Sorry to hear about his passing.
Safety is always an issue if hiring an apartment/airbnb in these locations rather than a hotel.
I had a non-safety issue in Morocco when I hired an airbnb off-season. A local taxi driver decided that he wanted to become my personal chauffeur for my visit.
He was probably available too. Maybe mid-twenties but very skinny and like lots of locals smoked etc so wasn't aging well.
He would try to pick me up several times a day, was regularly parked at the exit from the street whenever I came out on foot, offered to get me hashish, a wife, hookers etc.
He was annoying but harmless. I can imagine not all locals are and might be problematic without the barrier of a hotel location.