Bad Rental Experience

I am an outsider, a traveler who, without knowing anything about Ocean Manor resort has leased last December condo Studio No. XXX advertised by its owner on the HomeAway.com Internet site. Subsequently I read condo owner Donald McLoughlin's comment: "The [Ocean Manor] hotel has developed a well deserved reputation as an undesirable place to stay” (Ocean Manor Condo Owners Blog, 9/11/2008). I believe that this is true and such recognition can lead to positive changes for owners and customers over time.

My comment here is intended to present only one disappointing experience based on my dealing with the condo owner of Studio No. XXX. My wife and I, both retirees from Forest Hills, N.Y., were planning to spend most of the month of January this year in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Our stay there that included my 80th Birthday anniversary has been, from the very beginning, an unsettling and painful experience for us. During December we have leased through the Internet site HomeAway.com from Ms. ZZZZZ her condo property #XXX, advertised as a “Cozy Studio”, in the Ocean Manor Hotel; the lease commenced on January 1, 2009. As Ms. ZZZZZ did not accept a credit-card payment for the $975.00 or 50% deposit she requested, we had to pay it by personal check to her. We realized only after the fact that we should not have accepted her refusal of a credit-card payment and assume the extra risk of paying by check.

Obviously, we did trust her Homeaway “Cozy Studio” offer. Only later, through our experience in room No. XXX of the Ocean Manor Hotel we realized that Ms. ZZZZZ’s condo property could only be characterized as an opposite of what one would qualify as “cozy”. The first night of occupancy we were kept awake by constant noise in the studio. On January 2, 2009 we met with Ms. ZZZZZ and during that meeting she advised us that nothing could be done about the noise. Since we were not afforded the peaceful and quiet enjoyment of the premises (a law requirement in Florida) we moved out of the studio and asked for a return of our deposit less the prorated rent for their one night stay. Ms. ZZZZZ refused to refund the balance of $825.00. The studio was not habitable due to the noise and we did not receive the benefit of our bargain. Ms. ZZZZZ had an affirmative duty to notify us of the noise exposure before we traveled to Florida to occupy the premises and her failure to do so was a material misrepresentation. She has simply ignored our attorney’s letters of demand of January 12 and January 23, 2009, to return us the $825.00 balance due to us.

The “TripAdvisor” findings in regard to the Ocean Manor Hotel are relevant. A traveler refers to “the constant noise from the hotel construction, the desperate need of updates in the rooms...” saying also: “This place has a lot of potential but they really should shut down and start over”; until then “NEVER AGAIN!!!” to stay at this hotel.

We are and will continue to be defending our legal rights. 1. We believe that we should help other travelers to avoid undergoing such unpleasant and costly experiences in the future: we have an obligation of making public our unacceptable experience. 2. To promote truth in advertising we request that the ad for the studio No.XXX is phased out of the HomeAway.com online advertising facility. 3. We demand that Ms. ZZZZZ returns without further delay the entire deposit amount.

We thank you in advance for your help.

Posted by Anonymous