I have a problem...

[Momto3chicks]

So, we went to FL and rented a home in Indian Creek from November 2-10. The house was really nice with a few problems but we just let it go...anyway, the guy I rented from (who is from NJ) is supposed to send back my 200.00 deposit after 2 weeks, well he emails me this morning and tells me taht the management company told them we left the house a mess...they say there was food in the beds, stains on the carpet, and human feces on the bath mats...We left that house very clean, I stripped all the beds myself and, washed, dried and folded all teh towels and we didn't even use the mats, that was the first thing I put away when we got in the home because my wheelchair always gets stuck on mats..I folded them and put them up on a shelf in the laundry room. We vacumed and washed all the ceramic floors before we left too...I told the guy that they must be thinking of the wrong home because we left that house cleaner than when we arrived...So, what should I do know? I feel like I am getting scammed here...he said he would send 50.00 back to me if I agree..well of course I don't agree...there was NO mess.....

Thanks in advance,
Kelley

 

[5mins2disney]

Did they take pictures of any of this? I have had guests leave dirty footprint stains on the carpet, my MC took pictures and sent them to me...I had to pay to get it cleaned too but I just let it go...it was only $35.

I would try and work it out ... you could also post on www.top-forums.com and ask a bunch of homeowners and MCs for their opinion. Keep in mind, the owners are counting on their MC to tell them what happened, he probably didn't see it first hand himself.

There was nothing broken though from the sounds of things....how much is it really going to cost him to clean the place up? Even $150 for cleaning sounds excessive when they have to have it cleaned anyhow after a guest leaves.

 

[JANNYANS]

I would ask for a detailed report and evidence of the state of the home. If it was that bad the mc should have taken pictures and you have a right to ask to see them .If you were there until the 10th and the cleaners went in on that day -as they should do -why has it taken so long for the owner to get back to you ?


I do not know what to suggest to you as I am not au fait with US/Canadian law but I would send him a letter- that he has to sign for so you know he gets it - asking him for the full details and evidence or your money back within a specified time period -for example 7 days.
Let us know how it goes .

 

[FLParadisevilla]

I would do as everyone suggested. Thier should be pictures if there was anything left a mess or a problem. I know our Management Company does take pictures and I think thier pictures have dates on them as well.
I know I have had damage to carpets in our home, and even the pictures did not show much, but once I got to the house it was much more apparent that the guest spilt something on the carpet and used bleach to clean it, that took the color out of our carpet.

 

[horseshowmom]

Did you pay with a credit card? If so, you can dispute the charge with them.

 

[Sunrisedream]

As already said, he needs to provide you with evidence and a report from his MC, without this he has no proof

 

[Momto3chicks]

I paid $200.00 cash months ago to secure the rental..The guy has emailed me back stating that this is what the MC and the cleaner claim the condition of the home was in...it is ridiculous...I mean honestly, we cleaned that home before we left, linens and all...while we were there we couldn't get the phone working so I had to call the MC on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday (all from my Toronto cell number btw) and he finally decided to show up on Tuesday to fix the phone, we were out when he arrived but my bil was there are the MC told him that he would be charging us for this trip to the house...I think this is his way of getting his charge...I mean isn't that what the MC is there for...to help the renters with problems?

This is driving me nuts..I know it's only 200.00 but the point is the house was VERY clean when we left....

Kelley

 

[utahkennedys]

Another reason I am afraid to stay in a rental home...too many risks with the management companies which I read over and over are generally lousy, with a few exceptions. That is a lot of $$$ to me, so I'd fight it for sure!

 

[JANNYANS]

The MC is there to help the guests and I judge a mc by the way they act upon a problem.To take so long to get to the house when there is a problem is not good enough and if I were the owner I would be looking to change companies.
If there is a charge to the owner for the mc call out then in this case I feel the owner pays it as there was a reason for it . Have you told the owner about this?

Keep asking for evidence and maybe counteract him with the bill for your phone calls.

 

[LauraAnn630]

We are renting a villa for the first time this Christmas.

I have to give a 300.00 deposit.

The management company said if they kept any amount of the deposit.
They would take pictures and send them to me.

Its the policy.

Ive been a bit worried about what the house will look like. Some of them show pics of a model home and rent you another one.

 

[faindrops27]

We are renting a villa for the first time this Christmas.

I have to give a 300.00 deposit.

The management company said if they kept any amount of the deposit.
They would take pictures and send them to me.

Its the policy.

Ive been a bit worried about what the house will look like. Some of them show pics of a model home and rent you another one.

Laura, ask the owner, to send you pictures, of thier rental. Not a model, but thier rental home. They will send it. I rented a home, the day we left. I took pictures, with my digital, of every room. To show, no damage, and the cleanliness of the home. a very good idea to consider doing. I always like to cover myself. You never know.

 

[Kellydelly]

Laura, ask the owner, to send you pictures, of thier rental. Not a model, but thier rental home. They will send it. I rented a home, the day we left. I took pictures, with my digital, of every room. To show, no damage, and the cleanliness of the home. a very good idea to consider doing. I always like to cover myself. You never know.

The problem with doing that is you can set your camera to any date you want, so there really isn't any proof that you took a photo at the end of your stay or the beginning . We've rented through a management company three times previously and never had any issues with being charged for damage or stains. I don't think most owners or agents are out to defraud anyone.

 

[5mins2disney]

The problem with doing that is you can set your camera to any date you want, so there really isn't any proof that you took a photo at the end of your stay or the beginning . We've rented through a management company three times previously and never had any issues with being charged for damage or stains. I don't think most owners or agents are out to defraud anyone.

True, but if you had to go to small claims court or something to settle a dispute I'd sure like to be the one walking in with the pictures in hand! If you happen to have a local newspaper on hand from the day of the pictures, get it included in the picture with the date showing (I learned this one from CSI! lol)

If the MC had to come out to fix a broken phone, there is NO reason that they owner should be trying to "stick" that charge onto a guest. Furthermore, I find it VERY hard to believe that there was $200 worth of damage to the house... ok..so if there was a dirty carpet maybe it needed cleaning. Just happened to us when some guests left...the MC sent me a picture of a dirty footprint. Carpet cleaning cost me $35 (I didn't even charge the guests!). Phone callout for a broken phone? Sorry..that's the owner's problem. GOOD MCs won't normally nickel and dime their owners for little items like this, it's their JOB. Now, if you broke something on the phone that would be an entirely different issue. The most common callout for the MCs is people who can't figure out how to get wireless internet / WiFi to work on their laptops, unfortunately, it's usually user error / configuration, so at times they will charge guests for this service.

The problem here is this though..... I learned a long time ago as a manager that there's 2 sides to every story, and we're only hearing your side. 3 posts into this thread all of a sudden there's a phone problem and a callout on top of the cleaning issues. So, while we can offer advice, it's not like we've heard the owners or the MCs side of the story. I also frequent the VRBO owner's forums, where I often hear "horror stories" from other owners about things guests have done... again 1 sided.. but it just goes to show you...hear both sides before you pronounce judgement!

I would still suggest you check in there and ask for advice...there are many many more seasoned homeowners...and occasionally the stray guest such as yourself asking for advice for problem resolution. Since it sounds like you're not getting anywhere with the owner I'm not sure what you should do next. Sorry you are having problems, unfortunately it happens, although rare.
It's www.top-forums.com all Fl homeowners and MCs on there...they can give you probably better advice than I can. Fortunately I haven't been in this situation yet. Our MC had a guest who put a steaming hot saucepan on a kitchen countertop for instance, melted right through it and ruined it...then argued how they shouldn't have to pay for the damages since at home their countertops are burn proof!

Best advice I can give to others is to get a sense of comfort with the owner, the place, the MCs, etc, before you rent from someone!! The same bad thing can happen in hotels too by the way...it's not just VRBO rentals...just read some of the hotel horror stories on these forums!! (like the new Rosen hotel over by Universal...shouldn't have been opened yet!). When you have a problem it's important what the owner and MC does to fix it.

People sometimes get so caught up in the fact that place A was $75 cheaper than place B....they go with Place A thinking it's a steal...then find out they got what they paid for! This is frustrating to owners who pay top $$ for their places and their MCs to lose business to lowballers....then to see some of those same people complaining about the service and the place they received down the road! (I've seen it on these boards already!)

 

[5mins2disney]

Laura, ask the owner, to send you pictures, of thier rental. Not a model, but thier rental home. They will send it. I rented a home, the day we left. I took pictures, with my digital, of every room. To show, no damage, and the cleanliness of the home. a very good idea to consider doing. I always like to cover myself. You never know.

Yes...renting 101...NEVER rent a home if there aren't TONS of pictures of the interior, exterior, and every single room of the exact home you will be staying in for you to look at!! Huge warning sign for me (and I look at 1000s of VRBO ads every week)... no pictures of the unit itself...instead of pictures of the unit they have some generic pictures of the resort, Disney, etc. Makes it look like they're trying to hide something bad about their place, doesn't it?

I would have the same concern about renting through a MC. You can rent through my MC for instance in Windsor Hills....you can even rent my place....but on the street our townhome is located they manage 5 different townhomes. They are very very different in terms of their interior furnishings.....if you saw ours (which is very high end) and ended up in one of the others you might end up being quite disappointed. (To be fair, some of the others charge a slightly lesser rate..but still...). Our MC still has pictures of all of the places on their website and the guests know which one they're getting and can see them all before they book it!!

We're looking into buying another townhome in Windsor Hills right now...and there are some bookings in place in the unit with another MC...and it's one of the big ones (and bad IMO)...so we won't use their services. We are told they will move / re-book the existing guests into a new place of theirs...I just wonder how they will address this with their guests... and since they're already booked into a pretty nice place...have they seen it?? Fortunately...not my problem! LOL

 

[FLParadisevilla]

I would say to talk to the owner about this. I think its very unfortunate that you are having to go through this. At the end of the day its the owner who can decide to hold your deposit not the MC.

If I were to rent a home again I would be asking more questions about the MC than I ever thought before. Fortunatlly for me our MC lives in the neighborhood and are very on top of things with the homes.
I have had guests tell me that they were amazed when they called the MC for something and with in minutes they were at the house knocking on the door! To me that is good Service and that is what we pay them for as well as looking after our homes.

I agree with George, there are 2 sides to a story! I know I have had guests who have stayed in our home and with in the first day or so I call them to see how everything is. They have emailed me or pointed out on that call some things that were in the house IE: I have a lamp in one bedroom and the switch on the lamp is bent, I have an electric outlet not working correctly, or the drawer pulls on a drawer the screws were stripped and the pulls came off. All of this will be fixed by me when we are there, or I can call the MC and let them know. I had a guest who could not get the pool light working (the bulb had burnt out) I spent a bit of time on the phone to see what I could do, and when it was not working I called the MC who were out there the next morning to have it fixed. I don't think you should have a broken phone for days! I would not want to deal with that MC ever again!

One suggestion I liked was taking pictures when you arrive at the home or when you are leaving the home, or make a list and email it to the owner when you arrive.

Either way I think this is bad business for a homeowner to have someone complaining about them and thier home like this! I sure hope that I never make someone feel this way!

 

[faindrops27]

5mins, I loved Windsor hills!! Talk about a beautiful resort! Even though we stayed for 10 nights. We never got to use the grounds. How silly is that. lol. We were all so tired, from the parks. So the splash pool/ jacuzzi, offered the right amount of after park entertainment, for my family.If we would not be staying at Disney, again next year. I would definately rent from you. You sound like a great owner. Oh, and about the pictures. Pictures speak a thousand words. When I had a problem with thrifty car rental 2 years ago. Them stating that I left scratches on the bumper. I had my pictures, of proof that the damage was there, before the van left the lot. Never underestimate, the power of a picture!

 

[5mins2disney]

Thanks for the compliment! Glad you guys had such a great trip, we're the same way, on our last trip we never made it to the resort pool, we used the splash pool every day though! We get so tired pushing 2 strollers around the park every day that when we get home it's nice to just crash and relax in our own place, and the kids jump on in the pool and swim themselves tired, good stuff!

The last few rental cars I've picked up at the Orlando airport had all kinds of body damage all over them in fact, I was so worried I went over them with a fine tooth comb and wrote it up in detail on the pre-checkout form you turn in so you dont' get held liable for it. Next time I may take pictures even, you just can't be too careful, it's not a bad idea at all to take some pics of a place when you checkin and then when you leave, or your rental car if you pick up one that's been in the Disney Demolition Derby like the last few ones I've had! hehe

- George

 

[Momto3chicks]

HI all, thanks for posting.. I am still emailing the guy I rented off of (who is not the owner)with no luck..I understand that there are 2 sides to a story, but I can honestly tell you the home was clean and we didn't damage anything...We cleaned the home and went beyond what the broker told us to do in the beginning.."to just wash the towels and leave them in the dryer" I do have pictures but they are not from the day we left..they are from a couple of days before but it shows that the home was clean and taken care of...we even have video of my mother cleaning the floors... I have asked for pictures of this huge mess we supposedly left but they keep ignoring that. IN the lease it states that the $200.00 deposit would be held if their was damage taht led to repair...well there wasn't any damage. WHen the "broker" forwarded me the emails from the MC and the cleaner, it was dated for the 23rd (we left the 10th)..it just seems odd that if the house was in that state that they claim, then they would have been notified immediately..THe callout was for the wireless phone/internet that had been unplugged and it still took him 5 days to answer that call and if he wants to charge the 35.00/callout then I will pay but that's a far cry from the 200.00..I have forwarded all the emails to my lawyer/friend and he will advise me of what to do...I am sure that there are great MC out there but I think this one has ruined it for me...I wish I knew how to find out who the owner was to let her know...I am so saddened by this...I just feel that my great trip has now been ruined because of this fight with them...

 

[5mins2disney]

You could find out who the real owner is via http://www.property-appraiser.org/ and their real / permanent mailing address should be listed there too, and possibly phone #. Sorry you had a problem like this, I didn't mean to imply that you were in the wrong at all, I don't blame you for being upset, and I don't think a guest should have to pay for a callout either to fix a phone. The only time one would need to pay for cleaning services is if a carpet cleaning company had to be called in or something similar, or to repair some damage, which from the sounds of things, there was neither. Maybe it's the MC that's up to no good... there was a MC run by a lady called Yvonne who is since out of business in the Disney area who was scamming both owners and guests out of $1000s of dollars, unfortunately not everyone in this world is honest / upstanding! If you feel that strongly about it you should fight for what you feel is right, I would!! Good luck, let us know how it turns out, and please try and not let it ruin your good trip, you had fun while you were there I hope, right?

 

[FLParadisevilla]

Well it sounds like to me that someone put another booking in after you and like George said there are some MC that will put bookings in the home and not pay the owner or even tell them. There are also some MC out there that are not honest! It truly is sad that people feel they need to do this kind of thing and believe me they are the exception not the rule for the owners of these home and MC.
I also as an owner do not agree with it taking 5 days to fix a phone! Or with charging you for the coming to the home to fix it!
I think there is a real misconception on peoples part that if you call the MC the owner will be charged for everything and then turn around and charge the guest...... well that is not true in all cases!

Example: I had a booking that when they got to the house the booking prior to them had unplugged wires to the TV,VCR, DVD etc. and plugged them back in wrong so we had picture and no sound on some chanels and sound and no picture on other channels. My MC went to the house 2 times once alone to try to fix the problem, and I called the guest to see if I could help, and then there was another homeowner across the street in thier home and her Husband is really good with this kind of thing and he came over with the MC the next day to reconnect all the wires to the TV and get it working again. All of this was done at no charge to me or the guest!

I may be wrong but to me this is the way it should be!

I am truly sad that you have had this experience!