Woman Books Five-Star Airbnb, Turns Out to Be 'Hoarder's House'

An Airbnb guest shared her frustrations in a viral video after the house appeared very differently to the images advertised.

What was promoted as a five-star house, with a double bed, turned out to be a cluttered one with a single bed. The pictures showed a clean, albeit dated, house with room to move around.

The videos of what she actually got however gave a different picture with belongings piled up across the rooms with little space. According to the video, the A/C and shower were both broken as well.

The TikTok user was renting a room in the Pennsylvania house for 10 weeks, because she was working as a nurse nearby. She posted the video comparing the difference to her TikTok account @phoenruber on July 1, gaining over 100,000 views since.

"Someone save me from this nightmare," she wrote, adding that the owner "keeps latching the screen door," during the night when she works night shifts. While she also alleged to not have been given a key, meaning she had to call to be let in at times.

Reviews shown by the TikTok user described the owner as "lovely" and "a great hostess," but the TikTok user described her as "pushy," and recalled her having to write her nursing shifts on a calendar for the homeowner.

According to her later videos, she didn't originally plan on doing anything about the situation and was intending to just "suck it up," as she is a "people pleaser." However, after seeing comments urging her to complain, she decided to contact Airbnb, but didn't immediately hear back.

She explained that the dated look and decor of the house didn't bother her, but "this one is not exactly what I would call liveable, without some basic kitchen access, a shower, it's just not great."

Four days ago, the TikTok user confirmed she had left the Airbnb and booked a hotel room to stay in instead, for the time being while waiting for a response.

"I escaped from the hoarder's house," she wrote in a TikTok video showing her new hotel room.

After sending pictures and explanations, she said Airbnb canceled the booking but needed to ask the owner questions before proceeding with a refund.

Later videos claimed that Airbnb charged her $300 on top of the prepaid $800 and closed her case, deciding to charge her for the 11 nights she stayed without the monthly discount.

However, the latest update posted by her on Monday said that Airbnb decided to honor the discount, charging her just $300 for her stay.

A representative for Airbnb told Newsweek: "These types of situations are very rare. We regret that our original support fell short of our high standards, and we're working now to provide with our full support, which included a refund."

Newsweek contacted the TikTok user for comment.