NYC bedroom without door lock

[Winnie77]

Hi everyone. I am here to seek the community's opinion because Airbnb help hasn't replied my question for half a month.

I visited at least two Airbnb apartments in New York City, and they all have bedroom door lock with key access. For sure, the host always owns the spear key, so having your own key access is not the safest thing on earth. But I assumed that is the minimal sense of privacy/security/respect when the listing is listed as "private bedroom".

Not until I moved in this Airbnb apartment, I have no idea that NYC has a fire-safety law that does not allow you to have exterior door lock on bedroom door. Which mean, the door knob designed to let me lock the door only when I am inside the room. To give you more information, the apartment is a multiple listing/share house situation, and the host does not live in the apartment.

Correct me if I am being ignorant - I don't think there is an area on Airbnb listing to state whether or not the bedroom you booked has door lock with key access. Is this fair for the tenant to move in without knowing? In a wider picture, is this fair for other NYC host to install bedroom door lock without knowing that may be against the city's law? Because I have no idea where the law draw the line.

I would greatly appreciate anyone hosting/renting within NYC area to fill me in with more details!

[Anonymous]

@Winnie77  " I don't think there is an area on Airbnb listing to state whether or not the bedroom you booked has door lock with key access."

This is not correct. "Lock on Bedroom Door" is one of the items that appears on the list of the Amenities tab. When you view a listing, click on Amenities and check the "Bed and Bath" section to see whether the host has selected it.  Airbnb does not require locks for rooms in shared homes, but hosts are held responsible for providing all the amenities that they advertise.

Of course, you always have the option of asking hosts questions before you book by clicking "Contact Host" - perhaps you might want to know what kind of lock is on the door, how many people have keys to it, etc.

"To give you more information, the apartment is a multiple listing/share house situation, and the host does not live in the apartment"

Does the listing feature a permit number? I don't think this kind of property is compliant with NY state law to begin with. I'm not a legal expert here but my interpretation of the state regulations of Class A Multiple Dwellings is that they can not be converted to a "rooming house" if the apartment is not shared with a permanent resident (e.g. onsite host). Maybe you can comb through the legalese here and see what you find; perhaps there's a loophole :  https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/buildings/pdf/MultipleDwellingLaw.pdf

"In a wider picture, is this fair for other NYC host to install bedroom door lock without knowing that may be against the city's law? "

The law against external locks on bedroom doors is pretty well-known, and your host probably ignored it because he felt that guest demand for secure locks took precedence. But if a landlord is already renting out individual rooms illegally, and thereby evading rent stabilization laws, the state would probably consider that a more serious breach than not being up to fire codes. But the fire safety issue is substantial here too. If the building isn't designed to comply with SRO codes, not every room will have a fire escape, so if the only emergency exit is through another guestroom's locked door, you have a potential tragedy on your hands.

These are all among the risk that guests take on board when we choose to save money by renting a potentially illegal unit that's supposed to be permanent housing. Airbnb does not actively enforce safety standards or verify that all its hosts have permits to operate in the gazillion different cities on earth. So it's important to be aware that this site is very use-at-your-own-risk,  take that into consideration when choosing your accommodation, and ask questions when you have doubts.

[Winnie77]

Thank you so much for your reply.

Lock on bedroom door:

I checked the listing, and the host indeed did not check the "lock on bedroom door" item. I definitely overlooked this when I was booking, and I am really upset about myself for being that dumb.

Multiple Dwellings Law:

This is a question I never thought of. I did not see permit number on the listing...but it is possible that I just missed it. The host belongs to a company, and there is owner of this apartment and property management company involve in this situation. But I am pretty sure they don't have an onsite host because there were packages with my host's name sitting in the lobby for a month, and they collected it after I sent him a message asking.

I will try to dig through it but I do not have high hope for that, given that this place has a company backing up.

Airbnb's safety standard:

I must say I was not expecting Airbnb to be this carefree, because they told me this is their first time knowing the law against external locks on bedroom door. The information you gave me is far more useful than their help centre. I am disappointed in Airbnb but I understand what you mean by "These are all among the risk that guests take on board when we choose to save money by renting a potentially illegal unit that's supposed to be permanent housing".

I assumed Airbnb is a big company and they have team in most main cities to keep their legal standard/permit up-to-date. I believe most users (hosts and guests) are not legal expert, and I thought Airbnb as a platform is supposed to be the bridge between users and fill in our lack of legal knowledge when that is needed. This is a painful lesson to learn.

Thank you again for clearing up my doubt. Now I have a more clear picture on what card should I play if I want to report this listing/request refund.

[Anonymous]

@Winnie77  Thank you for the follow-up, and I'm happy you found the comments useful.

CS representatives don't tend to be trained in specifics of local laws, and it's long been Airbnb's position that its employees aren't permitted to give anything that might be construed as legal advice. The person you spoke with probably worked for a remote firm that customer operations were outsourced to, but even if they were based in NYC they may have been obliged to feign ignorance to the laws.

In cities like NYC and London, it's extremely common that property-management startups are using sites like Airbnb to run what amount to illegal hotels with only a patina of legitimacy. The "Host" is usually not the landlord, but rather a pseudonymous person that responds to messages, who you never meet - maybe their profile picture is just a stock photo taken off the web.  Some examples were detailed in this recent article: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/43k7z3/nationwide-fake-host-scam-on-airbnb

As for Airbnb's part - you make a very fair point, users can be forgiven for assuming that a platform as big and visible as Airbnb would be aggressively enforcing legal restrictions in its major markets. But if you can bear to read the lengthy Terms of Service, their position is clear: as third-party listing service, they are not responsible or liable for the conduct of either party, the legality of the rental agreement, or the condition of the property. But for New York, they do provide some guidance for hosts that you can view here: https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/868/new-york-ny

The Guest Refund Policy does give you an out if your rental is unsafe or not as advertised. If you feel unsafe and wish to terminate your booking early, your first step should be to submit a Booking Alteration Request to your host and reference concerns about fire evacuation. If the host approves a checkout date change, it would override the cancellation policy and refund the unused nights. If they don't agree to the change, your next step would be to ask Airbnb to intervene under the Guest Refund Policy. 

What I strongly discourage is seeking refunds or discounts for nights you have already used. Threatening to report a potential legal violation in exchange for money is still an act of extortion, even if your allegations are true. The rental market in NYC is cutthroat, and city bureaucrats are utterly exhausted of all the schemes people pull every day for profit or to attack the competition. It's not your responsibility to enforce the local regulations, so please do your best to act in good faith and focus on getting yourself to a place where you feel safe and comfortable.

[Winnie77]

Thank you for your advice about discouraging me to seek refunds or discounts for night I have already used. That was exactly what I wanted to do after I find a more permeant place and move out of here.

Luckily this place is not a scam start-up.

You can clearly see no one is maintaining this apartment regularly - it is "newly renovated" but some places (bathroom/laundry room) already have mold growing, and it is clear that this place is not renovated to last for a long time. But there is someone coming in to briefly clean the place to keep it tidy. And because you need to confirm to stay more than 45 days to book this place, the roommates are young professional who want this place to be a home. It is not an unlivable environment.

I reported some minor issue. The company did address that and follow up my request after my complain.

They are not the best, but they fulfilled my daily need in a minimum way. Now I am glad that I at least feel safe in here.