I have been planning a family reunion for at least two years, since we haven’t gotten together in so long - as our family is all over the country (and covid). We found this property and it was the perfect location for us - my brother in law brought his boat from Idaho, and we had enough space to have the older generations in one house and my generation with all of our kids in the other. We had a fantastic time.
Here comes the “BUT”
We followed all instructions (mind you VRBO said check out was noon but there was a sign in the cabin that said 10…) including stripping beds, bringing all garage to the cans at the top of the driveway even though there were not enough cans for the trash, we cleaned all dishes, and we did more cleaning like sweeping and wiping things down.
After we left we got messages from the owner stating four beds were peed on, a light was broken, pillows were missing, and there was extra cleaning charges due to some spots of blood on the cement pad by the lake.
At one point my niece scraped her leg (the blood) and one night my nephew wet his bunk bed…however that was early on in the trip and we cleaned the mattress & pad and sheets…NOT FOUR BEDS.
The owner claimed there was a wet spot on one of the queen beds - which only had adults - and charged us for an entire new bed. Mind you the adults that slept there said there was a stain to begin with.
The owner claimed we took throw pillows - we told him we put the extras in the utility closet…and we were flying home so there is no way we could have taken them. He charged us for the pillows.
The owner claimed we broke an LED light - we did not…it was hanging down when we arrived.
Needless to say this very poor interaction after we left the property left a very sour taste in our mouths. Be aware that the contract states the owner can charge up to $1000 for incidentals after your stay. He certainly took advantage of that.
I have rented places all over the world, through VRBO and other rental companies, and never have I encountered this situation - I am still wrapping my head around the fact that this rental owner did this and I had to pay almost $700 extra. Going forward I am going to do a video walk through of any property I rent, before and at the end of our stay, stripping beds to confirm EXISTING stains on beds and noting when there are no waterproof covers on beds (it is a rental, that should be a non issue).