A couple from California had their Thanksgiving week Airbnb vacation in New York City disrupted when tenants in the building where they had planned to stay objected to their presence. The New York Post is reporting that when the couple arrived at their rented flat they were confronted by a hostile neighbor who demanded to know why they were there and where they were staying. According to the article, the resident threatened to call the police as well as knock on their door “all night long” in order to voice their opposition. Interestingly, the very same day they booked their stay with Airbnb a new law was signed in New York imposing fines for violators of short-term rental laws, which reportedly bolsters current New York City law that makes it illegal to rent whole apartments for less than 30 days. Caveat emptor…all the way around.
Airbnb refunded the couple the amount of their transaction and offered to put them up in another Airbnb or find them a hotel, where they would be reimbursed for up to $150 per night….The cherry on top of their quickly souring cake came when they discovered they were being charged $809 for one night in the Holiday Inn on West 26th Street….The hotel rate went down to $249 the following night, so the couple stayed. Still, they had to shell out more than $2,200 for the hotel and still haven’t received the promised $1,200 reimbursement from Airbnb.
