Sunday, March 1, 2009
Beware of Blue Ridge Cabins owned by Gary Knight
If you are like me and my sweetheart, you might like to spend an anniversary somewhere private and sucluded like in a beautiful cabin in the North Georgia Mountains. Sounds great, right? Well be forewarned that honeymooners, lovers, and people on their anniversary run the risk of having their private lives video recorded by Mr. Gary Knight. While his cabins are beautiful and spacious and most of all in a private location. I have just learned on my second anniversary trip there that we were being watched. So unless you want you and your loved one's most intimate moments being filmed by a complete stranger than I suggest that you avoid staying in Blue Ridge, Georgia in any of Mr. Gary Knight's cabins.
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Emily,
ReplyDeleteI just was shown this post for the first time and just to set the record straight we have security cameras on certain cabins on the outside of the cabin to watch the perimeter of our property as we had 2 cabins broken into and flat screen tvs were stolen. These cameras film what is going on on the outside of the houses and are perfectly legal and a measure of our security for our guests and help protect in the event of a burglary. If you will give me your last name and the cabin you stayed at I am sure I can pull up the notes on why you will you must slander me personally. Perhaps we need to get law Enforcement involved if you feel you were wronged.
I can back up Emily's story... after reading our encounter with him you will see he thinks he can try and intimidate people which is a sign of a very weak man. Here is what happened to us... So my wife and I showed up to this rental, was getting settled in, having a glass of wine on the back porch... my wife looked up and saw a high quality video camera pointed right at us... she thought it was creepy so I took a piece of paper and covered the view so the camera could not see us. Within 20 minutes I get a call from Gary Knight (owner/manager of Cabin Rentals of Georgia) chewing me out saying that the owner of this property is furious because he cannot watch us on the cameras and that I better undo whatever I did... and if not I can vacate the premises... he proceeded to threaten me saying the owner was a big shot attorney in Atlanta and that he is not someone you want to mess with. Needless to say we got the heck out of there and found another rental. I documented everything and requested a complete refund. I got no response from Gary Knight and Cabin Rentals of Georgia after several attempts. I ended up having to dispute this on my credit card and received my full refund that way. This was an appalling experience and Gary Knight should be ashamed of himself. If you look up online and do some searches you will see he has had other complaints about this as well. The Better Business Bureau also has several complaints as well, I would encourage you to check this out prior to doing business with these people. I wish I had seen this prior to renting this property. We ended up seeing 4 high powered cameras on the outside of the house... I did not see any inside but we were way too creeped out to stay and find out.
DeleteOwner response:I am the owner of Cadence Ridge, the house you rented then vacated back in October. I have followed your various website postings and can tell you can benefit from greater insight into the events surrounding your stay / departure. Over $1 million was invested into this house + surrounding land. When individuals spend this type of money, they like to protect their investment, which includes exterior security cameras set up for remote monitoring. The camera on the back deck is directed at the flat screen television above the fireplace because other luxury cabins in the area have had theirs stolen. As the owners, we receive alerts when the cameras go down, or in your case, when you cover them up. This explains why you were contacted within 20 minutes; it was not about anyone having the time or desire to watch you and your wife have a glass of wine. Covering the cameras (you also covered the camera directed at the exterior air conditioning units) violated your Rental Agreement. As a result, our property management company, which is listed at the bottom of this listing under Links for More Information acted appropriately, providing you the option to uncover the cameras or vacate the house. The house was fully booked in October (peak leaf season) and several back-up requests were turned away to honor the reservation you made back in May 2012. When you elected to vacate the house, you were still financially responsible for the shortened stay - also consistent with your Rental Agreement. You would have also been financially responsible for any damage caused by the unattended fire you left blazing on the back deck. Cadence Ridge has been open for close to two years. While I cannot control your "appalling" experience and how you react, you are the only guest that has failed to respect the basic rules surrounding your stay. Kevin Attorney at Law
DeleteIf they client accuses you of having cameras and you in-fact have cameras, then how the heck is that slander? If the cameras are for the safety of the guests, then that means that they're being monitored 24 hours a day. But are they? Get your lies straight, or you'll be the one with law enforcement problems.
DeleteCabin Rental of Georgia Owned by Gary Knight
ReplyDeleteWow!! Know my wife and I wondering if we were watched during our stay at Forever Joy. This just put icing on the cake with how we felt after our stay.. Read on!!
Problems with cabin:
Heat control: So cold downstairs for kids.
Very Dusty: Kids came home with terrible coughs due to dust allergy (look on top of kitchen cabinets)
Several dead lady bugs in the sheets of the master bed upstairs
Electrical outlet covers falling off - Safety hazard for kids
Safety latches on several sliding glass doors broken - Safety hazard for kids
Outdoor light serving the fireplace and hot tub gone
Trouble lighting gas fireplace on main level
No working radios: Antennas broken
Surround sound broken.
ARCADE WITH 2000 GAMES-BROKEN!!! This is the reason we chose this cabin over two others we were considering. Children very disappointed!!!
Shower in master bathroom upstairs-BROKEN (Had to go downstairs to shower - huge inconvenience)
Jacuzzi tub upstairs - Mold around jets - GROSS
King bed upstairs, not only had dead bugs in the sheets, the mattress was caving in the middle.
Extremely uncomfortable, we could not sleep. After the first night, we moved to the bed on the main level. The mattress in that room was like concrete as well.
Offensive sign for a cabin: It may not be home sweet home - adjust
Really, this is the attitude that you want to welcome guests with. If you are a paying guest, the owner should go out of their way to make the guest more comfortable than home sweet home! Everything about this cabin made you feel unwelcome and uncomfortable.
From the beginning, we felt that the owners of the cabin/cabin rental agency were looking for ways
to charge the guests extra money. We followed EVERY rule! We left the house cleaner than when we arrived with the exception of the beds being unmade. We even left a whole load of towels in the dryer clean and ready for housekeeping. Please ask the housekeeper who was there. I spoke to her and advised her about this. You can also ask her how clean we left the cabin. This was the worst cabin rental experience we have ever had.
In reference to the heat control which is "controlled" to make the quest stay very cold and uncomfortable.
Stay away!!!
Bert, I am one of the property owners that has a cabin managed by CROG. My place is called Eagles Landing, and if you experienced any of these issues when trying to use my place, I am really sorry. It seems that numerous folks have had issues with CROG, and I hope they haven't had problems as a result of staying at EL. If that is the case, pls let me know.
DeleteThx,
Kevin Brice
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DeleteOkay so here is an update for you... Gary Knight of Cabin Rentals of Georgia filed an application for a warrant for my arrest for "theft of services"... This was over my credit company refunding my payment because of the breach of contract over undisclosed video cameras when we arrived for our stay... we had our day in court today and this was dismissed because the judge agreed that this would be a civil case not a criminal case... as it turns out Mr. Knight did this to approximately 11 people total for today's court session... met several others there for the same reason. So I wanted to post this in case you are reading this and are in the same situation. Do not settle with this man, defend yourself in court or hire an attorney to defend you, you will win. Hopefully you are reading this before you rent one of his properties... choose another company to rent from.
ReplyDeleteAs the owner of Cabin Rentals of Georgia, let it be known to all who read Mr. Tittle's disparaging remarks, defamation of character, and slanderous libel - our company acted in the best interest of both the property owner and this paying guest. The home Mr. Tittle rented is a $1M+ home enjoyed by both paying guests and the owners themselves. Great care in the selection of furnishings and amenities both inside and out were provided for all those who stay there. The exterior cameras were certainly disclosed both by signage outside the house and in the agreements. These cameras are to protect the home from burglary, fire, trespassing, etc.
DeleteWhen Mr. Tittle defaced these cameras - one looking at the AC units (people burglarize them for the copper) and the other facing the built-in cabinet housing a large flat screen TV over the fireplace - the owner thought their home was being burglarized by Mr. Tittle and immediately called our company to look into the matter. We did, and asked that they correct the cameras. They did, but left this home with a raging fire built in the outdoor fireplace - leaving this home unattended for the weekend. Thankfully, we were able to go out and take care of the fire. And what a blessing for Mr. Tittle who would have had bigger worries had the house burned to the ground.
Mr. Tittle's claim that during his day in court he met 11 other people with the same issue is a complete and total lie. Mr. Tittle's vindictiveness and slanderous libel knows no limits and these reviews are nothing more than trying to do harm to us and our business.
This is a mean-spirited man who signed an agreement with us, to which he agreed that there would be no refunds for shortened stays. Leaving because of exterior cameras protecting a $1M+ investment ruined their stay is ludicrous. These cameras were sanctioned by the owner, and we stand by our owners at all times protecting their investment and ensuring the security and safety of their homes. For Mr. Tittle to not see the signage in front of the home and on his agreements is an oversight on his part.
I had a similar experience to Scott's description above. Dealing with Gary Knight has been a nightmare. I too was served with court papers and a warrant for my arrest. Scott, if you see this would you please contact me to discuss your experience. My email address is pollackc@hotmail.com. If anyone else is reading this DO NOT rent from Gary Knight or Cabin Rentals of Georgia. Gary Knight is extremely DISHONEST.
DeleteWe also had the same experience with Gary Knight. These people are crazy!!! I wish I had read these reviews before we rented from them. They have turned our vacation into a nightmare!!! The cameras give you a creepy feeling like someone is watching everything your doing. We also left the place clean and left towels in the dryer clean. We had visitors as we were there for a family reunion and now they are saying we had 5 more people than we had originally stated. Yes people did visit but isn't that to be expected. Most people in that area are there for family reunions or with large church groups. We also had a huge problem with the driveway. It was so steep that unless your drive an SUV your car bottoms out if you have other people in it besides yourself. We had to make everyone get out of the car halfway up and they had to walk the rest of the way so we didn't do further damage to our cars. They never warned us about the driveway. An elderly person or someone disabled could never get up that driveway. We also never saw the lease policies until they had our money. When I say the had cameras we wanted to back out but knew they would never give us our money back. Now we have to figure out what to do. We don't live in Georgia so it will cost us quite a bit to fight this and to come to court. He already has our $500. deposit but now he wants an additional $1800. This guy is unbelievable. I agree with everyone else here . DO NOT rent from Cabin Rentals of Georgia and Gary Knight. I am trying to spread the word everywhere I can as they as this company is BAD NEWS.
DeleteAfter searching our records, we believe this to be referring to the reservation of John Busta, who had five additional unauthorized guests FOR SEVEN NIGHTS . We, at Cabin Rentals Of Georgia, base our rates on the occupancy of four. Therefore, once the amount of your party exceeds four there is an additional charge for each guest. Our office staff made serveral attempts to contact you to give you the opportunity to report the additional unauthorized guests, and all attempts were ignored. Therefore, a theft of services letter was sent out. We received no phone call from you during your stay regarding these issues because you had several more people in your party than you paid for (hence, the Theft Of Services Letter), and in an effort to avoid confrontation and exposure, you chose to not call our office and consequently, have defamed our character online. We never heard of any damages to any cars, possibly to avoid detection of the unauthorized guests. Unfortunately some people may consider holding people responsible for their actions and their lack of integrity "crazy". If a Judge sent your husband a pre-warrant hearing notification for theft of services, it is due to the fact that he violated the rental agreement that he signed, in booking for FIVE guests and having a total TEN guests FOR SEVEN NIGHTS. At Cabin Rentals Of Georgia, there are no hidden fees or policies. All fees and policies are clearly stated and explained in the rental agreement . We require signatures and/or initials on all pages of our agreement from each guest that makes a reservation, in an attempt to make sure all pages of the agreement are actually read by the guest. As for the cameras, The exterior cameras were certainly disclosed both by signage outside the house and in the agreement. These cameras are to protect the home from burglary, fire, trespassing, etc. We all live in a world were security cameras on the exteriors of businesses, hotels, grocery stores, etc...are a part of daily life. In no way do the security measures taken at our properties impede upon the guests stay, or their right to privacy in any way! We would welcome the opportunity to further discuss these issues with you, but as of yet, and at least eight phone calls and several letters to you, you have declined all opportunities. Instead, you have chosen to defame our character online, where you hope that people will not get both sides of the story.
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DeleteScott, I am one of the property owners that has a cabin managed by CROG. My place is called Eagles Landing, and if you experienced any of these issues when trying to use my place, I am really sorry. It seems that numerous folks have had issues with Gary, and I hope they haven't had problems as a result of staying at EL. If that is the case, pls let me know.
DeleteThx,
Kevin Brice
Hi!
DeleteI would like to speak with you in regards to your property and the treatment of your customers. It is urgent! Please contact me at shayframe88@gmail.com for details. Thank you!
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ReplyDeleteIf you are reading this and have ever been served with a warrant for your arrest or have had run ins with Gary Knight or Cabin Rentals of Georgia... will you contact me at marieandscott1@gmail.com? Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThis reply is for Cindy Dembo -
ReplyDeleteThis is just astounding. People who lie to us, cheat us, and steal from us are the very ones labeling our company who and what they really are - dishonest and unethical. Cindy Dembo stayed in one of our cabins and did not pay for additional guests, thus her lying, cheating our system, and stealing from us. She initially paid for 6 guests only for 3 nights. When she found out that she had to pay for additional guests, she complained mightily. So she only paid for 7 additional guests the first night, when there were actually 8 guests (which she never told us about). She said they would only be there for one night - a complete lie. In actuality, all 14 people stayed for all 3 nights at this cabin whose maximum occupancy is only 12. This was her original intent from the very beginning.
Ms. Dembo was quite aware of her wrongdoing beginning with her booking the cabin while omitting and bypassing the additional guest fee, continuing with her signing our contract which clearly outlines the parameters for failing to pay for additional guests, and culminating in her stay at the cabin where there is a guest list requiring all names of registered and non-registered guests to be listed. Cabin Rentals of Georgia is not dishonest or unethical, but Ms. Dembo is the dishonest and unethical one defaming our company and spewing libel, both of which are illegal.
Gary Knight did not issue an arrest at anytime for Ms. Dembo or anyone else. He does not have that power - only the judge does, and NEVER has it happened. Our policies are very clear when anyone rents from our company - all guests are to be paid for. When anyone slides in extra guests under the radar hoping to not get caught, the security deposit is captured and we try to retrieve the money owed our company and the homeowners in whose homes these people stay. When extra unpaid for guests stay in a cabin, that is tantamount to stealing - it is avoiding payment that is due Cabin Rentals of Georgia and the homeowners we represent. When these people continue to stick to their story of thievery, our only recourse is to take it before a judge to present the facts with our proof and let him decide. There is nothing unethical about this in any way. If people do not like our policies, they can stay with another company. Our policies are clear and lucid.
I don't know about Gary Knight but Lisa Strauss and Gary Strauss are nightmares! Serious psychopaths!! Do not book with VACATION HOLDINGS!!
ReplyDeleteDO NOT RENT WITH CABIN RENTALS OF GEORGIA,
ReplyDeleteWe too,have had a bad experience,found out cameras are up and no matter what you do ,you will not get your deposits back,If only my wife and i had read all the reviews we would have never rented from this company..Shame on you....
ReplyDeleteYou got a really useful blog I have been here reading for about an hour. I am a newbie and your success is very much an inspiration for me.
ReplyDeleteNorth Georgia cabin rentals & Blue Ridge cabin rentals
wow I wish I had read these blogs before I rented this cabin!! My family had a very bad experience too much to go into detail but very similar to all of these posts. I too am appalled about video cameras! I had young teenage girls in our group. I am currently in a dispute with this man who is not the registered owner of this company.
ReplyDeleteThis has been occurring since 2009! I am surprised they are still in business.
ReplyDeleteYep. Still in business and still protecting our company from those who do not want to be honorable.
DeleteWow this is unbelievable, how does this company stay in business? I am still in dispute with this man and may have to go to court. DO NOT rent from this company..
ReplyDeleteHi I also rented in July and this continues on and on even though my credit card gave him an additional 5000.00 dollars. Shame on this company. Most disturbing is that the BBB and chamber of commerce allows this to happen in this area. Certainly will make me never go back. I received a phone call from someone who said they were calling from the courts and that a warrant was issued for my arrest for theft of services. I really can't believe that there are such evil in this world. Stay away from these people.
ReplyDeleteLooked up Gary Knight difficult to determine his business in this area. he has opened and closed many companies and I am guessing this is because of his unethical business practice.
ReplyDeleteGary made the news!! Renter beware:)
ReplyDeletehttp://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/i-team/186889712-story
I saw the news on this guy. I immediately remembered who he was. I personal friend of mine did a big job for him at a cabin he owns & he refused to pay for several weeks. I think he actually still owes for the job which was done beautifully. I'm pretty sure THAT constitutes theft of services.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteEveryone. Good to see someone published the news article about Gary. He is sneaky, be aware he could change names and numbers, so unsuspecting renters could still put money in his pocket. I always ask if a rental or rental company has any affiliation with Gary Knight. Spread the word. has any one filed a negative BBB on them??
ReplyDeleteI encourage all of you to post negative reviews on AirBNB, TripAdvisor, and VRBO. The more negative press that we can generate the more it will hurt his business prospects. If he does actually own 11 of the properties, than he likely needs the rental income to keep them afloat.
ReplyDeleteI encourage all of you to post negative reviews on AirBNB, TripAdvisor, and VRBO. The more negative press that we can generate the more it will hurt his business prospects. If he does actually own 11 of the properties, than he likely needs the rental income to keep them afloat.
ReplyDeleteWe really wanted to rent the place, but there seems to be so many issues!!
ReplyDeleteMy wife was treated very rudely after contacting Cabin Rentals of Georgia when the contract quoted on VBRO was significantly different than the one they sent her. We rented a lot of cabins all over the country and the way we were rudely treated when just trying to make the reservation made us concerned enough to continue our research on Cabin Rentals of Georgia.
The rental rate was honored for the unit, however, there were exorbitant adds for the cleaning fee, pet fee, pet deposit, and security deposit that was not consistent with what was on the VBRO website, and the additional fees nearly doubled the rate. The VBRO website had the cleaning fee as $150 and when they emailed the contract the cleaning fee had been inflated to $225. The VBRO processing fee was $59.95 and the contract from Cabin Rentals of Georgia again inflated the price to $100.42. We requested an adjustment – THEY cancelled our reservation!!!! After reading the reviews, I’m sure there would have been some frivolous reason to keep all the deposits had we stayed in there cabins!!!
After canceling the reservation, Cabin Rentals of Georgia changed the VBRO website and added $50 to the rental rate for that cabin (I’m still trying to figure that one out…..)
I"m sure there will be a rebuttal to this review – don’t believe it and go somewhere else to do business.
If I was an owner and read these reviews, I’d recommend finding a new management company, Cabin Rentals of Georgia isn’t doing you any favors.
We went down the road and found someone who was accommodating…..
This guy is the biggest crook in the cabin rental business. After declaring our three children Gary Knight said their policy was only 10 people and no children were allowed to sleep on the floor. We were forced to cancel our reservation and he kept our $3700. (NO REFUND)
ReplyDeleteBeware, Beware. Go somewhere else if you don't want to be ripped off and spied on. When stopping by Blue Ridge and talking with the cabin rental association, which he is not part of, they said he gives rental companies a bad name.
ReplyDeleteMr. Vogan, You are welcome to contact me directly but as I recall you had a reservation at The Rivers Edge for 10 guests and you wanted to increase your reservation to 13 guests and they were three small children. We explained that we would honor your reservation for 10 guests but that we would not be able to increase this to 13 as the maximum allowed was 10. This is a very common policy even for those with the Blue Ridge Lodging Association. Check out Mountain Tops, or any of the companies in the Association. We explained we would honor 10 guests. As I recall you canceled your reservation a couple of days before arrival and this home sat empty. According to your rental contract you then forfeited the reservation costs. I take issue with your comments as we are a family owned and operated business and we will protect our homes at all times from too many people in a cabin as this is a liability for us. I wish you well.
DeleteGary knight is a piece €#|+!!!!
ReplyDeleteleopard's spots never change even in 2020 and a pandemic
ReplyDeleteI just saw the story of him on the news, so glad they covered it and I found this, I was about to rent from them.
ReplyDelete