avrooster

Thank you, Martin, for the clarifications.
One more thing: you say your review on TA "is under timeshare/vacation rentals". However, I can't find it. Could you give me the URL for it?
When you come back, post here and we'll be more than pleased to arrange a party for y'all.

Byrne

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum...n_Rentals.html
Why are you so interested in the reviews for apartmentsBA???

avrooster

I see you no longer post your e-mail, but I have recorded it someplace, so, I'll answer that question "off the board", unless you tell me otherwise.

avrooster

BTW, Mr. Byrne, I already told you in my first reply that you were overdoing it in the other forum: "I have also seen you are posting this in many threads on TA. While it is your privilege to do so, I feel it works against your 'cause', as some readers may react with a feeling of sympathy towards apartmentsba."

Now, my good friend karmalaw has told you the same thing, in her inimitable style.

I know, I know you "are new to the forums game", but, as karmalaw said, "...please, join us in providing MORE (meaning different) information about argentina to other travelers. Thanks!"

karmalaw

Exactly!

People love reading information from those who have recently traveled to Buenos Aires/Argentina.

The multiple identical posts on Tripadvisor will most likely get modded (meaning removed by the "napoleons-that-be" at TA) -- so best to just leave it at what you have already done.

I posted some general "how forums/message boards work" pointers for you over on the other board.

avrooster

My great friend karmalaw is VERY helpful, in her own inimitable way, OF COURSE. LOL!!!
Unfortunately, this is her very first post here.
Forum members should welcome her and hope she'll go on posting here.
WELCOME, KARMA!!!!

avrooster

Let's see if there is anything helpful for future visitors here. Readers should keep in mind that, being a local resident, I have never stayed in a short term rental apartment. Whatever I say is NOT derived from personal experience, but is, instead, just MY personal interpretation of the hundreds or even thousands of posts I have read on the subject.
1) Using drdawggy's analogy, in all apartment rentals you could pay for a Rolex and get a Seiko, as Martin did. Unless you know someone here who can check out the apartment for you, before you pay, I can't think of any way to avoid that possibity. With reference to the poor service Martin got, I have often suggested dealing directly with the owner of the firm Martin used, not with his staff. I have also often pointed out that the big negative of an apartment rental is that if you don't like it when you see it, you are stuck with it.
2) About Martin's "We did get the money back for the days we did not stay plus 20% of the days we did stay.", I must say I feel this speaks rather well of this firm's responsiveness to THAT PART of his complaints and problems.
3) Summing it up, this is my honest opinion about the firm Martin used: They are supposed to sell only Rolexes and most certainly charge Rolex prices, but sometimes your expectations could be too high and you could get what looks and feels like a Seiko, not a Rolex. Unless you deal directly with the owner, as I have often suggested you do, there is also a chance you could get poor service from this firm. And that's the way I see it, FWIW.

Byrne

Hi Av rooster and Karmalaw

Thanks for the suggestions will keep it in mind next time the owner of the apartments got back and i answered some of his allegations. I'm not going to be checking this again as i don't see the point in constantly arguing the point. I had a lousy time with the company and will not be staying with them again. Lots of lessons learned!
Martin

avrooster

Great reply on TA, Mr. Byrne!
It sure sounds as if Mr. Koh has finally found a worthy opponent!!!

avrooster

One more thing, Mr. Byrne:

Your reply on TA does not address this part of Mr. Koh's reply:

"The client forgot to mention that we refunded the total commission my company made on this rental."

And "We refunded our commission as well as the days he didn’t stay."

Byrne

I have no idea about how much he made or did not make that is not my concern. I explained the fact we got the refund for the days we did not stay.That is very clear. Would you happen to know Mr Michale Koh the owner?

Scarlett

Mr Byrne, I know Mike Koh.
While I have great sympathy for anyone who spends a great deal of money to travel so far and to enjoy a worry free holiday in Buenos Aires, only to be disappointed in the accomodations...it seems you are carrying this farther than a complaint...

From what I read on TripAdvisor, you copied and pasted this complaint many many times, ..and when Mr Koh did reply to your complaint ( while away on business in Europe) we found that you had been reimbursed for everything.
Is this not enough?
.
It is obvious that Mr Koh and his ApartmentsBA have fans and those who are not..you will be encouraged by those who are not, I hope that having been reimbursed would be enough to satisfy you ..since the only other option would be to go back in time and do it all over again...oh boy would that be great if we could all do that !

Which hotel were you able to move to at short notice? I hope it was acceptable and that you will want to visit our beautiful city again ..

Scarlett

drdawggy

In fairness, I believe Mr. Bryne's original post was cut and pasted in several threads that dealt with apartment rentals. This seems entirely appropriate to me.

At the request of a reader, he started a new thread with the topic apartmentsba so his complaint would not simply be buried in threads with other titles. His subsequent post responding to the owner of apartmentsba, was to clarify several inncacurate statements made by the owner. I would not consider anything Martin said to be over the top or excessive and I found the clarification helpful.

Mr. Byrne's posts underscore several important distinctions between apartment rental services, even self styled five-star services, and hotels. When staying in an apartment, the rental service closes down for weekends and evenings...in case of a backed up toilet or another emergency, service may not be available. When staying in an apartment, it is difficult to pick up and move if one is dissatisfied, due to the necessity of paying in advance not to mention the security deposit....

I have stayed in hotels as well as apartments in Buenos Aires... I have enjoyed both experiences but apartment rentals can be risky.... travelers should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of both options. Not even "five star" apartment services offer the same convenience and 24/7 service available at modest 3 star hotels.

avrooster

After carefully rereading Mr. Koh's reply on TA and Mr. Byrne's original post here and on TA, this much seems clear to me:
Mr. Koh said "The client forgot to mention that we refunded the total commission my company made on this rental."
That is incorrect. Mr. Byrne mentioned "a small compensation(20%)" and that is what Mr. Koh is talking about.
And yes, I met Mr. Koh once.
I fully agree with Scarlett's "It is obvious that Mr Koh and his ApartmentsBA have fans and those who are not." Don't count ME among the fans.

drdawggy

Ok, if we are all fessing up here...I, too, have met Mr. Koh. I had a good experience with his agency and have kept in touch with him occasionally over the past several years as he quit his job in the USA and moved to Argentina to pursue his dream.....

Every agency or hotel that has bee around for awhile will experience unhappy customers....a good business listens to criticisms and tries to improve and makes ammends to customers with valid complaints....In this sense, Martin has provided apartmentsba with a "growth opportunity."

Byrne

So none of you can claim to be objective!What a waste of time.

avrooster

I'm sorry you feel you are wasting your time Mr. Byrne and I'm confident other readers will NOT feel the same way.

Besides, I feel you cannot get more objective that my above post of 11/02/2007 at 03:01 am

drdawggy

Several of us may have met Mr. Koh, but this does not mean any of us do his bidding.

My posts lean more toward supporting you than apartmentsba in this instance. AV believes the owner of apartmentsba is a self promoting pompous blowhard (I am paraphrasing since this is a family forum). Scarlett is in love with everything in Buenos Aires at the moment, so she gets a pass.

avrooster

Well, if the world-famous drdawggy, the universally-acknowledged TOP Internet authority on Buenos Aires says that's what I believe, I guess he must be right. LOL!!!

FauxDoors

Interesting thread, and Mr. Byrne clearly had an objectively bad experience with his apartment rental.

Some of the other negative reviews of ApartmentBA seem to stem from the expectations created by the agency itself. The prices are notably higher than BytArgentina and some other reputable competitors. The apartment descriptions tend to over-use certain descriptive adjectives like "luxury," "ultra-luxury" "super-duper-luxury" (OK, I made that last word one up, but who knows, it may show up on their website). That, combined with the owner's postings, which emphasize his platinum lifestyle, create expectations that may not be realistic when renting a short term vacation apartment in a city where the concept is relatively new.

In most cases, an investment apartment available for short term rentals is going to undergo a great deal of wear and tear, and is far less likely to be remodeled, refurnished or updated than a boutique hotel or luxury B & B. I understood that, and was happy with both of my Bytargentina rentals, even though the furnishings in both were a bit worn, and the appliances ranged from "somewhat outdated" to "primarily of historic interest." The water went out, the elevator didn't work for awhile, etc. But it goes with the territory, and I calibrated my expecations accordingly. What I happily tolerated in a rental unit in BA, I would not have accepted in San Francisco.

So, my point, if I even have one, is both in support of and critical of ApartmentsBA. On the support side, most of their properties appear to be of higher caliber than their larger competitors. Some of the criticism on TA and here in the past has come from people whose expectations were unrealistic for Buenos Aires (I'm not including Mr. Martin in this group). But, I'm critical of ApartmentsBA in that they seem to be instrumental in creating these expectations.