As soon as we walked in we noticed, along with all the open windows, a strong smell of mildew and mold. Unfortunately, my wife is allergic to mold and mildew and had an adverse reaction, so we had to leave after just 10 minutes. I tried calling Chris to explain the situation and discuss a partial refund, as we couldn't stay for either of the 2 nights booked.While on the phone with VRBO, Chris’ wife came to talk to me (guess he was busy). She immediately got defensive and claimed it was impossible for the house to have mold due to its cedar frame. However, while cedar is mold-resistant, leaving windows open in a wet climate affects walls, bedding, and upholstery. Despite my wife visibly suffering from allergy symptoms, she didn’t ask if she was okay–only caring about the money. She then blamed me for booking, claiming that we disturbed the previous guest who wanted to extend their stay, even though we booked months in advance.Chris never returned our calls but messaged on VRBO, first claiming the smell was “cedar” before blaming us for not disclosing the allergy and saying “had we known she is so sensitive to the environment we might have not taken your reservation.” Not only is such a statement discriminatory against someone with a health condition, but if he knew of mold/mildew issues, it is the host's legal and ethical responsibility to disclose that. A rental posing health risks is unacceptable, and their dismissive, discriminatory attitude was extremely disappointing.
