Carlsbad Presidential Stay

House was spacious for 10 people but had multiple issues. Pool was advertised, but was extremely dirty. The hot tub did not work. Unclean showers and a broken coffee machine. Overall not worth the price.

My parents live in Carlsbad and we needed a house for all our family who came to visit. The property has a lot of potential and decorated very nicely but it is really in need of some maintenance. The pool was dirty although I was told it was clean. We brushed it out but the filters Don’t work properly. The railing into the pool is broken and potentially dangerous. It should be fixed or removed. The window shades are old and brittle and fall off when you open or close them. Several of the lights didn’t work. We were going to try the breaker but we believe it was in the garage which was locked. The base boards were really dirty and we felt the house was dirty. Some positives about the house are The AC worked great and the beds were very comfortable. Lots of room but could use more furniture. Lastly the outside could be very nice but the grass is bone dry and the big trees in the yard are dying and really need water. 2 of the 3 outdoor chairs were broken and so there was nothing to sit on. This could be a very nice property.

Our grandkids enjoyed the pool so much! It was awesome. The house is very nice, but like other reviews have stated, in ill repair. The a/c worked great though. Even with the problems, I recommend staying here. The house has SO much potential with just a little clean up. The beds were super comfy and the bathrooms were nice and clean. With some patio furniture added, I’d give it 5 stars for sure.

I will start with the good. The maintenance manager and owner answered our concerns promptly. The bad, however resulted in us having to repack up all of our family of 7’s things from a long road trip and go to a hotel. When we arrived we noticed that the back part of the house (with 3 of the 4 bedrooms) was extremely warm and unit was in “off” mode and temperature read 81 degrees. We then noticed all 3 rooms had portable air conditioners in them. We turned the unit on and decreased the setting to 70 degrees and turned on all portable air conditioners and closed doors. Several hours later the temperature hadn’t changed and rooms were stifling. Maintence informed us that “we know it’s broken, a new one comes tomorrow”. Since I booked in the Spring I also didn’t notice the review from June 4 that stated the same problem. It would’ve been nice to have been informed by the owner of this problem ahead of our trip to give us time to find another option instead of heading to an unexpected hotel stay at 10:30 in the evening. The owner did refund us immediately, and we were thankful for that, but feel this could’ve been handled much better than it was. In our short time there it was obvious the property is worn (kitchen faucet barely attached). Pool & hot tub were not very clean. There is also no patio furniture, no coffee table in living room, no kitchen table, no bar stools at counter, and only 6 chairs at the dining room table. For a “sleeps 10” this is insufficient!

Great: The best aspects of this property are location, size, and water slide—all of which we enjoyed immensely. The caverns close enough to hike in the morning and return to see the bats fly at night. The Pecos Recreational area and grocery shopping were15 minutes away. Our party of 9 fit easily. The kitchen is spacious and well equipped (excepting a toaster). Finally, the water slide and pool were under constant usage. We wanted these three aspects and this property delivered! Just Ok: The property is becoming run down. The kitchen faucet is loose, the hot tub is broken, one of the bath’s drain plug leaks, 50% burned out light bulbs, the kitchen freezer is broken, as is one AC unit. There are no wash rags, just a few bath and pool towels, and a bare minimum of furniture. The house could really benefit from patio furniture and a few more pool deck chairs. The Ugly: There are two big issues with the property. First, at least during our stay, an AC unit and the kitchen freezer were both broken. The handyman and the property owner both were quick to respond via text but ultimately never showed up to fix anything. It is possible that there just wasn't enough manpower to conduct repairs during our stay. But given the state of the property, I would expect something will always be broken. The second major issue is that the pool is neither covered nor gated. Plan to watch young children very closely.

Really enjoyed our stay. Owner was a really pleasant person to talk to and took care of any needs that popped up.

We truly enjoyed our family getaway with privacy and plenty of space for all of our family to be comfortable. The pool was perfect and clean, and our kids especially enjoyed the slide. The host was quick to respond and any little issue we had was resolved promptly. We will be going back next summer for sure.

It's a nice place to stay at. The owner is very responsive and helpful. I contacted the owner when first arrived as bedrooms seemed warm and was told about 2nd thermostat we missed. Also pool had a bit of sand in it and sent out pool cleaner. The house could use a bit of TLC. some door handles loose, dishwasher not attached to counter, some chair around pool dry rotted. But nothing that would prevent from enjoying time at the house, unless you are a Karen. In the end I would absolutely rent this house again and that's the most important aspect.

The house is big and open and really pretty. It needs some work on the inside and outside, but I'd stay again. Beds and baths are great. Pool is nice, not heated tho. We cooked, orderd in pizza, celebrated an engagement and visited the Caverns. Wonderful trip. Paz was very accommodating and easy to reach and chat with.

This house was a major disappointment. We arrived to find the first thing we see was a pile of garbage in the front yard near the road. In addition to the can being full, there were bags of garbage all around it. The house itself was very dirty.. There was mold everywhere in the showers and under the bathmats. Floors had not been cleaned in a long time. There were brown spots on the bedding. The blinds are missing slats, so there is no privacy. In the back bedroom, when you open the closet door it falls out (a major danger risk for children). Kitchen: dishwasher falls out of the cabinet space when you open the door. No dishwasher pods or soap. Not a single dishtowel anywhere. Sponges were all used (no new sponge). Very few pots/pans and all very small, so we had to buy some at the store. House sleeps 8, but only 6 chairs for dining room table. Breakfast room has no table or chairs The swimming pool was disgusting. You could not see even 12 inches down. Dead bird floating in the pool (and 3 more dead birds in the yard). Contacted the owner who connected us with the pool maintenance person. He couldn’t come until next day, so we were not able to use pool until late on the second day of our stay. The air conditioning unit went out on the side of the house with 3 bedrooms. The AC unit on the side with the master bedroom was working. There were no screens in the windows, so couldn’t open the windows in the evening. Ended up with people sleeping on floor in living room. I contacted the owner but it was a Sunday no A/C people could come out. A/C guy came Monday, but the part he needed was not available immediately. So, we had people sleeping on the floor for 2 nights. We decided to leave the next day. The owner did the best he could to resolve the issues with the A/C and swimming pool. He gave us a partial refund on our stay. His local person who helps him out with the house (Josh) was outstanding, and he tried his best to get things fixed for us. While the owner could not prevent the A/C problem, he clearly needs to manage this house more closely. All of the other things listed above (besides the AC problem) would have resulted in this being a VERY disappointing house. And the owner has total control of those things. The house was clearly neglected, and the owner needs to come spend a weekend in the house. 2-star rating is because owner showed concern and tried to fix things. Would be 1-star if not for him.