I'll try to keep it short...we rented a home on a lake that we've rented before. We discovered teeny tiny black bugs there on the third night. We immediately called the owners who came out. They minimized our concerns by saying maybe a few were in the couches - since that's where we found them. Since we have small children, including a baby we decided not to "fog" or "bomb" the house since we didn't want chemicals around the kids. We moved the "bug" couches to a far corner since we couldn't get them out of the building. Well the next day I found more on my baby and his clothes after his nap in OUR pack n play, in our sheets, and on his clean outfit. I was MORTIFIED, disgusted and we immediately moved out of the house.
After calling a local exterminator he said the area is having a "mite" problem. That they are not harmful, don't bite, and will not infest us, our clothes, etc. In fact, he said he thought we were over reacting by moving out! That he likened it to having mosquitoes around.
The owners said in 20 years of renting they have NEVER had a bug problem and had never seen these bugs before. And they do appear to be having the exterminator come to "bomb" their home this weekend. I think I do believe them, however this is a "house keeping home" which means the renters are responsible for cleaning before they leave. I do not think that professional cleaners are used between renters. Doesn't it seem wrong that no one really CLEANS the house thoroughly?
Would you do anything else like calling the health department or anything? Shouldn't someone check up on this to ensure that this "rental property" is properly maintained and cleaned between renters?
I like the owners. But this bug issue raised some questions with us on our car ride home. I mean, wouldn't you want to know if a house you were renting had recently had bugs? Been bombed with chemicals?
I would love your thoughts. What would you do?
Thank you all for your input. Although I am very disappointed that our vacation cottage had the bug issue and it really affected our "family vacation", I do understand that these things may happen, especially when you're at a lake home. That said, I don't think that we'll be going back to THIS cottage again. My DH and I both got the feeling that the cleaning of the home was not up to our standards, esp. because we have small children and a baby crawling around. There are plenty of other rentals available. And I will be sure to ASK if they've had any bug issues before we rent.
As for this cottage and vacation, we did get some money back for our "unused" days, however they were stingy about the fact that we'd been there three nights before we left. In hindsight, I really wish there was an "Angie's List" sort of thing to read up on prior renter's experiences/reviews. Although ours was listed on a local website, I don't think it offered reviews or comments of the facilities listed.
Lesson learned. Thanks all!
I dont think i would have called the BBB, but i would have kindly asked the owners for my money back or some sort of discount.
I really understand your disgust of bugs. I have a very clean home and had a horrible ant infestation a few weeks ago and it almost drove me mad. That said, I think maybe you are overreating a little. These things can pop up very quickly, it doesn't matter how clean the place is, and it seems like the owners were trying their best to take care of it. Especially since the exterminator said there was a problem this year and not harmful. I have noticed a lot of all kinds of bugs this year too, way more than usual. Global warming? Unfortunately, I think this is a new reality that we are all going to have to get used to. So take a few weeks to really think about if you want to cause problems for these people. I don't think they deserve it. You said they were nice.
I would let it go. I'm sure the people owners of the house do a cleaning, like anyone would do who owned a bed and breakfast or such. WOuldn't they have to inspect it for damages, stolen property and the like between renters anyways?
As for the bugs, I would have left as well, but the exterminator did say the area had a mite problem that was not typical, and the house is usually clean and bug free.
I am sure I would have left as well, since the bugs were int eh baby's bedding.
As far as needing to provide a chemical check to see if the home has been bombed lately, I gotta say that sounds quite ridiculous. Even high end hotels and the like don't provide cleaning supplies and detailed reports of exterminations.
Just a thought to maybe help deal with the bugs. If you are renting a house on a lake or a house in any rural area, there are bugs. Everywhere. It is only natural that some will end up in the house. I live in a very rural area and have a very nice home. Every spring we have an exterminator come out and spray the outside of the house with a natural (no poisons) treatment. It works wonders and I find hundreds of ants and other yucky bugs dead outside all the time. But here and there some will be able to get into the house. It happens. We live in the woods. We are really in THEIR home. And sometimes once they get in, it's really difficult to get them out. Especially in a rental situation. If nobody "lives" there, nobody really cares, do you know what I mean? Maybe the last renter saw them (or brought them!) and never said anything to the owners so they could clear up the problem before you got in. It's really hard to know what happened.
If they are decent owners, they will offer you a discount or your money back or a free rental, something to mitigate your costs. I have no idea about anyone checking on rental property between renters. I think only the owner has this responsibility.
We recently rented a vacation home that I found online. Everything seemed to be very professional - timely and professional communication, reasonable contract, what seemed like full disclosure on pictures and descriptions. Before we began our vacation, I couldn't help but wonder what pitfalls we might encounter, particularly bugs. Luckily, our rental experience exceeded our expectations.
I wonder if you could address any bug issue, excluding the occasional spider, ant etc., with specific language in the rental contract. I am no legal expert but if you are renting a place, it is certainly reasonable to expect it to be bug free (cockroaches, bed bugs etc) whether specifically spelled out in the contract or not.
To answer your questions:
1) Would I want to know if a house I was renting had bugs? No, not really. I would want to know if it *currently* has bugs and if it did, what is going to be done to make my stay satisfactory? How far back would you want the bug disclosure to go? What type of bugs? A minor, mild, moderate, or complete infestation? How do you define those levels? What about mice, bees, wasps, squirrels in the attic etc?
2) Chemicals? I don't know enough about this to answer. How long must you wait before a family can return to a home after being bombed with chemicals?
Overall, I would be evaluating the response from the owners above everything else. Were they appropriately concerned and their actions timely and responsive? Were they willing to compensate me for the inconvenience? What is their plan of action to resolve the problem?
On another note, your question reminds me of one of our new favorite shows "Billy the Exterminator" tackling all sorts of pest issues.
ADD: Did you find this house online? VRBO or www.vactionrentals.com? If so, they have a comment section that you could use to voice your concerns about your rental experience.
In my experience, the closer to nature I live (or visit), the more likely I am to encounter the local wildlife. Insects and spiders are included in that category. My home is very rural, surrounded by trees, and seasonally we are pestered with just about anything that flies, crawls, or hops. (We're also on a creek which floods periodically, so might conceivably encounter swimming critters too, someday.) Even outdoors, we have skunks that waft by in the evening, mice that find their way into our cars, and squirrels that gallop across our roof. I found a tree frog the other day that had somehow gotten inside the house.
I keep my house healthy-clean. This is not the same thing as operating-room-sanitary, which is actually harmful to try to maintain over time, because it encourages the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. And children who are raised in ultra-sanitary surroundings actually are more sick more often, and have much higher rates of allergies and asthma.
As for bugs, we modern humans have been taught they're disgusting, but most are completely harmless, if annoying. I would want to find out what the bug is. If it doesn't bite people or bring the risk of disease, and few bugs do, I'd much rather have the bugs than be surrounded by toxic chemical residues. Insecticides are FAR more dangerous than most creepy-crawlies.
If you're living where people interface with nature, there is simply no way to keep the "natives" out all the time. If you were the owner of that property, what would you do, or what information would you give future renters? That might be a good suggestion to make to the owners.
Yes, I would have probably left if I found bugs on my baby. I would have been more livid if the owners had sprayed dangerous chemicals in the house right before I came. Chemicals seem to be much more harmful to growing children (and adults) than bugs. Tough situation.
One thing I do when going on vacation is bring a bottle of Lavender oil to place on the bedding. Bugs hate the scent of Lavender oil. I mix it with water and spray all over the sheets. It is important to use pure essential oil, not Lavender "scent" which is useless against bugs. Bed bugs can be present in bedding even if we can't see them, so this is just a precaution I take. It is safe to spray on the pack n play and pillows, too.
Hope this helps.
Hi!
You know, its a real treat to go away for a vacation and it takes time to pack the family up and travel and the cost and so forth..
I think its so disappointing when you have something like this thrown at you. We have rented a few homes over the years and twice we have come across places that were not properly cleaned. Nothing as big as this bug problem though.
Who the heck wants bugs inside anywhere?? I definitely would have packed up and got the heck out of there. Who CARES if the mites don't bite!?? The presence of bugs like that is annoying and yucky.
And if it wasn't such a big deal, why are they having exterminators come out?
The homes we rented had cleaning services that were supposed to come in before we got there. I called the owners right away when things were right while we were unpacking and the owners were very apologetic and offered right away to discount our stay. I didn't accept the offer as they truly sounded upset and surprised that things were not 100 percent perfect...
but I said simply I think you should know your service isn't doing what you are paying them to do. I have never heard of renters being solely responsible for all of the cleaning and the owners not having a service or hired cleaning person to come in between guests. We have been asked to tidy up and remove trash and things like that but not total tank cleaning that would prepare the home properly for a new family to come in. Whaaat?
But aside from that, absolutely you have a right to be upset about this. And the owners should be coming in and inspecting the home before its rented after EVERY guest leaves. I know there is a website where you can report bed bugs so others can be alerted but I don't know of one to just report bugs. Yes.. they should let people know that the house is going to be treated.
Some people are deathly allergic to those chemicals and well, they aren't good for anyone really. quite toxic. I don't know what you can do other than never rent from them again.
Maybe you can check with the better business bureau? I just don't know off the top of my head. I would have moved out too. Maybe that bug guy is just USED to bugs.. GROSS..
You did the right thing. The owners should have offered you something for all of your trouble.
I'm sorry you had this problem!!
I would not have paid the owners of the rental property in full for the rental due to your hardship. I would also call the Better Business Bureau in the area to report this, not sure if the County Health Dept can do anything but I woud clal them to let them know too. WHere did you find the listing for this lake home rental, was it from a property mgmnt co? If so, would also report your problem there too and make a fuss over it when you call them, this needs to be done so future people don't have the same thing happen to thier families. I think the oowners of this rental property. although you said you liked them are not honest people. or they would have done something about this prior to renting again. If you did not short pay them on the rental I would right a letter to them personaly or send an e-mail letter telling them of your disappointment of the condition of the home infested with bugs. They need to know this and realize it will affect future rentals. If they are good people they will reimburse you for a portion of the rental. Hope this helps.
Im with you... who knows what these bugs might carry??? I don't know what I would do about it, but I would have left as well. I would make sure that everything that was in that house gets washed as soon as you get home, and leave all luggage outside until you are able to check it for bugs... you for sure don't want them getting into your house!! Even if the area is having a "mite problem" you are paying them for the house, and it is assumed that you will start out with a clean home. Maybe just ask next time you decide to use the place (if you do) if it is having any issues or what chemicals have been used recently...
I am disgusted as I read your post, however, I would imagine this happens in hotels all the time. I have stayed in some really unsavory places that I allowed my husband to handle and they are still in business renting to person after person.
As for bombing the place, I would imagine as long as they follow the guidelines they are okay, i.e. the place isn't habitable for 24 hours after bombing if that is what the guidelines state.
As for health regulations, there is only one way to find out.
I think most beach houses that I have ever rented expected the previous renters to thoroughly clean the house when leaving. I've provided my own bedding, towels, etc and whether they also used a service afterwards, I must say I never wondered or thought to ask. If I saw bugs like that infesting a place I had rented for vacation I would be absolutely livid. I would expect a full refund and compensation for new lodging or otherwise simply ruining our vacation.
Other than that, it seems like it just adds a new item to your list of things to ask about when trying to find the perfect place to rent.
well, i would have left when i first saw the bug and talked to the owner and asked for money back because in my book vacation for me does not mean deal with bug infestation.
now, in your current situation, i would probably just try to handle my ruined vacation by asking my money back for the days wasted since bugs were discovered. i bet you no one slept comfortably knowing there are bugs lurking around. at least i wouldn't.
so just ask for money back and leave it at that. i would go further by contacting authorities or posting online about your experience only because you have a history with these people. but money back is a must.
