AUSTIN, Texas — April's total solar eclipse attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors to Central Texas. An Illinois mother was one of them.
Laurie contacted the KVUE Defenders when the apartment she originally booked on Airbnb made her think twice. But that was just the beginning.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience a total solar eclipse in Texas.
"My family and I have been planning this for about seven years," Laurie said.
There was no way she was going to miss the historic April 2024 event. The Illinois native spearheaded a road trip to the Lone Star State, sightseeing her way through Central Texas with family and friends.
"We don't make it down to Texas very often, so let's see a couple of the larger cities," Laurie said.
Back in January, Laurie hopped on Airbnb, where a listing caught her eye.
"There were pictures of this fantastic rooftop deck and so, I booked it. It seemed ideal," Laurie said.
But when she looked up the property using satellite view on Google Maps, she realized something.
"Something isn't quite right because I'm not seeing a rooftop deck there," Laurie said.
Laurie said she contacted the host. He referred her to the management company.
"He assured me that there was a rooftop deck, [adding] 'but if you're uncomfortable, we can refund you,'" Laurie said.
'Nothing in the post matches us'
While Laurie got a full refund from the host, the listing still bothered her. She did some more research online and discovered the listing address she booked was actually a low-income housing facility owned by Foundation Communities.
"Why is this on Airbnb?" Laurie asked.
She contacted the KVUE Defenders. We checked property records on the Travis Central Appraisal District website. The owner listed is FC Zilker Housing LP, a subsidiary of Foundation Communities, which helps provide affordable housing.
KVUE reached out to Foundation Communities. Executive Director Walter Moreau confirmed 1508 South Lamar Blvd. is the address of Zilker Studios, one of the nonprofit's properties. But he said the pictures on Laurie's Airbnb listing do not match their rooms.
Moreau also said Zilker Studios does not have two-bedroom units, does not have a rooftop deck and does not have an outdoor pool – all features mentioned in the listing.
Moreau wrote in part, "We have nothing to do with this erroneous Airbnb post. Nothing in the post matches us."
We called the number on the listing. We wanted to know why they used another property's address and where the images they used came from. But the man who answered couldn't answer our questions. He referred us to the management company, WH.
We clicked on the contact host link, which led us to a GoDaddy page, a website where you buy domain names.
Spotting rental scams
Michelle Couch-Friedman is the CEO of Consumer Rescue, a group dedicated to helping troubled consumers.
"The overall scam there is that that property should never be on Airbnb," Couch-Friedman said.
She said fake listings on vacation rental sites are common, especially in the summer.
"Vrbo and Airbnb, they don't vet each listing," Couch-Friedman said.
Couch-Friedman also said if you find a problem with the listing you booked, do not cancel. Contact the website immediately.
"If an Airbnb host or Vrbo host encourages you to cancel because something's wrong with the property, never cancel because that will send your money directly to the host and then it's very difficult to get your money back," Couch-Friedman said.
The KVUE Defenders reached out to Airbnb.
A spokesperson wrote, "Issues like these are rare, and we have dedicated Community Support teams that investigate these types of complaints in accordance with our policies. The listing is no longer on the platform and a Host account has been suspended while investigations continue."
That response was not good enough for Laurie. She said Airbnb should have taken down the listing sooner, before we reached out.
"I did my homework, and it just didn't seem right," Laurie said.
She found another place to stay through another vacation rental site.
On April 8, cloudy skies didn't stop Laurie and her loved ones from experiencing the historic total solar eclipse.
"Everyone was just totally elated. Like, 'There it is, there it is, there it is!'" Laurie said.
Consumer advocates say it's important to remember that each vacation rental site has its own rules when it comes to resolving issues: rules you must follow, or you might not get your money back.