Bluewater Associates of Emerald Isle, Inc.

The house we rented was in terrible condition when we arrived. We spent three days waiting on maintenance, pool, and housekeeping to get things fixed.We rented a house from Bluewater vacation rentals on June 1st thru June 8th. We arrived at the home at 3:15 to find the yard over grown and trash and debri every where,even had a bunch of cigarette butts in the flower pots on the decks. Their description listed the lawn as professionally maintained. We go into the home and we find a sofa with stains all over, a big screen TV that didn't work, sand on the comforter in the bedroom and soaking wet floor, bathroom toilet not flushed and not clean to name a few. I started making phone calls at 3:45 received the normal menu options housekeeping answered and maintenance didn't so I left a message. House keeping came over and took care of floor, bathroom and removed one of the stained pillows on the couch. Tried maintenance again talked to someone and they said they would send someone over. My son cleaned the decks and steps since we were still waiting on someone to take care of it. The kids decided to go swim and then we find out the pool isn't heated which we paid for and were promised in our contract. Called maintenance again they said they would send the pool company over. A women later came to check and see what was wrong with the heater and found out there was no gas the tank was empty so no heat. The pool lady knew the owner of the house and called her because she couldn't believe the condition of the home, I later was told by the manager at Bluewater that I had no right involving third party people which I didn't do this women could see the condition/ mess herself! Maintenance came later to fix the tv and get a list of things that needed to be fixed, well he couldn't fix the TV so he had to schedule someone else to come. My son worked on the TV himself and finally got it to work he spent the evening doing that. The next couple days we had maintenance , lawn care and pool personnel to wait on. We also discovered a leak under the fridge the next morning which is probably why the hardwood floor in the kitchen was buckled and my granddaughter slipped on it. the floor was also buckled by the island in the kitchen which everyone kept tripping over we were told the homeowner will have to have someone repair it but they (maintenance) couldn't, we also found the gas grill with the gas left on and it was filthy with caked junk caked on so we spent quite some time trying to get it cleaned and working. We never did get heat for the pool they gave us a refund for the pool heat but promised us we would still get it heated but that never happened what a disappointment!! We did go down and talk to [redacted] the manager and requested a different home but she refused she made me feel very uncomfortable to say the least. There were also exposed wires on the wall in the living room they weren't capped or anything. This was a very stressful vacation they took something away from us that we won't ever get back our vacation. Bluewater should have had all these things done before we arrived not wait for us to report it!!Desired SettlementWe would like at least 3 days refunded 973.00. We feel like this is what we lost waiting on personnel and also the time we spent cleaning and fixing things ourselves. We suffered emotional distress dealing with all of this. Business Response /[redacted]/Bluewater rented the property " [redacted] to [redacted] on June 1, 2014.Upon checking into the home, the guests found issues that they felt needed attention. Bluewater was contacted regarding these issues and immediately dispatched the on call keeper to address their concerns. Bluewater also notified maintenance and aquatics departments regarding the pool heating and one television not working. The pool heater was out of gas and the homeowner was notified to contact their gas company, as there was a billing account issue. Bluewater refunded the $620 pool heating fee in full. As a good will gesture, Bluewater also gave a $250 refund for any inconvenience they may have encountered. We are sorry that the guests are not happy, but feel that this amount is fair compensation.Consumer Response /[redacted]/Bluewater stated that they ( as a good gesture) gave a 250.00 refund and this is not a true statement we did not receive anything at all. I called and left a message telling them I did not receive the refund and have had no response as of yet. Final Business Response /[redacted]/The refund has been processed through accounting. If you have not yet received the refund, you will see it shortly. Again, we are sorry you were not happy with your stay. Even though we feel the $250 refund is an acceptable amount, we will offer an additional $250 to make the total refund $500. We would expect an acceptance and to close this complaint against us to issue this additional refund amount.Final Consumer Response /[redacted]/(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)I received the 250.00 refund check today and will close the case expecting to receive an additional 250.00 refund check next week. Thank you

Vacation rental house did not have Internet service that was dependable I rented this house specifically bc it offered Internet and I am enrolled in online classes. This internet went down 6 days out of seven and I was unable to do my school work and my grade will be negatively effectedDesired SettlementI want to be refunded a portion of my rent bc of this inconvenience. I asked numerous times that this be fixed and each time it was, it only lasted for an hour or so. The last call I made I was told they wouldn't be able to fix it today because it was 4:30Business Response Please provide a reservation number or name of person who signed vacation rental agreement. I do not show this name as a past guest. Thank you. Consumer Response The reservation number is XXXXXX, the name is [redacted] and the property was [redacted] and I stayed there from June 26 to July 3Final Business Response We are sorry for the internet issues you had during your stay. Internet is provided in the properties by the property owners. Bluewater is not an internet service provider and does not warrant internet services during guest stays. It is stated in Sec 18-k of the Vacation Rental Agreement that you signed, that refunds will not be given for internet service interruptions or outages as Bluewater has no control over internet services.

Called maintenance regarding bathroom ceiling leaking in vacation rental on two separate occasions. Manager refused to investigate and fix.On 8/3/15 checked in at [redacted] Emerald Isle. During the evening, the bathroom ceiling began to leak, then pour water. Called emergency maintenance to report at 8:30pm. Answering service reported to on-call tech that toilet was leaking. Tech called, I explained the leak was coming from ceiling, not toilet. He said he would come out. Arrived at 11:30pm, at that time the leak had subsided. Tech said nothing he can do, argued with my husband when he questioned him not doing anything to fix the leak and left. I called him again and he apologized for being rude stating he was "tired". I cleaned up all of the water in the bathroom from leak. On 8/4/15 ceiling started leaking again at 7:54pm. I again called the emergency maintenance answering service, reported leak from bathroom ceiling. Another tech from Bluewater returned my call and said they probably couldn't do anything until the morning. I told him no, it has to get fixed tonight as the leak is directly over the toilet and the condo only has 1 bathroom. He said he'd be over in a few minutes. Then I receive a call from the maintenance manager, I again explain to him that this is the second time we've had this leak and we need someone to find where it's coming from and fix it. He tells me the condo above us is vacant right now and the leak can't be coming from there. He'll send someone out to check on it. My husband and I met the tech outside. I said are you maintenance? He said yea, what's your problem, where is it? I pointed to the condo door and ignoring me, he continued upstairs saying the unit above isn't theirs. My husband followed him up explaining the leak, he turned putting his hand up in my husband's face telling him he wan't going in there. My husband surprised by this, asked him did you just put your hand up? He said you put your hand up...This never happened. The tech then left without looking into the leak. I called the manager, left a message that someone has to come out and fix this or I was going to call the police. (It is a health code violation). He returned my call and as I am trying to tell him what happened with his tech, he proceeded to yell at me and tell me that he'll call the police, I've been on the beach drinking and no one was going to come. I DO NOT drink. I was on the beach with my 2 children while this person is screaming at me on the phone. I am a 40 year old mother and wife and certainly DO NOT appreciate being treated like trash. My husband and I paid Bluewater $1115.95 to rent this condo from 8/1/15-8/8/15 for our first family vacation in 5 years due to work schedules. I was screamed at by the maintenance manager and accused of being drunk while only trying to get a problem fixed (which IS their job) is shameful. I'm sure the owner, [redacted] wouldn't appreciate it if she knew the bathroom in her condo was leaking and maintenance refused to address the problem.Desired SettlementI would like a credit posted to my account for at least 1 day as this is the least the company can do our aggravation and their maintenance manager's out of line statements and extremely unprofessional attitude.Business Response /[redacted]/A manager reached out to the guest and discussed the issues and Bluewater agreed to issue the 1 day credit to the guest. Bluewater does not agree with all issues involving the complaint but as a good will gesture will issue the refund

On 2/23/16 I made a reservation for a condo for May 15-29, 2016 through Bluewater Vacation Rentals. I was encouraged to buy travel insurance with them, but declined. I paid for the rental in full on 2/24/16, $938.65. Cancellation policies were never shown on the confirmation emails received. On 4/3/16 I called to cancel. I was told by the clerk I would have to cancel in writing. I did. I was informed I needed to see my rental agreement for cancellation terms. I asked for a copy since I was not given one in any correspondence received. It stated, "3. CANCELLATION TERMS: Should Tenant have to cancel for any reason, please notify Agent immediately in writing (fax XXX-XXX-XXXX, e-mail to [redacted]@BluewaterNC.com, or US Mail). If the property is re-rented for the specified period, monies will be refunded less a $125.00 cancellation fee, any discounts/expenses required to re-rent and the Travel Insurance Premium. Agent reserves the right to automatically cancel reservation if payment is not received in full 30 days prior to the arrival date. Failure to cancel in writing may result in charging the final payment to the Tenant?s credit card. I stated if I had known I would have bought the insurance. She told me it would not have helped. It was only for acts of God. I asked her how much the discounts/expenses would be and why I would be charged for Travel Insurance Premiums when I had already declined them AND I could not use it after the fact. She wrote, "If the property has not re-rented 2 weeks before the arrival date then the rate would be reduced by 20% off of the base rate so if a guest rents it a week or 2 prior (or the day before) the arrival date, they will receive a 20% discount off of the base rate and then your refund would be calculated with the 20% discount reduction."These policies were never told to me nor found in the correspondence given to me after my reservation. I could potentially end up paying more to cancel my reservation than I would have paid to use it.Product_Or_Service: Vacation RentalAccount_Number: Reservation #XXXXXXDesired SettlementI would like to be refunded the rental fees minus the 125.00 cancellation fee. I should not need to pay for advertising and re-rental fees as those should be covered under the cancellation fee. In addition, I am furious that I will need to pay for Travel Insurance Premiums when I will not even use the rental. I believe their policies are unfair to consumers and their cancellation policies should be clearly stated and easy to find.Business Response In response to your complaint, the correct reservation number is #XXXXXX. The other Res# is from a prior stay. You made the reservation and then signed on to our Guestweb service and e-signed your rental agreement on 2/28/2016. You signed stating that you had read the agreement and agreed to it's terms including section 3 dealing with cancellation terms. You are incorrect in how you are interpreting this section. You cancelled the reservation and it was placed on cancel re rent status. If the property re rents for the same amount, you will receive a full refund minus the $125 fee. You did not purchase Travel Insurance. The agreement states that if you "did" purchase travel insurance, it would not be refundable. You did not purchase, so this doesn't pertain to your reservation. As the date closes within 8 weeks of check in, the property starts auto discounting, with the maximum amount being 20% within 2 weeks of check in. If the property re rents for a lesser amount than what you paid, then your refund will reflect the reduce amount, minus the $125 fee. If it re rents for the full amount, then you receive the full rental amount minus the $125 fee. If the property does not re rent, then you are due no refund and the rent amount will be paid to the owner of the property. Under no circumstance will you be charged the Travel Insurance amount, as you declined coverage.Consumer Response I'm happy to hear I won't be charged for the insurance, that was not clearly stated. It doesn't change the fact that if the property doesn't re rent I will pay the entire amount of the rental. Will I pay the $125. cancellation fee too? Because you didn't clarify that. So you put the cancellation terms in the agreement that I signed but obviously did not read carefully, it does not explain the auto discounting fees without further explanation from you. It also does not change the fact that the policy is extremely non consumer friendly. It's a no win for anyone who has to cancel less than 8 Weeks ahead. Most businesses will give you 30 days, many less. I find 8 weeks an outrageous amount of time. Certainly a timeframe I would never have expected and I doubt many others would either. For that reason I think your cancellation policy should be more clearly stated and consumers should be made more aware of the gamble they take renting from your company. Your insurance sales are also very misleading because they do not cover the need to cancel your reservation except for a few atypical situations. If I had agreed to buy your insurance it would have been useless to me, and most travel insurances cover last minute cancellations.In summary, I believe your cancellation policies are vague and unfair. Once again, I believe consumers need to clearly understand the risk they take renting from you. Final Business Response Section 3 of the agreement that you signed and now say you obviously didn't read, clearly states, "If the property is re-rented for the specified period, monies will be refunded less a $125 cancellation fee and any discounts/expenses required to re-rent". All properties are privately owned and the owners can decide if they choose to discount rental weeks. If this week does re-rent, we will certainly reimburse any monies due you and as a good will gesture, I will wave the $125 cancel fee, but if the week doesn't re-rent, the monies paid will be disbursed to the owner as earned rent.More Info Received From The Consumer(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)I'm still unclear- so if you had not offered to waive the 125.00 cancellation fee, would I have paid the entire rental fee plus the 125.00?I still need to point out to you that your discount/advertising fees are not explained in paragraph three of your agreement. I also need to point out that your cancellation policy is not easily found in your reservation emails nor your website.

Supposed to get refund on a deposit since Nov 2015. Have not received and no one will return calls now.We placed a deposit of $250 on June 19, 2015 to hold The Islander for my daughter's wedding on June 18, 2016. We were told it was all inclusive. After emails and speaking with planner we found out it was not all inclusive and in fact I would have to do most of the work myself. Then The Islander was bought out tom Blue Water,,and the planner left,,as well as many others. Some things had not been done for the wedding, i.e. Reserving rooms, etc.,I could not get anyone to call or help me, so we decided to cancel. We were told we would be getting our deposit back immediately. That was November 2015. As of today, Feb 1, 2016, I still don't have my deposit. I have spoken with many different people, and no one seems to help. On Jan 19, [redacted] contacted me . She is the accounts representative and manager for Blue Water. She to,d me my check was being processed and I would be receiving it in 3-5 days. Two weeks later I STILL do NOT have my check. I called on feb 27 and left her a message as well as today Feb 1, and left another message asking where is the check. No one will return my calls. I just want my deposit back which I am entitled too. They didn't fulfill their end of the deal, therefore breaking the contract and they have agreed mutiuple times to return the money. I just want my money, even if they have to send it certified check and put a tracking number on it. This is ridiculous and draining. Please help!Desired SettlementI want my deposit of $250 back immediately. Even if they have to put a tracking number and send it certified.Business Response Contact Name and Title: [redacted]Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXXContact Email: [redacted]@bluewaternc.comIslander management changed hands beginning Jan 1,2016. Bluewater is no longer allowed to manage property or oversee wedding coordination packages. All wedding information was submitted to new property management company. We did agree to refund $250 deposit and check was issued and mailed on January 19th. It has not yet been received so Bluewater will stop payment and cancel the check. We will issue a new check and send by certified mail today.Consumer Response Yes I understand Bluewater no longer manages The Islander and any wedding coordination, however, I cancelled in November 2015, when you did manage it. According to the Islander management, they also tried everything to no avail to help me get my refund. I did finally receive my certified check, 2 days after filing this report. Thank you Revdex.com for you help.

Blue Water Real Estate advertises a clean, quiet, and well appointed property A101 in the Ocean Club. I spoke with them by phone and they assured me that this property was the above. It was anything but that. Unaccommodating and unhelpful staff after booking. Paid for seven night stay. Stayed for three nights and left. The unit was nothing like the pictures. The carpet was stained, filthy, torn, and the whole unit was dirty (see pics). Dishwasher broken, people above had small children running from condo end to end from 7 am - 11:30 pm. The walls and chandelier literally shook. We couldnt stay in the condo. Called the manager, [redacted], the next morning. She refused to give us another unit elsewhere and LIED: we dont know the owner but will try to reach them. BLUEWATER managers that unit. We offered to move to anything, even something less expensive as long as we could just move. Nothing was used since we had just arrived the prior evening and slept in two of the beds. We hadn't even showered yet or used the kitchen. We even offered to pay a cleaning fee (as if they clean them). She still refused.A/C condensers are right under the master bedroom window. Had to buy ear plugs to sleep.Emailed pictures of the filthy unit to Bluewater. [redacted] responded which A101 is this, we have many. In other words, their units are all so worn and filthy that she didnt even know which one it was?Other renters there at the pool were equally disappointed and Bluewater did NOTHING for them either. Met one owner who is firing Bluewater reality and going w/Emerald Isle because after Bluewaters crew cleans the owner drives 90 minutes to come clean it again or people leave negative reviews. Their website positive reviews look faked - check for yourself. You cannot leave a review on their site. The positives arent real reviewsFalse advertising at its best. Theft at its worst.Product_Or_Service: 7 night stayAccount_Number: XXXXXXDesired SettlementTo reiterate, we offered to move to anything, even something less expensive as long as we could just move. Nothing was used since we had just arrived the prior evening and slept in two of the beds. We hadn't even showered yet or used the kitchen. We even offered to pay a cleaning fee (as if they clean them). She still refused. She refused to refund us anything even if we went elsewhereWe paid $1854.74 for a seven night stay and only stayed three nights. A refund is expected.Business Response /[redacted]/We apologize for the issues during your recent stay. As a good will gesture, Bluewater will offer a refund in the amount of $250.Consumer Response /[redacted]/Totally unacceptable

Had serious accident on premises and disappointed how it has been handled and their lack of concern for sameI had a very serious accident while on vacation on their rental property..it was an accident but I felt like they did not make the owner take the proper channels to determine whos fault it was. The owner took no responsibility after doing his own investigation but never did turn it into his insurance to determine that, which I was told by legal reps that this is the only way to determine liability. So I have been made to feel this was all my fault. I did not throw myself down the stairs and the owner could make some changes to the conditions even though no one believes me. I felt Bluewater as his rental agent should have made sure proper channels were taken..if they had done so and the ins. company told me sorry its all your fault that would be the end of it, but they kept telling me they are commnicating with the owner and he feels no responsibility. I don't know for sure that is even true. If I could file a complaint against the owner I would do that also. Our week there after my accident was not good of course, the family did what they could between taking care of me after my release from the hospital and made the best of it cause we love the ocean but vacation was definitely spoiled. My injuries were numerous and very serious and I still am recuperating.Even though MY insurance did cover most of my bills I still have some trickling in. But the point of the whole thing is their lack of concern for doing the right thing. There are things that should be corrected there to hope this does not happen to someone else. Maybe they think this was not serious but I have Dr. report and pictures to show them exactly how serious this was. I am disappointed in Bluewater, I think they could have asked or encourged the owner to do the right thing but I guess that was asking too much and he pays their fee. Action is still pending on this end but no matter what it should not be taken for granted that my suffering then and now should not be considered let alone the bills.Desired SettlementWe spent I believe over 8,000 to rent that house my share was 1,400...the family stayed there so I am not asking for the whole thing, just my share.Business Response /[redacted]/Bluewater received a report from Ms. [redacted] regarding her accident. Representatives from Bluewater inspected the property and all information was sent to the owner. The owner does not feel that he is liable for the accident. He has advised her to consult an attorney. Bluewater has also advised Ms. [redacted] to seek legal counsel.Consumer Response /[redacted]/I have constulted an attorney and to move forward would cost a lot of money and that is not what I have unfortunately, or I would. The owner did not have the right to assume he is not liable at all, that should have been up to his insurance company as I was told by my attorney. I would rather just get enough money back to pay my unpaid bills from the accident. They are assuming I was totally at fault and that is not the case, I would just like my vacation money back or part of it that is all and I don't feel that is asking for too much..I was in the hospital and wheelchair all but 1 day of my vacation. The circumstances there as far as lighting was not perfect...I also have pictures. I was told the owner inspected the property, not Bluewater, kind of have their story mixed up. Neither had the right to make the call that things there were perfect. Alll I want is monetary settlement to get my bills paid.Final Consumer Response /[redacted]/(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)Mainly because they lied to begin with, they told me the owner inspected the property and said he was not liable, they never said they inspected the property, who are they to say it should not be the insurance company call. They may not have been entirely at fault, which I never said, but they are at least partially at fault as the bedroom light was not working property unless you used the remote which that did not even work properly. I also have pictures of the lighting and it is not right outside the door but in the other room or all the way down the hallway. We had to call the first day regarding the light in the bedroom as it did not work, a guy came and said it worked by remote which it always DID NOT..if I could have turned that light on I would not have fallen. No matter, they lied to begin with, saying the owner made the call after inspection, they also said all decisions were made by him and I do not believe them. I want some type of monetary settlement to pay for my bills coming and and still to come. I expected more from them.Final Business Response /[redacted]/Bluewater inspected the property and found no lighting issues. We can offer no solution other than to seek legal counsel

The house was not at all as described on their site. The condition as described below was not a healthy environment.On October 12, my wife and I made the 12 hour trip from our home in Ohio to the vacation rental house we secured through Bluewater Vacation Rentals, aka Bluewater Realty. We arrived at your Emerald Isle office, were given the keys and directions to the house. Once at the house we unloaded our vehicle, set the luggage in the bedroom and looked around. The first thing we noticed were the filthy carpets, broken down sofa and love seat, chipped hardwood chairs and chipped table decorations. In reading the internet instructions I noticed it mentioned a laptop available for our use which was no where to be found. I contacted your IT people and let [redacted] know the laptop was missing. We went to Food Lion in Atlantic Beach for supplies, arrived back to the house and continued our inspection. Upon attempting to make the king bed we noticed a pair of mens underwear between the mattress and headboard, completely unacceptable, we moved to the room with the queen bed, pulled back the comforter and noticed dead bugs on the sheets. I called the office, unfortunately after hours, and sent off an email to the address on your site. If you do not have a copy of the email, I will gladly forward it to you. In the email I went over what we had encountered and requested one of two things to be done to remedy the situation, (1) a complete refund or (2) moved to a clean ready beachfront house to spend the week. By Sunday morning we received no response, packed up the car and drove to your office. Turned in the key with an explanation adding that I had sent an email to which I received the response, "oh you did?". After going over the issues I was told that they would expect the opportunity to send in house cleaning to take care of the issues. It Should Have Been Done Before We Were Given The Keys! I asked to be moved to a different house, a clean one. I was told our contract was with the property owners and moving to a different house was not a possibility. I disagree; My contract was with Bluewater, not the property owners. My payments were submitted to and received by your company. As the property management company it was within your rights and ability to move us to a clean property. I have since talked to Kathy Lockowitz in your office twice, once to go over what we encountered and once to be told we would not receive a refund. Again told that your company should have been offered the opportunity to address the house cleaning issues. What we encountered went well beyond general house cleaning issues. It was nothing short of an ill kept filthy house. For paying just shy of $2,000.00 I should have been able to open the door and relax. That was not the case. We did spend the 1 night in the house, only because the 12 hour trip tired us. We covered the love seat and sofa with sheets we brought with us, this was to cover the dirty cushions, and slept in the living room. In short, we traveled 12 hours to get there on Saturday and another 12 hours to return home on Sunday. I do have pictures and videos of everything I described in this email. I have also contacted Discover and have disputed the entire amount paid to your company along with a full descriptive explanation as to why I am disputing the charges. In addition to the money, your company literally took our vacation from us. Three days ago your company sent me an email asking for a review of our vacation on Emerald Isle. I did submit a review although I'm certain you will not be posting it for prospective renters to read. I'm sure the Island is a beautiful place to vacation, I can't say as I will not be returning to Emerald Isle solely based on this one experience provided by Bluewater Realty.[redacted]Desired SettlementI am seeking a full refund. Final Consumer Response /[redacted]/We have reached an agreeable settlement.