@Laura7954 Squatters obtain NC property rights only after a very long term occupancy (20 years) of abandoned or vacant property.
If you are concerned about "holdover tenants", i.e., persons who rent a property for a period and then don't leave and don't pay additional rent, those persons gain regular Tenant rights 30 days into their tenancy OR at 90 days if documented in a rental agreement.
The NC Vacation Rental Act specifies the terms for STR rentals, and a lot hinges on the provision of a valid rental agreement.
Vacation rental. – The rental of residential property for vacation, leisure, or recreation purposes for fewer than 90 days by a person who has a place of permanent residence to which he or she intends to return.
Vacation rental agreement. – A written agreement between a landlord or the landlord's real estate broker and a tenant in which the tenant agrees to rent residential property belonging to the landlord for a vacation rental.
Then you have the process for an expedited eviction of an STR rental guest who has violated terms:
(c) The complaint for expedited eviction shall allege and the landlord or real estate broker shall prove the following at the hearing:
(1) The vacation rental is for a term of 30 days or less.
(2) The tenant entered into and accepted a vacation rental agreement that
conforms to the provisions of this Chapter.
....
The above provisions appear to be contradictory, in that one states occupancy for 90 days and the other allows expedited eviction if the STR is less than 30 days. It is denoting an abbreviated eviction process -- the usual process for getting rid of a tenant is mind-blowingly lengthy and tedious, not to mention expensive due to court costs and lawyer fees.
I own vacation rental property in North Carolina. I do not want to risk a holdover tenant, so I do not rent via AirBnB and other OTAs for more than 14 days UNLESS the guest receives, acknowledges, SIGNS and returns a separate North Carolina lawyer approved Vacation Rental Contract that I have sent to them.
