Billy Bruton Notre Dame Rental Property Claimed to have AirBnB property to rent, held our money for 3 months, then cancelled last minute South Bend Indiana

Bill "Billy" Bruton lives in CHicago, but owns a home in near the University of Notre Dame for rent through AirBnB. Our daughter was graduating from ND, and her brothers (both ND grads as well) were flying in with their wives to join us, so we wanted to rent a house for the six of us.

We paid Billy almost $900 in Freburary, through AinBnB, to reserve his home for Graduation weekend. Graduation weekend and football weekends are very, very difficult periods to get any sort of lodging near campus - rates triple, and anything decent books 6-12 months ahead of time. So we were thrilled when Billy confirmed our reservation on February 9, 2017.

We had intermittent communication with Billy over a 2-3 month period, adding a third night, and a few minor questions about amenities. We have stayed with AinBnB owners several times, and always receive 5-star reviews.

Two weeks before our May 19th check-in I emailed Billy with a couple of questions about check-in procedures. Pretty normal. No response for 2 days, so I called and left a voice message. That's when he sent us a return email saying he's behind schedule on renovations, and that we might want to start looking for alternative accommodations. His stories and excuses kept changing...from storm damage, to the perils of renovating old homes, to contractors who don't keep their commitments...but the consistent theme was Billy waffling. He didn't actually cancel - somethig we would need him to do so we could get our $900 back, surely because he wanted th emoney. So he just strung us out, hoping he could pull it off.

By suggesting we find a backup plan, he expected us to plop down another $1000-$2000 to find another place. There is, of course, NOTHING still available this late. We spent a week trying to find a backup, all the while trying to get Billy give us an update, but he refused to respond to any communication whatsoever. Over the course of the following week, from May 9th through 14th, we left 7 polite and increasingly pleading messages to please let us know what's going on, and all were ignored. Utter silence from Billy. 

• Specific attempts to reach him included:
  • Via phone on Mon 5/8 (voice message left requesting a call back), ignored. No response
  • Via phone Tues 5/9 (voice message left requesting a call back), ignored, no response.
  • Via email (through AirBnB) Tues 5/10, no response.
  • Via phone Weds 5/10 (voice message left requesting a call back), no response.
  • Via email (through AirBnB) Fri 5/12, no response.
  • Via phone the morning of Sun 5/14 (voice message left requesting a call back), no response. Happy Mother’s Day, right?
  • Via email the evening of Sun 5/14

Billy finally sent us an email at 9:30pm Sunday, May 14th - 5 days before we were to check in - cancelling because he couldn't get the hourse ready in time. So ater 3 months and at least 7 ignored messages, he bailed and left us with no place to stay. He was too sleazy a coward to even call, and in fact said specifically that he would not be calling because he was too "distressed" by his failure. Coward.

I have had several local friends drive by the house over the past couple of weeks, and Billy's story seems to be just that, a story. Storm damage? Nothing anyone else in the neighborhood knows anyting about. Contractors? Been pretty quiet at the house, no trucks or workers. I believe Billy simply thought he could pull it off, got in over his head, and isn't enough of a man to admit his failures. That in and of itself is tolerable, but his utter disregard for my family and how this impacts us is apalling. He left six people with no place to stay, after flying in from all over the country, and waited so long he made it impossible for us to find an alternative.

Billy Bruton claims to be an upstanding Notre Dame guy, but that hasn't been my experience. He also claims to be "humble and appreciative," (yeah, he actually said that) but his actions scream otherwise. Billy Bruton isn't fit for this type of business because it's very obvious his only concern are his own interests and money.

By law, Billy has done nothing wrong. Just as United Airlines did nothing wrong when they beat Dr. Dao and dragged him off his flight to Louisville last month. Legally safe, morally corrupt.

If you're renting in South Bend, or anywhere near Notre Dame, caveat emptor - buyer beware - at least where William "Billy" Bruton is concerned. Unless you want to spend a fortune on ND Footbal tickets and travel only to be left sleeping in your car instead of the house Billy committed to rent to you, stay clear.  My experience is that the representations and word of Billy Bruton are worthless. He has behaved selfishly, shamefully, and in complete contradition to the values he so self-righteously claims to represent. He's not a Domer, he's a poser.

Caveat Emptor.