Let me start with with the two positives of this house rental experience. First of all, Jim, the homeowner, was very polite and pleasant in all of my interactions with him. I think he means well-but has severely neglected his property for a long time. Also, the house does have a good location-it’s a very short walk to the beach, which was the biggest selling point of the property.
However, that is where it ends.
We planned to have a great weekend in Newport with some friends-however upon our arrival we found the house to be unlivable. This house has not been cleaned (I mean like a deep clean!) in a VERY long time. The layers of grime and dirt that caked the windows and doors was disgusting. The rugs and furniture were all stained. The entire house was damp and smelled musty. There was even mold on the shower curtains and a few of the comforters. Just gross. (and for $1000 per night?!!!) We had small children with us-including a crawling baby who we could not put down for fear of her touching anything!!!
Not to mention the house is plain unsafe for small children—the stair railings and window sills do not meet code and a child could easily fall over them. Also there is no railing on the front porch just a large drop off.
This property really has potential-but it honestly needs to be gutted.
To top everything off-we had no hot water when we arrived and were forced to shower our sandy toddlers in freezing cold water because the plumber did but arrive until 9:30pm. I will say that Jim did his best to help us out on this—but it still added another layer to what was already a tough day. We were forced to stay the night because the babies were tired and all of the hotels were booked. But we decided to leave first thing in the AM and asked for a full refund. It really was a disappointment.