South Beach Vacation Rentals, Beach Rentals

I give this property a very generous 4 stars because it seriously has potential to be a nice rental with some TLC and attention to the ratings. Could be a very cute and comfortable unit. Yes, it's a narrow driveway. Don't bring a truck or large SUV. If you do, go to the end of the road and turn around before attempting to hit the driveway. Still slim, but better chance of not hitting the tree on one side, fence on the other and cars parked directly across the VERY narrow street making it a three point turn to back out. The yard is way overgrown, not like the advertising photo. This makes the driveway even narrower. The flora is about 2 1/2 feet high and even higher around the house. Can't walk your dog in the yard, we had to go a couple miles down 101 to find a place without steep stairs to the beach. The back yard has blackberries covering anything that could be used as a yard. The blackberries circle the entire home and are climbing up on the deck. Now for the inside... Was pleasently surprised by how clean the unit was. The sooty smell does hit as an under tone though. The soot brings down the inviting nature of the rest of the cabin. A wall/ceiling cleaning and paint job would make the entire ambience of the inside welcoming. The soot seems to be an issue for several years according to the reviews. Appears the owners don't care enough to upkeep the home, that's not the responsibility of Vacasa. The tub is awesome, good water pressure and excellent hot water. Having a washer/dryer are a big plus. The bed is comfortable and the view from the bedroom is nice. There is a fan in the bathroom, but it is the only one in the house, none in the kitchen. Bring your own dish cloths as you are limited on wash cloths for the bathroom. There is also nothing to scrub pans with. The bedroom slider has been replaced, but the livingroom slider has broken seal and you can't sit in the livingroom and see the view. You have to sit on the bed for that. The standing lamp and dresser in the bedroom are both broken. The dining room table wobbles enough to spill coffee from your cup, and the end table closest to the kitchen is about to collapse. So you ask, why the 4 stars? Honestly, because of the bed. It was really comfortable. But besides that, this little house has big potential. Someone just needs to care enough to do a week of hard work to make it meet it's potential. When booking, ask specifically about these issues. Responses to these reviews say "we'll get right on that", but I see many of the problems that have been reported have not been addressed, and it feels like placating. I'll give them a year, then I will look to rent there again. Maybe have my friend in Newport drive down and take a look before I book again. In the end though, I was away from home, could see and hear the ocean when I left the sliding door open (while raining and cold out) and the bed was comfortable. I was able to relax and enjoy not being home. Oh, and the heat works well!