sf7307

We found this listing for a hotel/apartment in LA on Kayak, and it says the booking is through booking.com. Has anyone ever stayed there or know anything about it?

http://preview.tinyurl.com/kv8vhwp

janisj

I don't know the place but had to comment . . . They thought it was important to provide a photo of an iron/ironing board . . . Really?

dulciusexasperis

It's listed on every third party site and reviewed once that I can find. What does that tell you?

I wouldn't touch it with the proverbial 10 foot pole.

They say it is a 'hotel' yet it has no website of it's own. The one review on Tripadvisor. The comments in that one review re 'neighbours' and 'hosts', tell me it is an apartment that someone owns and is renting out. I suspect illegally.

Some of their third party website ads refer to 'each apartment' as well as 'hotel'. What I see is ONE unit only, no hotel.

Ah, on their Tripadvisor listing it shows the 'owner' as Live Luxe Travel. Here is their website: http://liveluxetravel.com/about/

In fact, they are not the owner they are yet another third party, who market for the owners. That seems to consist of listing the property on every rental site that exists. The owners could have done that themselves.

You can find all kinds of info on Vacation rentals by owners such as this article: http://www.travelerstoday.com/articl...ours-legal.htm

The bottom line for me is this particular one seems to be trying quite obviously to suggest it is a hotel and the apartment is only one of many for rent. When someone tries to deceive me, I usually figure they have a reason for doing so that I won't like.

Lots of people rent out a room or whole home through third party websites. Some legally, some illegally. You enter into a contract between you and the property owner. The third party sites guarantee you nothing.

Christina

It doesn't look necessarily bogus to me, it could be a combination of actual residents with corporate housing or business apartments. I stayed in a place in Barcelona that was like that, actually. I used to work a few blocks from there, to the east. It's not where I would choose to live, but for a vacation, I guess it is convenient enough to Hollywood. I just prefer West Hollywood better for a residential area.

That's why it is called a hotel, I think, it is an apartment-hotel for business travelers or something like that. It is actually called Vantage Apartments and is leased by Prometheus, this is their website: http://prometheusreg.com/los-angeles-properties/vantage

And here it is on rent.com http://www.rent.com/california/los-a...hills-4-436113

At least that place has the same address and a lot of the same photos re pool, etc.

The curious thing is this used to be named the Serravella apts and was corporate, then it became Vantage. booking.com and priceline call it Peridot Hollywood Hills, so not sure if that is just their name for it or what, as Prometheus still seems to be renting it. It is also listed in Timeout LA, actually, and I would think those editors would do a little checking out. Given it is on so many mainstream websites (booking.com, priceline and timeout), it's hard to believe it is bogus.
http://www.timeout.com/los-angeles/h...ollywood-hills

I can't believe it is one individual trying to illegally rent an apt. That would be impossible given how many websites it is on, it seems to me, and in Timeout guidebook. It's on airbnb also. No person could afford that.

So I don't quite understand it, but if you want it, why not call up Prometheus, the owner who rents it longterm, and ask them why it is being marketed as Peridot Hollywood Hills Apartments and being rented to travelers on priceline and booking.com? Should be interesting, anyway.

It does not seem to have very good reviews on this website from tenants, though http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate...-St-James.html

If you look at Google street view, it says it is Vantage Apts

NeoPatrick

It looks quite nice for the money. Since it's being marketed by everyone imagineable, and is still available, it sends up a huge red flag.

dulciusexasperis

Christina, LiveLuxeTravel is a third party property management company. They are renting it out for the owner. It is LiveLuxeTravel that is listing it on every site under the sun, not the actual owner.

So in fact there are TWO third parties between the consumer and the actual owner of the apartment. LiveLuxe and Booking.com or AirBnB, etc.

dulciusexasperis

Meant to say that LiveLuxe are probably renting out a lot of properties and getting a preferred price from the third party lsiting sites like Booking.com etc.

So your comment re no individual being able to afford to list on all the listing sites. That's the whole point, the owner isn't listing it, LiveLuxe is.

Clearly, Prometheus either owns some apartments in the building or all of them. They are in the normal rental business as far as I can see, not in the 'by the day' business.

Now the question becomes, has someone rented from them and are now trying to rent it by the day to others? Or has someone taken some of their photos off their site and are showing them 'as if' they were the apartment available to rent?

It is not unknown for pictures of a property to be 'taken' in this way and then used by a scam artist. The person renting shows up and no one knows anything about an apartment for rent. Meanwhile the money is gone.

http://www.aarp.org/money/scams-frau...tal-scams.html

Any time you find photos of a supposed rental which match photos from real estate company's site ie. Prometheus's photos, that is a HUGE red flag. An individual renting out their property cannot use photos that belong to a company ie. Prometheus. But scammers do.

Since this type of vacation rental almost invariably requires you to pay up front before arrival, the problem is clear. You arrive, the apartment is not available to you and your money is GONE.

I agree with your advice 100% Christina, sf7307 definitely needs to call Prometheus and ask them is this vacation rental is legit.