NYC Apartments Illegally Converted to Rent on Airbnb

Posted on March 24, 2017

I am a tenant in a rent-controlled residential apartment building in New York City. Our landlady has evicted several tenants under the guise she needs the apartment unit for family members. Once they had been vacated, the landlady brought in IKEA furniture and set up the units for Airbnb guests. The new state laws allow for short-term Airbnb rentals of 30 days or more if the host is the lease holder. Because this particular building is rent controlled, the owner gets tax breaks in exchange for abiding by rent regulations. She must lease out units to renters who will carry a minimum of a one-year lease. The NY Department of Buildings inspectors have investigated this situation, have interviewed Airbnb guests within the building and have slapped three sets of fines. The landlady is now facing court proceedings for her illegal conversion of residential apartments into hotel accommodations. Here’s an example of how much money she is making. One particular apartment was vacated in January 2017 with an outgoing rent of $1743. This same apartment is now being listed on Airbnb for $5483 per month. I continue to see this landlady’s listings on Airbnb. I’ve contacted Airbnb to no avail. In a building of 16 apartment units, only five apartments are occupied by leaseholders. When will this end? Airbnb has allowed building owners to turn apartments into hotel units without paying any hotel tax.

Host Cancelled Ten Days Before our South African Trip

Posted on March 22, 2017

We made reservations for three days in Simon’s Town (near Cape Town), with plans to go shark diving. We also have two little kids, so it was fairly important that a particular location was large enough; we also wanted a pool for the kids. The reservation was made three months before the scheduled trip dates. Ten days before we were to depart for South Africa (from the United States), I received a message from the host that she didn’t realize the dates we selected were during the Easter weekend and that she had to cancel the reservation because they would be using the house. While we were able to find different accommodation, this was highly unprofessional. Airbnb also doesn’t allow you to leave feedback for a host that cancels a reservation; there is only an automated message that’s posted to their account. This is very frustrating because it doesn’t let you express your views of the host and thus there is little incentive for a host to think carefully before cancelling a reservation. I’ll think twice before using Airbnb again.

Back to Student Dorm Living with Airbnb Drama

Posted on March 22, 2017

Our arrival started out with a search for towels and toilet paper. We found one towel in the bathroom cabinet and one in the dryer, and those were all the towels we could find at that moment. We couldn’t find any toilet paper (even the holder in the bathroom was empty) after searching the whole apartment and opening every cabinet and closet. The bathtub was disgusting with hairs in it and so was the oven, with a molded dish in it. The floors throughout the apartment were dirty too; walking for only five minutes barefoot left us with black soles on our feet. The couch was so dirty, we didn’t even want to sit on it. This was a surprise, as we choose the apartment because several reviews mentioned it was clean. After communicating with Maggie, the host, she did immediately send a maid, Hilda.

However, Hilda did a very poor job. We came in shortly after she had left, and the bathroom floor was wet with hairs still on the floor, as well as some fine black sand. The apartment floors still were too dirty to walk on barefoot. We couldn’t believe the “well stocked” comment regarding the kitchen in one of the reviews, as there were only four cups and three glasses. Every time we wanted to use something we had to wash it. The dishwasher in the apartment was in very bad shape; most things we had to thoroughly pre-wash for them to come out clean.

Apparently, there was an “unexpected” tenant in the apartment (a friend of a friend – not a paying Airbnb guest), who was making a mess of everything. She constantly left dirty dishes in the sink, makeup splatters in the bathroom, food stains on the counter and table, a wet bathroom floor after taking a shower, etc. The fridge – from where we were allowed to “take anything” – looked like a biological experiment with several items well over the expiration date. Not that we wanted to eat anything from it in the first place, but we felt the need to bag everything we bought ourselves, before putting it in this fridge.

The “icing on the cake” came the last morning, when we woke up to pee and poop on the apartment floor from the other tenant’s dog. We were so disgusted. She also had eaten my breakfast, which I had stored in a bag in the fridge. Maggie (who actually lived next door, we found out) promised us her friend would reimburse us for the last night. After a couple of days, I inquired about the check which I hadn’t received; Maggie basically told me to chase after my money with her friend myself, who sent me a text explaining why the check hadn’t come yet. After two weeks of back and forth texting (with Maggie, the host) I received a nasty text in which she promised to send me the check. Eventually, I did get a $100 check in the mail.

With the exception of the last night, we also feel we absolutely didn’t get our money’s worth for the first five nights. I have been patiently communicating with Maggie about our complaints, but besides sending a maid who didn’t know how to clean, I think she wasn’t on top of things in the first place. She should have checked the state of the apartment on the day of our arrival and checked in after Hilda finished cleaning; since she lives next door, this should not have been too much of a hassle. This friend of hers was a problem, but it shouldn’t have been our problem. We worked hard all year for this vacation, paid plenty of money to rent this clean place, and instead we got a dirty apartment with a troublesome tenant. Even though Maggie apologized for the issues and her friend’s behavior we felt part of our vacation was ruined due to this very underwhelming stay. Maggie did not deliver her end of the deal. We paid in full, but we didn’t even get half of what we paid for.

Awful and Stressful Experience Contacting Airbnb

Posted on March 21, 2017

The host was unreachable. I booked this reservation for my 21-year-old son. The host did not leave a building key and promised to let my son in by buzzing him in through his cell phone. My son was left out in the freezing cold a few days in a row because the host would not respond. He could not get into the building. We wrote to the host on Airbnb and barely got responses. He promised to leave us the building key but never did. He then claimed my son lost the key and was going to charge us for it; he never left it. This was an awful and very stressful experience. My son left the premises after just a few days because he did not have easy access to the apartment.

I am disputing the charge with my credit card company but it seems that I will have to eat this cost because Airbnb is completely unreachable. There is no email address to contact them. Their help on the site has questions and answers but no phone number. You can never speak to anyone. I used Google to search for a contact number, was on hold for over a half hour, and then hung up. No one answered if that was even the right number. Do not use Airbnb. You will be throwing away your money.

Airbnb’s Insurance Policy Doesn’t Protect Guests

Posted on March 21, 2017

In February, our Airbnb rental in Mexico was burglarized. The police came and a report was filed. All told, between two couples, we lost over $4500 of our possessions. The owner was very helpful; he filed a claim with his insurance company, which was denied about two weeks later because we were renters. Our personal homeowner’s policies covered all of our losses except our $500 deductibles for each couple, which might mean that the cost of our policies could go up.

I contacted Airbnb Customer Service over 12 days ago, to collect the two $500 deductibles from them. I was told to send all corresponding information to them, which I did. It has now been almost two weeks since Airbnb’s last contact with me. I have attempted to have other emails answered by their employees to no avail. I am now very angry at the rudeness of Airbnb. In the last two days, I have called the 855-424-7262 number four times. I was on hold for over 15 minutes each time with music playing, then when the music stopped (all four times), and I thought, yeah, someone is going to talk to me, I was disconnected. All four times.

I am mad and will not give up trying to reach Airbnb. They cover insurance for their homeowners; there should be insurance coverage for their renters as well. We are half of their business. My first communication with one of their representatives went very well. I thought this was a good company. However, in the ensuing two weeks, with no followups and reading about problems many other people have had trying to contact them, trying to reach someone by phone only to be disconnected four times after 15 minutes on hold, I am now convinced that Airbnb does not care. The CEOs have made their millions (billions) and they just don’t care anymore. I will be renting from HomeAway and VRBO in the future. Step up to the plate Brian Chesky, Nathan Blecharczyk, and Joe Gebbia. Someone at Airbnb should be reading the complaints and frustrations of your homeowners and renters on this website.

Left out in the Rain with no Customer Service

Posted on March 21, 2017

I was going to Houston for a wedding. Because the official wedding hotel was the uber fancy St. Regis, I figured I would book an Airbnb across the street instead to save some money. What a mistake that was…

There were bad omens from the start. Just checking in required me to get the keys from the front desk of a building that did not actually allow Airbnb hosting, so I had to pretend to be a friend staying the weekend. The front desk seemed to have all sorts of problems copying the electronic key fob for me to use for the weekend, so it took thirty minutes just to get the keys. It also turned out the building was massive with hallways that sprawled for what seemed like a mile (everything really is bigger in Texas), so just finding the right apartment was a challenge. I briefly pondered how hard this would be later that night coming back after a few glasses of wine and decided I better try and keep it together.

Finally stepping inside, the apartment was nice enough, but the delay meant I was running late for the rehearsal dinner. What a lovely dinner it was; the food, wine, and atmosphere were splendid. After a great night, the group decided to cap it off at the St. Regis bar. I met a girl. No, she was not a prostitute (as my friends speculated), but she did make things pretty easy for me. She eventually asked if I had a room in the hotel. I couldn’t believe my luck, but had to be honest and said: “No, but I do have an Airbnb just across the street!” She went home. I guess I can’t blame that on Airbnb, but it was a painful reminder of how your cheapness can come back around to bite you.

After that, I decided it was probably time to call it a night. And so I began my two-minute journey across the street to my place, trying to remember again where in the labyrinth of a building I was actually staying. I thought to myself how ridiculous it would have been had I brought the girl back and we couldn’t find it. It immediately started to rain. Hard. Thank God I was only across the street, because I was in my suit. After the two-minute trek, I hit the key fob against the sensor. Nothing. I tried again – nothing. One more time. I start to panic. The front door staff was long gone. Clearly the problems they had activating my key fob were worse that I thought. I called the emergency number. I reached someone on the phone who explained they could not send anyone to help me until the following morning. I asked what the point of the “emergency” number was then.

I called my host. She explained she couldn’t help me because she wasn’t in Texas, and with the staff gone there was nothing she could do. I called Airbnb to see if they could find me a place. The estimated wait was over 45 minutes. I stayed as long as I could, but my phone’s battery wouldn’t have lasted that long. It was raining, I was in my suit, and it was almost 2:00 AM. I had nowhere to stay, with all my luggage in a room in a building I couldn’t access. I considered waiting around until someone walked in or out for me to follow, but realized that would only get me to the apartment door which I still would not be able to open.

Remembering that someone said the St. Regis was booked, I started to look for other hotels on my iPhone. 17% battery. It was about to go. Then it was gone. I had no other choice but to run back to the St. Regis, hoping people were still at the bar. It was empty. I explained my situation to the sympathetic people at the front desk. Fortunately there was, contrary to belief, still a room available. The kind folks gave me the wedding rate, which at that point seemed beyond worth it. They also gave me an iPhone charger. I walked into my beautiful hotel room and instantly realized why hotels are far superior: when you travel, whether you like it or not, you are not a resident but a customer. Customers frequently require customer service, which Airbnb just does not offer.

Unprofessional, Rude, and Unhelpful Customer Service

Posted on March 20, 2017

My partner and I had confirmed a reservation for a modest accommodation in Brentford. It was small; however, it suited our needs due to the location and all amenities. I had been in touch with the host, Gurneet, and we had spoken throughout my booking and afterwards. Gurneet asked yesterday if we’d be able to change our dates to April 31st to May 2nd rather than March 28th- 31st. I told her we wouldn’t be able to as we have no other accommodation in place for the other dates. She assured me that was fine and that the accommodation was still available. When I asked what the issue was she said it was merely a maintenance issue with fire alarms that she’d discuss with her landlord. Fast forward two hours: at 11:00 PM I received an email from Airbnb notifying me that our reservation had been cancelled. Though Gurneet and I were in regular contact on Whatsapp she cancelled the reservation then sent a message through Airbnb.

As soon as I received this, I called Gurneet. She did not answer. Instead I received a message asking me not to call, as others were asleep. I asked her why she had not given any notice of this being an issue prior to cancelling, to which she could not answer. In fact, Gurneet blocked me on Whatsapp. I then tried to call Airbnb, as they claim to be open 24/7. After spending an hour waiting on the line with no answer I went to bed. This morning I called Airbnb again, hoping they could help me. I spoke to a lady called Kira who actually shouted down the line. I’ve never spoken to someone so rude and unprofessional. After discussing the issue at hand, Kira informed me that Airbnb could only issue me with a refund plus 10% of what we spent. However, had the host cancelled 24 hours or less before the date we planned to stay, Airbnb would have helped us rebook. I explained that this whole situation has been so stressful and we had failed to find another accommodation in the same or similar location with the same amenities. She told me to continue looking and rushed to get off the phone.

When I said I didn’t find it fair of Airbnb to only offer 10% when all other accommodations nearby were higher than our price range this is when she shouted at me and asked why I didn’t think it was fair. When I responded to ask why she raised her voice. I said I found it incredibly unprofessional for a member of Airbnb’s staff to shout at a client. She claimed she hadn’t raised her voice – still shouting – and said if I didn’t let her speak she’d hang up. I said I couldn’t believe how poor the service she provided had been and put the phone down. I also explained to Kira prior to this that the experience was much more stressful as my partner is coming from Australia, the airline had already cancelled his original flight which had been due to arrive on March 27th and issued him with one arriving March 28th, so I had to change bookings accordingly. Now eight days may seem like a lot to some people, however we specifically booked in advance as we knew we wouldn’t be able to manage everything if not. Now we are receiving no help whatsoever and I just have to hope I can find another accommodation in time. In regards to Kira, I hope no one else has the unpleasant experience of talking to someone like her who clearly doesn’t suit her job. When she should be encouraging and helpful, she offered no help whatsoever, instead taking it upon herself to shout in a situation that was already stressful to myself as the guest.

Unstable Airbnb Host in Executive Suite on Sarasota Bay

Posted on March 19, 2017

My host’s name is Yvonne based in North Sarasota. This place is a Airbnb train wreck. Do not give her any money. The property is in a beautiful spot, however it’s also in foreclosure. She is looking for folks with money so she can “get a personal loan” ($20k+) to bail her out on her other defaults (yes, it’s more than “just the foreclosure”). As soon as she finds out you won’t cover that for her, things get very nasty very quickly. She will present you with continually moving targets as to proving your personal savings and income information, after moving in. Claiming one fantasy entity after another requires your private financial information for you to continue living there. Imagine what she may use that for.

Yes, there is a “private” bedroom and bathroom. However, she walks in on your private space at will, all the time. There is no central air; it’s there but needs to be replaced. She claims she “will have it fixed soon”… sure. Cooking in the very tiny kitchen is not allowed during the warm months, because there is no air conditioning. Did you see the attached picture of the note denying tenant access to USPS mail delivery service? That’s a federal crime. The US Post Office and only the USPS owns all mailboxes (doesn’t matter if you bought it or put it up – read the federal statute), not some home owner, landlord or tenant. Forget having any friends over; she refuses to allow it and if you do anyway, her behavior to them is atrocious. In addition, she’s permanently on large, daily dosages of opioid pain meds.

If you’re seeking to live with a continually whacked out junkie, this is the place for you. If ever there’s a heroin junkie’s mentality, she’s got it. Does it still sound like an “executive suite” to you? There’s little doubt she is failing to pay her mortgage at all, pocketing the rent she gets, and just waiting out the inevitable conclusion of the foreclosure process. It took some digging to discover she’s in foreclosure. Yvonne, as an owner (not for much longer) and landlord, of course didn’t share that tidbit with her tenant and has no clue I’m aware of the situation. Very sad. Do not enable this woman’s outrageous behavior.

Airbnb Raw Sewage Nightmare over Spring Break

Posted on March 18, 2017

We had our vacationed ruined by Airbnb and a host who was an absolute nightmare. Upon arrival at our condo we opened the door to an overwhelming smell of raw sewage. I’m not talking about a slightly unpleasant smell but a “you had to cover your face and eyes watering” smell. The condo looked nothing like the pictures that were on the Airbnb website. It was listed as a two bedroom but was actually only a one-bedroom condo with a three-foot crawl space with two mattresses thrown on the floor, which I guess made the second bedroom. In the end, none of that mattered as the condition and smell of the unit made it unlivable. We tried to phone the owner who told us to throw a couple of cleaning tablets in the toilet and the smell would eventually go away. There was no way this smell was going away anytime soon and the fact that we could not air it out due to the cold weather with open windows and doors only exacerbated the problem. The ultimate insult was when we stated the smell was not going away and the owner hung up on us. At this time, he is still refusing to return any calls.

We could not live in the accommodations and so literally had to spend our evening wandering, trying to find a place to lay our heads during spring break. We finally found a place that could take us for two nights for literally double what we had anticipated paying but we had no choice as we were at their mercy. I guess we will spend the rest of our stay trying to find accommodations for the rest of our stay. I have tried to call the Airbnb customer service line only to be disconnected before I ever reach a live person. The reward is not worth the risk. Don’t risk ruining your vacation and being put in financial distress by using Airbnb; it is just not worth it. I would not wish what happened to us on our worst enemy.

Overcharged Payments with Currency Exchange

Posted on March 18, 2017

I have been overcharged by Airbnb over and over again. I have just booked accommodations in Italy and was quoted the price in USD. However, I was charged in YTL despite not having any bank account connected to Turkey in my Airbnb account. Airbnb converts the amount to a foreign currency and takes a hefty commission actually without doing anything. Now I will also be charged by Amex for a foreign currency conversion. It is daylight robbery actually. Despite me taking precautions to prevent it, this has happened again and again. There is also no way of contacting Airbnb – no customer service whatsoever.