Know this Paris apartment or agency?

[dma]

Hi, My wife and I and our son are taking our first trip to Paris in early July and we've put a deposit on this apartment that I selected (after looking through thousands and thousands!). But now I found bad press on the agency Paris Apartment Tours, and can't find any reviews of the apartment. Anyone familiar with the apartment or the agency?

www.parisapartmenttours.com/Saint-Paul-Place-des-Vosges.html

Any advice? Should we bail and give up the deposit, or just hope for the best? Thanks!

[PariS]

Welcome to the forum, dma. Sorry, but I'm not familiar with this agency at all! Maybe someone else knows of them? What kind of bad press did you find on them--little nit-picky things, or major issues?

[dma]

AnnetteC, thanks! The bad press was what I would consider to be picky --one person reported that the apartment was dirty, a faucet was broken, and not renovated (as advertised), and her request for a discount was denied. What was concerning was that I read about it on a Conde Nast Traveler blog; the renter submitted her complaint to the reporter, and then the reporter tried to contact the agency but it took multiple attempts to get a response, and the final response wasn't very helpful. As I said, the fact that one person found an apartment (not the one I want to rent) dirty and imperfect doesn't worry me too much (for all I know, that person is an aggressive neat freak). My concern is that the agency failed to jump to when they got a query from Conde Nast Traveler. Here's the item ("Rent a Wreck"):

www.cntraveler.com/travel-tips/ombudsman/2010/10/The-Ombudsman-Family-Overboard

[PariS]

Wow, you're right--the agency didn't handle the situation very well at all. What is their refund policy? (I'd look it up, but I'm heading out the door in a few). If you can get your deposit back now, it might ease your mind to find another place. If you decide to take that route, post your requirements for an apartment and I'm sure several of us here on the forum can suggest some places with reputable companies and perhaps even some units we've personally rented.

[Jody]

It is a bit of a stretch to call that apt.Place de Vosges.The Place is on the other side of rue de St Antoineand a bit of a walk!!In fact the apt we rent is nearby abd we take the bus to the Pl de Vosges!!Lots of very good service nearby the actual location, 2 bakeries, a supermarket, laundramat as French washers take forever and dryers don't dry all the way so it's easier and quicker to use a laundramat!, several very good cafes and good transportation

[sunshine817]

in the "isn't that interesting" column -- the reason that French washing machines take forever is because they actually heat the water IN the machine itself.

Took me a while to get used to, but now I think it's great -- it doesn't use the hot water that we use for washing dishes and taking showers!

(dishwashers do the same thing, by the way)

Now that I'm used to it, I wouldn't trade my French washing machine for all the tea in China -- it's extremely efficient, and gets the clothes *really* clean.

The dryer? It's a condenser version, which means it has a reservoir that needs to be emptied (something to remember when your dryer in your flat isn't doing what it's supposed to do -- make sure the reservoir, if it has one, is emptied when you clean the lint filter.)