs founders, on November 1:
Hello Brian. I am a former Senior Vice-President of The Walt Disney Company, theatrical agent at William Morris, and sold my pro wrestling brand (UPW) and mixed martial arts brand (Valor) to WWE and UFC, respectively. I am now the CEO of The Linda Blair Worldheart Foundation, the largest 501c3 dog rescue in California. I recently made arrangements through AirBnB for a long term rental in Encino, so that I'd be near command central for a new initiative we've undertaken for the Foundation. My experience with this rental, and subsequently with AirBnB has been disastrous on nearly every level. The manager of the house, who initially represented himself as the owner, lied to us and stole from us. The house itself, according to the Los Angeles County Health Department was "categorically unsafe," and placed my dogs' lives in danger. I ended up leaving the house early, losing "rent" money in the process, as well as additional funds due to hotel, rental van and labor. My "customer service" experience with AirBnB since has been nothing short of abysmal. I received several calls, all insuring me of assistance. NONE was forthcoming. I've since spent over 2 hours cumulatively, on hold, and have spoken with additional AirBnB representatives who claimed that "a case had been started," and that I would be that same day receiving a call from a different department (I believe the "Safety" Dept., although I could be mistaken. I wrote a very detailed letter about all that transpired with this situation, and said letter has been on file with your company for several days now (receipt was acknowledged via e-mail), for several days now. I would appreciate some resolution here Brian, and/or some legitimate "customer service."
This is the first Facebook message I sent to AirBnBโs founders, on November 3:
Brian, vis-a-vis a house I rented through Air BnB, mine and my dogs' lives were put in danger. This is what I was told by the Los Angeles Department of Health and Human Services. When AirBnB "customer service" first reached out to me on this, and on the other dozens of problems enumerated in the 7-page letter I sent to "Jennifer W" on 10/27, I felt as if they did so in the spirit of cooperation, with an eye toward resolution That was over a week ago. I've since spent over 3 hours on hold and repeating the same information, to various representatives in your "customer service" department. (I continue to put "customer service" into quotation marks because the service has been truly abhorrent; in the case of your Rep Stefan, it was downright rude. In speaking with Stefan, with the aforementioned Jennifer W, and with Wilkes, Angelina, Russell, Ashlynn and Pablo, each has assured me that my case is of the "highest priority" and that I'd be hearing back from your Trust and Safety Department "right away." Again, it's been over a week now. Where are we leaving this? That the liar and criminal who rented the house to me has my money? That AirBnB has my money? And that I'm out that money, and additionally the money I spent when I had to flee the house and rent a U-Haul, hire movers and get a hotel for 3 nights? Not to mention all of the aggravation, stress and wasted time this has caused. I'd hate to think that THAT is where AirBnB, despite its proclamations about offering great customer experience, is going to leave this. My # is (949) 306-****. My e-mail is rick@***.com I'd sure appreciate hearing from someone, who has an actual direct phone extension, concerning legitimate resolution.
From: response@***.com [mailto:response@***.com]
Sent: Thursday, October 27, 2016 2:49 PM
To: Rick B
Subject: Airbnb: Your reservation with Karlos
Airbnb Customer Experience
________________________________________
Jennifer W, Oct 27, 16:49 CDT:
Hi Richard,
As we spoke about, I wanted to follow up here and confirm that a colleague of mine will be getting in touch with you soon. In the meantime, if you have any further details or change of circumstances, please feel free to reply to this email.
Best,
Jennifer W
www.airbnb.com/help
THIS EMAIL IS A SERVICE FROM AIRBNB CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
THIS EMAIL IS A SERVICE FROM AIRBNB CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
For more information visit our Help Center
[NYM60P-0
HERE IS THE LETETR DETAILING ALL THAT TRANSPIRED WITH THE RENTAL HOUSE ITSELF:
KARLOS RICHARDSON โ RENTERS BEWARE
โOfficial Facebookโ Page for Karlos Richardsonโs Encino House, as advertised on AirBnB: https://www.facebook.com/karlosbiglie/
Itโs difficult to know where to start. I will do my best to be informative and to the point, without dragging this on needlessly. That said, there is A LOT of โconsumer bewareโ information to share, so I apologize in advance for the length of this letter. I also apologize for anything that sounds like sarcasm (especially for the Facebook page I put up for Karlosโ โVacation Rentalโ); Iโm just trying to find the humor in what otherwise has been an absolutely horrific experience.
A couple of qualifying points before I get started:
1. This is my FIRST-EVER consumer complaint letter or posting, and Iโm disturbed it has to be one based on the residence where me and my dogs live, and rely on for our safety and security.
2. I am a partner in The Linda Blair Worldheart Foundation, Californiaโs largest 501c3 non-profit rescue and sanctuary for dogs. I recently relocated to the Los Angeles area from South Orange County, both to be nearer to our sanctuary in Acton, and to be in closer proximity to the entertainment community, as Iโve undertaken an initiative for our rescue that relies on the support of that community. I personally have three Staffordshire Bull Terriers (aka โmini-pit bullsโ). As you might imagine, it can sometimes be difficult to find a lease or rental because of this. My dogs are all ADA service certified, and very well-trained. We travel often on assignment and for consulting jobs, and as such, for the past several years, have mainly rented high-end residences from VRBO and Air BnB. In the process, we โI AND MY DOGSโhave collected several excellent letters of reference from owners who have rented to us.
I first came across Karlos Richardson when looking for a place on the South end of the San Fernando Valley, beginning end of September 2016, for a period of several months. Karlos has a listing on Valley Glen in Sherman Oaks, which I replied to through Air BnB. Karlos responded to me, saying that while the listing does advertise itself as dog-friendly, that he in fact could NOT accommodate dogs at this particular location. He went on to tell me though that he himself is a pit bull owner, and that he had another house he owns, where he might consider renting to us. He was very upfront in telling me that the house was NOT yet up to his usual standards, that it was very much a work-in-progress, and was really not quite ready to rent. Yet, he still had it advertised on Air BnB https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1382****?checkin=12%2F01%2F2016&checkout=12%2F08%2F2016&s=zog80L8r (As youโll see later in this letter, this post is about as bad a case of false advertising as youโll ever encounter) He did say though that the master bed and bath, and living room and kitchen, were โready.โ
I drove to Encino to meet Karlos. The first thing I noticed was that while the neighborhood is pretty nice, and the houses well-kept, that Karlosโ house stood out markedly from the rest for these immediately apparent reasons:
1. The entire front lawn was dead (as opposed to others in the same cul-de-sac
2. There was A LOT of trash, rotted furniture, personal effects and other items, sitting in from of the house
3. The exterior of the house itself was in a general state of disrepair (especially once again, as compared to the neighboring houses)
It was more of the same upon entering the house. Thereโs a large floor-to-ceiling built-in shelving unit just to the left of the front door, that was positively overflowing with tools, personal effects, junk and trash. There was a fair amount of clutter and debris in the living room itself. This said, Karlos and I established somewhat of a nice rapport right away. He explained how this was his and his wifeโs third house in the local area, saying that one was their personal residence and the other was the Valley Glen house, which he characterized as being in immaculate condition, and even offered to show me at a later date. He apologized profusely for the mess in the house. In turn, I explained to him that we (my pups and I) customarily rent high-end VRBO and Air BnB houses (including the one in which I was then living, at $4250 a month), and told him that despite having three dogs here, he could be assured that we would keep the house neat, clean and always ready to showcase. We even had a talk about โclutterโ, with my going as far to tell him that I was essentially the โanti-hoarder.โ He reassured me, that if we were to rent, he would insure that all of the clutter would be removed. He showed me the backyard. The pool looked, literally, like it was filled by a sewage dump, but he assured me that this would be taken care of as soon as his โdesigner,โ Temechi, returned from out of town. This kind of threw me for a loopโฆ I thought to myselfโฆ why does a house thatโs so obviously in bad shape, need a โdesigner?โ I took a cursory look at the master bedroom and master bath (the one depicted in the AirBnB ad) and at the kitchen. I noted that although an attempt had obviously been made to give these spaces something of a cosmetic facelift that they too were pretty beat up. Hereโs MY first mistakeโฆ not stepping back and questioning things. Admittedly, I rushed in because I needed a place in LA that would allow my 3 pups, so, we made the deal. โBUYER BEWARE!โ
But again, I thought all would be okay. Karlos assured me over and over again that improvements would be drastic and immediately forthcoming; after all, he said they were actively getting it ready to rent the entire house. Another thing that made me feel good about everythingโฆ He said the house would be โmine,โ insofar as having the opportunity to fill the other rooms with my friends, once those rooms were ready. Worst case, he said, and he repeated this several timesโฆ if he were to come with a tenant I didnโt know, that I would have approval rights over whether or not that tenant(s) would be โallowedโ to move in. I had expressed to Karlos that my dogs mean the world to me and had told him the story of how my dog Marley had been let out of a previous residence by a third party, and run over and crushed by a car. He told me that he understood that, and it was for that reason โand because he was confident that I would take care of โhisโ houseโthat he was giving me the aforementioned โapproval rights.โ I thanked him for that, and told him that I would go the distance to get my friends in, and short of that, would bend over backwards to accommodate anyone he might want to bring in. He thanked me in return.
Prior to making a commitment to rent, I asked his policy about dogs on the furniture, something I ALWAYS ask, and make sure is clarified right up front. I particularly specified the sofas in the living room, as my dogs like to hang out with me when I watch TV, or when I work nearby (as I told Karlos I would be doing in the adjacent โdining room.โ As I explained to Karlos, my dogs are very clean AND well-behaved, but early on I elected to NOT train them to stay off of furniture, and I wasnโt about to put the stress of doing that now, on them or on myself. Karlos told me that their being on the furniture would be absolutely fine).
At this point, I was feeling pretty darned good about Karlos Richardson and โhisโ house.
I made the agreement with Karlos, to move in on September 25. I had to go back to San Clemente to pack up my house. I asked Karlos what I would need to bring, insofar as the โusual Air BnB itemsโ (like silverware, towels, linens, etc. were concerned_, and he told me that everything was already either there, or would be soon, vis-ร -vis his designed Temechi.
Karlos was out-of-town the day I showed up to โhisโ house to take possession, so he informed me he was sending his wife Aja to give me the key. He told me that he had hired a cleaning service to go through the house, so that he โmightโ be looking for a little extra money from me. Aja was very nice, with great energy, as were his two small children who had accompanied her. That also made me feel very positive about everything. I noticed that MOST of the debris had been cleared from the front of the house. There was a Dodge Charger sitting in middle of the driveway, which forced me to park my Suburban partially on the dead lawn.
My friends Addy, Lucy, Taurus and Jaime all came to help me move in. THANKFULLY, because as it turned outโฆ there was A LOT to do.
Here is just a partial list of things we discovered on the first day there:
โข The built in shelves were still overflowing with all the same crud and junk and clutter that I was told would be cleared
I neatly bagged all of the junk on the shelves (in tall kitchen bags that I had brought) and placed them in one of the bedrooms (what must have been the kidsโ room)
โข Upon opening the door to the kidsโ room, I truly thought I was in an episode of โHoarders.โ The ENTIRE room was absolutely covered with toys, clothing, papers, and all kinds of junk, which in some places were piled more than three foot high. After placing the contents of the hallwayโs shelves there, and the abject clutter from the bedroom nightstand drawers), I quickly closed that door and vowed never to look in there again
โข All of the wood and tile floors throughout the house were really dirty
Jaime cleaned the floors s best she could with the Swifter I brought.
โข The pool was still a cesspool of waste, but at the time, I guessed that was ok, as I was assured it would soon be remedied
โข The small yard area adjacent to the pool was partially covered by a large piece of tattered, horrible smelling AstroTurf, which itself was littered with what would turn out to be over 5 gallons of dog ***
โข A shredded, cheap plastic canopy was barely standing over that astro turf.
Taurus and I picked up all the *** ourselves, rolled up the AstroTurf and put it in the side yard, and took down the canopy.
โข The bottom of the freezer was covered with a sticky red substance.
โข Only one of the three toilets were operable, and the one in the master was partially filled with a nasty, dark substance, which remains to this day
I later notified Karlos about the toilets via text, and told Temechi about them in person once he and I met (more on that later). This was never remedied.
โข More than two-thirds of the lamps and lighting fixtures and light bulbs throughout the house were out. Of the approximately one-third that did actually work, most were those awful bright white energy bulbs (about as far away from possible from what a โdesignerโ would ever do)
As far as the โusual Air BnB stuff,โ goes, here is a partial inventory of what the house had and didnโt have:
โข No plate in the microwave oven.
โข Silverware. There was ONE fork, and NO spoons and knives.
โข Glassware. ONE champagne glass. That was ALL.
โข No coffee maker (Karlos had told me over the phone there was one there)
โข No toaster oven (ditto)
โข Not one single pot or pan
โข Pretty much every other kitchen item you could think of was MIAโฆ spatula, corkscrew, can opener, etc. etc. (Temechi one night showed me a โSouthern trickโ of how to open a can of tuna with a pocket knife. He told me heโd bring me a can opener the next day. Never did.
โข Towels. ZERO.
โข Sheets. One nasty set of scratchy sheets on the bed in the master. I opened the โlinenโ closet to look for more, but like every other closed space in the house, it was crammed full of mess and in total disarray and smelled really bad. (So, never โfoundโ any more)
โข The bath tubs and lone shower were really dirty. (I cleaned them myself)
Canโt even begin to imagine who this cleaning service is that was hired to do the house. Karlosโฆ get your money back!
โข On the subject of โclosed spacesโ โcrammed full of mess and disarray,โ ditto for virtually EVERY drawer and closet in the house. Iโve truly NEVER seen or experienced anything like it in my life. Absolutely, unequivocally disgusting.
So, as I did with the built in shelves in the hallway, I emptied the nightstand drawers in the bedroom, neatly bagged the contents, and placed it in the kidsโ room. Admittedly, this where I made my next mistakeโฆ going through another manโs personal items, and putting my hands on them; and worse yet, moving them. But in my own defense, I did not know (until I was informed later) that Karlos and family had previously lived at this house, and had not bothered to remove their possessions. Okay, I get that Karlos โto his credit, over and againโtold me the house would be a work in progress, butโฆ REALLY?!?
Karlos showed up at the house unannounced the morning after I moved in and let himself in. I was out getting coffee (remember, no coffee maker!) when Addy and Lucy texted me that the โangry homeownerโ was there. I raced back to find Karlos angrily stalking the sidewalk in front of his house. When I pulled up and greeted him, he became confrontational (which he later apologized to me for, as I apologized to him for moving his possessions).
Up until then, I was thinking to myself that the house was in truly awful shape (but would be remedied soon) but I could live with that, because the owner was cool and reasonable. Those days were summarily gone.
I gave Karlos a partial list of the household items/necessities that were missing and inquired when they would be there. It was then that he told me Temechi had been called out of town and he didnโt know when he would return, thus he was not able to give me an answer.
I also asked Karlos who the Charger in the driveway belonged to, and if it would be moved. He told me it was โhis,โ but couldnโt answer when he would move it.
I made what turned out to be a 6 hour, 150 mile round trip to San Clemente to retrieve many of my household items from storage.
Over the next few days, I continued to make awesome โdiscoveries:โ
โข Both side yards are packed to the brim with what is likely disease-ridden filth and garbage. It is tetanus and a variety of infection waiting to happen.
โข The master bathroom ceiling leaks badly when it rains, soaking the tile floor
โข Every time I took a shower, the steam set off the smoke alarm (told Karlos about this one; never remedied, or even looked at)
โข As I settled in, I also began to notice how badly worn/beat up EVERYTHING in was, inclusive of the rooms that were, according to Karlos, โfinished.โ Floors, ceilings, walks, doors. EVERYTHING.
โข The front door takes a lot of effort to close, and unless you INSURE it in fact is closed, it often pops open of its own accord.
โข The cable, for the lone TV he had provided in โhisโ 4+3 AirBnB wonder, doesnโt work (I told him this; no remedy)
โข Save for the front door, NONE of the locks in the house worked. That said, it takes some effort to insure that the front door actually engages when it closes
And this is where the fun really began. Karlos began to act in a very authoritarian and abrasive manner. He informed me that he might have a family moving in. I told him that if he did, I would move out. I couldnโt and wouldnโt, risk losing my dogs to the possibility of a child โor anyone else โleaving the front door open (or the gate surrounding the toxic pool, for that matter). Karlos tells me that shouldnโt me a concern of mine, because he was renting me ONLY the master bedroom and bath, and that my dogs shouldnโt even be in other part of the house. I responded IMMEDIATELY that this wasnโt our agreement, and that I wasnโt going to confine my dogs to that space. Yes, my dear friend Karlos, that is a CATEGORICAL BREACH OF OUR AGREEMENT, OUR DISCUSSIONS, and AND OUR UNDERSTANDING. Over the coming couple of weeks, he re-emphasized that I was renting only the master bedroom and bath.
Earth to Karlosโฆ
โข The only shower in โyourโ house is in the second bathroom. What shower am I supposed to use?
โข The master bathroom doesnโt work. The only toilet that works is in the third bathroom. Am I supposed to use that? Or not?
โข Am I NOT supposed to use the kitchen?
โข The cable doesnโt work. Iโve brought my own TV in, and put it in the living room. Am I not supposed to use that?
โข I TOLD you that Iโd be working at the table in the dining area, and that my pups would hang out with me in the living room when I did that. When did THAT change?
I came home from my animal rescue one evening to find an outhouse in the driveway, next to the Charger. An outhouse?!?I had to park my truck on the street. I texted Karlos that there was now an Andy Gump in the driveway. NO REPLY. Well, at least Iโm thinking that maybe some real work is about to begin, and Karlos had made arrangements for this outhouse so the workers wouldnโt disturb me by using the ONLY toilet in the house that works. Yeahโฆ right!
A few nights later, I return home late again (about 9; 30pm) to find a man and a woman in the driveway, painting the outhouse. As it turns out, the outhouse is a prop for some sort of video shoot, and the male painter isโฆ Temechi! It turns out that Temechi is a really nice guy, and he ASSURES me that now that heโs around, rapid progress will be made on the house (well, better late than never, I suppose). I come out the next morning to find the Charger gone. It turns out the car belongs to Temechi and not to Karlos. Well, at least I have a parking space back!
You may have by now noticed that when I refer to Karlos and his house, that I continue to put โhisโ in quotation marksโฆ
Karlos informs me that Shawn Thacker, the actual OWNER of the house, is in town. Apparently Mr. Thacker has not been informed that I have dogs, and thus, Karlos needs me to make myself โscarceโ either Monday or Wednesday at 10am, because the owner is coming for a walk-thru, to plan improvements. Okay. After paying good money and suffering one indignity after another, Iโm a little bothered that Iโm asked (told, really) to become scare, but in the spirt of cooperation (and wanting the improvements to commence!), I comply. At 9:45 on Monday, during our making-our-selves-scarce-experience, I receive a text from Karlos that itโs off for the day, so weโll need to repeat our scarcity on Wednesday. I comply. That was 2 weeks ago. Guess what? ZERO IMPROVEMENTS!
Karlos did enter the premised though, unannounced, to remove a couple of items (I guess he who doesnโt giveth, taketh away). One was a pretty nice, ornate full-length mirror that was in the master bathroom, since โyouโre not using itโ (Karlosโ words) Hey bud, who told you I wasnโt using it? Another time was the outdoor furniture my dogs were using to lounge on in the sun (we were definitely using that). (And this was before I WHAT MAY BE WORST OF ALLโฆ Because mosquitos were swarming above the sewage and garbage strewn pool, one of my friends who was visiting suggested I call Health & Human Services due to the possible hazard. Mainly being worried about my dogs, I called the Department of Animal Services. They send an officer out, who told me that at all costs I needed to keep my dogs away from the pool and even out of the backyard entirely. The Animal Services office herself referred this matter to the City of Encino and to Health & Human Services. As far as Karlos โmaking improvements,โ cleaning up clutter, yet another day, he removed these awful green, childrenโs โdivans.โ I didnโt really care about those, save for thisโฆ a couple of weeks after our tenancy began, Karlos told me he didnโt want my dogs hanging out near the filthy sliders in the den anymore, as the neighbors could see them. Well Karlos, as I was (once again, in the spirit of cooperation) using those pieces of garbage to block my pupsโ entry to that room (because of course, the door was missing from the hinges), how in the *** was I supposed to keep them out? The worst part of this? Iโm now being told to hide my dogs not only from the owner, but now from the neighbors as well.
On yet ANOTHER occasion, I return home late, and Temechi is working in the garage (holy ***, you should see THIS space! Itโs so full of crap and debris and garbage, that it makes the rest of SHAWNโs cluttered house look downright neat in comparison). I digressโฆ once again, because Temechiโs car is parked dead center in the driveway, I park in the street. My bad for not reading the street signs. I come out the next morning and have a very expensive ticket on my windshield for impeding the street sweeper. I tell Temechi this when I see him next. He shrugs his shoulders. One more note: I see that there is a washer and drier in the garage. The same washer and drier, I learn later (from Karlos himself) that was SUPPOSED to be installed for my move-in. Later, Karlos tells me he will install them if I limit laundry to once a week, which I readily agree to. Later still, he tells me he will install them ONLY AFTER other paying tenants move in.
Karlos barges into โhisโ house one morning totally unannounced, with Temechi in tow, and essentially confronts me, DEMANDING my time so we can figure out what to do with the other rooms in the house. I object to him barging in, which is when he INFORMS me, again, that I am renting only the bedroom and bathroom, and that he has the right to enter THE REST OF THE HOUSE, whenever he wants. (I have since found out that, this is categorically false. A landlord or innkeeper MUST tender written notice 24 hours in advance of entering premises where a tenant/extended stay guest is staying, and after that, must knock, and wait to be admitted). Admittedly, Iโm angry. About the invasion of privacy (as Temechi later saysโฆ โyeah, that was wrong. You couldโve been walking around naked.โ) but mostly, because it puts my dogs at risk of being let out. I tell him that I am not able to talk with at that time, gather up my pups, and take off. He asks that I call him at my first opportunity.
The chicken and the egg.
The house was to be โactively and aggressively improved,โ from the day we took up residence. But since that time, Karlos has segued from that promise, to a reliance on my bringing in additional paying tenant PRIOR to making promised improvements. In further spirit of cooperation (and because I am getting tired of doing my laundry at the coin-op with three pit bulls in tow), Iโve done my best to โrecruitโ paying roommates, and have kept Karlos up-to-speed on that. In each update, Iโve asked him what rental rate heโs looking for. Iโve asked Temechi the same. Iโve asked them both, over and over again. And DONโT get an answer. FINALLY, last week, when we spoke just after his barging in, Karlos tells me he wants $1300 for each of the three additional rooms. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY, OUTRAGEOUSLY, UNREALISTIC. $5550 a month. Assuming the house is in the condition Iโve described (and as depicted in this Facebook link), how does that make ANY sense? Clearly, Karlos misrepresented right from the outset. The house is not โhis.โ Itโs Shawn Thackerโs. Karlos either had no intention to make improvements, or he had neither the ability nor the authority to promise them. This may be rhetorical, but unless he finds someone else like me, who has very special circumstances (in my case, three pit bulls) and NEEDS a place, where is he going to find anyone to pay ANY money to rent โhisโ (Mr. Thackerโs) deplorable, dilapidated, near-ready-to-be-condemned, house? Man up Mr. Richardson, and keep your word. (Well, after most of the debacle described herein, Karlos tells me that he is โready to start,โ with the improvements that is, but that the ONLY time Temechi would be able to do them would be at 2am. And goes on to tell me that he hasnโt had Temechi start because he doesnโt want to impact me. In the spirit of cooperation, I tell him that 2am is ABSOLUTELY FINE WITH ME. That was over a week ago. Guess what? NO IMPROVEMENTS)
Wait! Maybe Iโm misrepresenting. Letโs take a quick inventory of the actual improvements madeโฆ the childrensโ room was largely cleaned out. Probably 80%+ so. But, it is still s frigginโ mess (as depicted in the accompanying Facebook page). Ditto for the hall closet. THATโs IT. For โimprovements.โ
Did I mention Karlos, pretty much โyourโ entire house, inside and out, smells like ***? Disgusting.
There are indeed two sides to every story. Karlos Richardson, ignore this if you want. Your history as a liar, a shape-shifter, and a slumlord says thatโs exactly what you will do. Or come up with โanswers,โ point-by-point if you like. Bottom line, and at the risk of being repetitive, you are indeed, a liar, a shape-shifter and a โslum lord.โ Good luck with โyourโ houses.
Reason of review: Order processing issue.
Monetary Loss: $5000.
Preferred solution: Full refund.
Location: San Clemente, California
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Wow what a nightmare story! I know this post is a year old but I couldn't help saying something to both the woman who made a very bad choice renting this place & to the several people with the harsh responses:( where is your compassion?My heart goes out to this woman because yes she had more than enough information & should have walked away.
That said have you every tried to rent a house with 3 dogs? Especially pittys? She acted out of desperation the worst place you can be to make a rational decision. Somewhere in her mind she knew better but looking out for her 3 dogs she put her rational to the side in hope for promised changes.
95% chance of not getting a place with 3 dogs especially pittys. Sadly. We have all I say ALL made choices in our lives we wish we hadn't. I'm surprised at how harsh these comments are about this woman:( Don't think for one minute she didn't already kick herself a hundred times for this decision to take this dump!!
What you all aren't taking into account in your harshness, is all the things this guy promised to do & didn't then changed the rental agreement to boot! He also is to blame lying convincing her he would clean up the xxxhole. Where are your comments about him? This hopefully was a great opportunity for her to learn about what not to do!
Never make decisions from a desperate place. This state if mind is never is a good place to think rationally & we learn from this usually when we are younger. We have all had to learn this painful lesson its just some people are willing to take advantage of this. FYI the life threatening conditions probably were the stagnant water in the pool fill with God knows what,this is definitely a health hazzard for both animals & humans.
If the health dept. Deemed it unfit you better believe it was! I feel bad for this person reaching out only to get shot down more. Unless there was something I missed it seems like she was not only bullied but mislead on several occasions.
Still I'm of the opinion she should have passed but she didn't and will have hopefully learned alot from this horrible experience she didnt deserve!! I do hope it was resolved and you found a place for you & your dogs. Its a great thing you do rescuing animals. Most have no idea what it actually entails.
Im sure had it not been for your 3 dogs you would never have considered this place for one second.
Good Luck. Best to you all.
That was quite an entertaining "story" - however, you never did state what was "life threatening" about your situatiion... Obviously you willingly chose to rent this dump, and knew exactly what you were getting into.
The owner was forthright in informing you that the house was not ready for renting, but yet you INSISTED.
This is all on you, buddy! Now go get some help for your mental illness before you engage in a repeat performance...
Red Flag #1 He told you the place was not ready when you first approached him about it. Yet you insisted on seeing the place and paying money to stay based on his promises.
Red Flag #2 The condition of the property was confirmed when you visually saw the condition that it was in yet you still proceeded to move in.
I don't see how Air bnb is at fault here. You should have walked away when he first showed you the property.
Glad you highlighted the host. But why do you feel AirBnB are responsible for your desperation and stupidity? (I do not work for them)