Warning: If you are in the market for a rental villa in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico do not rent one from G. Gordon Law. Her Media Luna villas are a disaster and she is unscrupulous...our dreadful experience with her may make for amusing reading, but be forewarned and do not deal with her...You can read our saga below:
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Sheila Rosart
09/10/2005 11:14 PM
To:
cc: "Charles J. Rosart Attorney-at-Law" , Peter Brodnitz/Tok/J Walter Thompson@JWT, David White , Aunt Katie & Uncle Howard Harrison
Subject: FW: Brodnitz/Rosart Rental
Dear Gittel Gordon:
Concerning the below, we found your tone offensive and your "thorough review" absurd. Your business practices are questionable to say the least. Of course you had to refund our damage deposit and it is positively unscrupulous not to refund our villa payment as well. We spent two days in the villa though we paid for over 20. It was not as advertised and you yourself assured me that it was appropriate for children (I told you the ages of our children as well). The villa is not really fit for habitation and you are perfectly aware of this. In fact your staff told us that we were not the first tenants to move out due to safety concerns and the dangers to young children. We initially inquired about your beach front property and it was you Gittel, that suggested the villa and assured us it would be 'perfect' for our needs. The website pictures most certainly do not show stair cases with no railings and rotted handrails on the balconies. Nor do they show missing handrails...
The snake was happily swimming in the pool and when my husband and sons saw it and began screaming, it quickly slithered away (clearly it is used to having the pool to itself!) ... Paco was not on the premises at the time and we told him all about it when he returned. He was obviously far away or he would have heard the commotion. We did not attempt to restrain the snake so that Paco could see it as we did not imagine this would be necessary... We certainly did not attempt to chase it, and catch it and keep if for when Oscar decided to visit! (wherever would we store it? Perhaps in the useless oven??) Paco asked us to describe it and suggested that it was probably poisonous...in fact, earlier Oscar warned us not to touch any snakes that we might see as most were dangerous...but perhaps we imagined this conversation too? (By the way, your handyman told us his name was Paco, not Francisco.)
When we attempted to use the oven your staff were 'off duty' as it was after 6 pm. (In fact we rarely saw them...the maid was around for about 20 minutes per day.) Further we tried to light the pilot light...the oven would not work and the pilot light would not light manually. We still do not know where the maid/handyman go at night nor how we were to contact them after hours. When I asked the maid the next day I was told it the oven was in fact broken! As for describing that area as a "full kitchen" ...that can only be an attempt at humor...
Further your website describes the bedrooms as having adjoining 'partiallly open-air baths'...this in no way explains that there is no air conditioning! In your e-mail you actually told us we would require sweaters at night, as it gets cool!!!!! Perhaps you have never been there in the summer?? Or stayed at the villa yourself?? It was beyond sweltering and the mosquito netting practically useless. Further it was Oscar who suggested that half the baby's bites might in fact be spider bites and not just mosquitoe bites. We never said that he saw the bites, as by this time the children were safely away in a proper villa. By the way, the baby spent two weeks taking antibiotics due to her reaction to the insect onslaught, thanks for asking. Again we find your tone and insinuation rude. Do not tell us what was said and not said, as you were not present and are certainly not objective...We also took photographs of the missing railings, the rotted handrails, and the insect bites all over our children, which we would be more than happy to show you. Further, if you are an attorney as rumor has it, it is appalling that you deliberately mislead people and falsely advertise your properties.
We have rented villas all over the world from Bali to Greece and your Media Luna houses, though at one time perhaps quite elegant, absolutey do not qualify as luxury accommodation, by any stretch of the imagination.
As for the hornets nest, it was adhered to the wall in the master bedroom between the sink and the balcony doors. It was clearly visible and should anyone have been properly cleaning or attending to the property, they would have seen it. (Though perhaps if your villa sits empty most of the time and gets a casual once over before guests arrive, this might be missed???). Again as the hornets were swarming about our bodies, my husband heroically wrapped the nest in a towel and took it outside...I guess it just didn't occur to him to leave it there all night in an effort to prove to Paco that it was in fact a hornets nest and not a piece of realistic wall art!! Had we complained to Paco the next day would this have made any difference? What could he have done at that point? Would you be refunding our money?? Unlikely ... In response to your comment...When it rains, the insects flood inside. Spraying just kills them- it doesn't keep them out. In my experience, if bugs are dead they can not fly...
Most surprising though Gittel is your rude and contentious manner. Perhaps you consider it appropriate to infer your renters are liars ...in fact you deny entire conversations that we had actually took place. Frankly you do not have a good business reputation in Puerto Vallarta. Your villas are known for being disasters and you for being unscrupulous. The president of the board of realtors in Vallarta (who is a close friend) was horrified to learn we had rented one of your properties. And of course had we known then what we do now, we most certainly would not have. The realtor we worked with to locate our secondary accomodation (a truly luxurious, air conditioned villa...let me know if you want his number!) said that the number of dissatified tenants from your rentals is legend. They also claim that you are the owner of these properties yourself and do not represent anyone else. Obviously you have decided not to put any money into maintaining these properties and they continue to deteriorate at an alarming rate in the tropical heat and jungle environment.
You should be aware that despite the above, we adored Vallarta and have invested in real estate there and will be on site quite frequently in the future. Once again, your coarse response to our situation and your obvious lack of concern are completely offensive. And since you insist on refusing to refund any of our money, we feel is is necessary to warn other people about the conditions of your rentals and your lack of risk awareness in regard to safety and health issues. Our developer and real estate friends in Vallarta are taking steps to this effect as well.
We acted in good faith and gave you ample opportunity to remedy the situation. We were always polite and conscientious in our dealings with you. It is unfortunate that you have chosen to handle the situation in this way. I guess it is just a reflection of your personal morality.
Regards,
Sheila Rosart and Peter Brodnitz
Subject: Re: Brodnitz/Rosart Rental
Dear Peter,
We have refunded in full your damage deposit, in full.
You were required to pay for the villa in advance to reserve it, and there is no refund of the villa payment. If we were able to re- rent it for that period, we would have, but, of course, villas are not like hotels, and don't get rented on a day to day basis. That is why you had to pay in full in advance in bank check.
As I told you, the owner is in Mexico, and a thorough review was done of your complaints.
You stated:
Oscar came to speak with us on this and we explained our concerns on the safety issues. He advised us that the snake we saw was indeed very likely to be poisonous. He also agreed that the villa is not approriate for young children given the unsafe balconies and the insects. Most alarming, what we thought were mosquito bites he and Paco said were spider bites! The bites from 2 days ago are still inflamed, and with the 18 more we are taking no chances.
We found that:
1.No one ever saw a snake in the pool- despite the fact that Francisco cleaned the pool daily, and the maid passed it many times a day.
2. Oscar never saw a snake, never told you there was a snake or that it was poisonous.
3, Oscar never saw any bites on your children , never told you a anything about spider bites, which he knows nothing about.
4. Oscar never told you that the villa is not approriate for young children given the unsafe balconies and the insects.
there
5. Oscar told us that your complaints to him were that the villa didn't have air conditioning, that it had been advertised with air-conditioning, and that I had guaranteed that the villa was child safe. You rented a villa without air-conditioning. It was never advertised to have air-conditioning. You never inquired about the villa being "child safe" . The pictures of the villa show an open swimming pool, stairs with no railings, and balconies without sturdy railings, and with some railings missing. If you were concerned about such things, you should not have rented the villa- or, at the very least, asked more questions. All those things would have been confirmed. I always tell guests that ask that they must watch their children. You never asked further.
6. You complained that the villa was not sprayed. It was confirmed that it was sprayed every 3 days. However, you chose to come during the rainy season. When it rains, the insects flood inside. Spraying just kills them- it doesn't keep them out. You were warned about this, and chose to rent an open-air villa.
7. You complained to me of a hornet's nest. However, the staff checked you villa carefully before your arrival, and never saw one. Also, you never complained to the staff of a hornet's nest, although I have a man living on the grounds who is there it help with any problems that arise. No one else saw one, and if there was one, the staff would have removed it immediately.
8. You complained that the oven didn't work. However, there was nothing wrong with the oven,. You do need to light the pilot. which apparently you didn't do. Again, you never asked the staff, so they couldn't help you.
In short, it doesn't appear from the investigation that the things that you said were reliable. You never asked the staff with help for any of these complaints, and no one ever saw what you said. The villa was exactly as advertised.
I am sorry that you didn't like the villa. Apparently you found somewhere that you liked better. However, the villa was paid and reserved in advance, and, under the circumstances, there is no refund.
Sincerely,
ggordonlaw.com
From: Ggordonlaw@aol.com
Date: Sat, 30 Jul 2005 14:55:07 EDT
To: peterthenomad@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: Brodnitz/Rosart Rental
Dear Peter,
I am sorry to hear you did not enjoy the villa. I have been traveling and not checking email. While in Alaska and Northwest, mostly no email. I will forward your complaints to the owner.
A refund will be sent to the address you listed.
Gittel Gordon
From: peter brodnitz
Date: Mon, 25 Jul 2005 17:05:37 -0700 (PDT)
To: Ggordonlaw@aol.com
Subject: Re: Brodnitz/Rosart Rental
Hello Gittel:
We have been waiting to hear from you all day, and we have had to make arrangements to move our children to a safe environment. As a result, we moved out of the villa today.
Oscar came to speak with us on this and we explained our concerns on the safety issues. He advised us that the snake we saw was indeed very likely to be poisonous. He also agreed that the villa is not approriate for young children given the unsafe balconies and the insects. Most alarming, what we thought were mosquito bites he and Paco said were spider bites! The bites from 2 days ago are still inflamed, and with the 18 more we are taking no chances. We are taking the baby to a doctor for medical advice.
In total, we spent 3 nights at the villa. I believe we have sent you a total of $4,180 for approx 25 nights (including $300 security and $30 late night check-in). Please return our security deposit and the balance for the period unused. I recognize that this is short notice for you, but I think it is fair given the safety issues.
Please make the check payable to my father at his address in CA:
Ernest Brodnitz
55 West 5th Avenue #14A
San Mateo 94402.
Thanks, Peter
peter brodnitz wrote:
Dear Gittel:
We started our stay in villa #3 late Fri night. The views are fantastic, and the moorish architecture of the villa is inspirational. Also, the staff have been very friendly.
But, we have some fundamental safety issues. And frankly, we don't think we can stay.
First, several of the safety railings on the balconies are missing. The rails that are in place are so rotted with water and insect damage that any pressure would cause them to break. I have forbidden my children to go on any balconies, but this is hard for me to enforce every moment of the day. (The lack of hand rails on the stairs is also a concern).
Second, the jungle insects are cleverly figuring out how to penetrate the mosquito netting. The first night my baby had three bites. The second night she woke up with 18 bites.
Third, we returned late this afternoon from a beach trip to find a snake swimming in the pool!!
The insect population inside the villa is out of control and there are frrogs and crabs in the house as well despite the fact that we close all the doors most day and all night as per Oscar's instructions. We also had to remove a sizable hornets nest from the master bedroom today!! We have rented open air villas before in Thailand, Indonesia and Bermuda, but we have never had an insect problem like this and it is hard to believe that there has been any spraying done.
Also the oven is not operational which makes it difficult to feed our children and the heat at night makes sleep near impossible. There is no breeze and the ceiling fan is not located over the bed in the master bedroom and the bed cannot be moved. We have even purchased fans but frankly we are all suffering from heat and lack of sleep.
Do you have another property we can switch to which might be more suitable for children?? Please let us know your thoughts and it you have any remedial measures or suggestions. We really want to enjoy our stay in Vallarta and hope to make the best of this situation.
We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible.
Regards,
Sheila Rosart and Peter Brodnitz
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