Sadly, any response becomes a “he said, she said” situation, but because I value each guest and take pride in my home, I am responding to this very lengthy review.
I believe this guest was unhappy when she asked for a discount for the first night, because 3 of their party would not be arriving until the next night; the rate is for the property, not the number of guests.
After these guests left, my cleaner noted that heavy furniture had been rearranged and moved across the room, requiring 2 people to move it back into place. Open takeout food containers, snack and candy wrappers, spilled beverages and dirty dishes were left on the floor, countertop, and on top of the refrigerator, as well as dropped food, snacks, and candy in the bedrooms, on table tops, on and under furniture cushions. She also noted that the master bathroom toilet had not been flushed, but was surprised when I asked if the handle was broken; she assured me there was no problem with the handle or the toilet function. It was not broken. I received a message at 6:00 am on the day they left, sent through the portal late the previous night; the guest said the toilet handle was broken, but to not come over, as they were leaving early the next morning, and would use the second bathroom. I immediately responded, apologizing for the inconvenience, regretting she had not called me so that I could handle it right away, and wishing her safe travels for her return home. Further issues noted by my cleaner include a drawer knob that was unscrewed and left far under the bed, with open candy left in the closed drawer; a shampoo dispenser pulled off the tile wall, and the front door left unlocked and open when the guest left.
On the second day of her visit, the Barbara contacted me via the VRBO website regarding ants in the kitchen. I responded as soon as I received the message, and noticed open food on the counter, and sticky countertop and sink. I cleaned the sink and counters, wiped them down with vinegar, and sprayed with an organic repellent, which I left with the guest. There were no ants. I ensured that she had my phone number to call if there were any other concerns. I checked back later, and she assured me everything was OK.
The next afternoon she messaged through the portal again, saying there were ants in the sink. When I arrived, the kitchen was in the same condition, and there were a few sugar ants on sticky spots in the sink. I cleaned, removed, and sprayed again, and again left my phone number. Please note, the house is thoroughly cleaned and sanitized before and after each guest; this is the only time there has been a problem with ants. This home is just as it looks in the photos. Bedroom windows have blinds, which were pulled up by the guests. High, small windows in a bedroom alcove overlook leafy trees and are left uncovered as there is no privacy issue. The bathroom window is frosted, as shown in pictures. The living room has full length blackout drapes. Two interior antique French doors have a couple of lower panes with small cracks; this is antique glass and does not impact comfort or appearance of the interior rooms. The “corner “ referred to is a garden shed not intended for guest access. The air conditioning is set to 70’, and each upper room also has a fan. I imagine that the “weeds “ must be the butterfly gardens, the ground cover plants, and/or those plants that have stopped flowering for the season. These also can be seen in the site photos.