US laws regarding anti child discrimination

[Mary-Ellen0]

Are the 'no children' choice options on instant book legal here in the US.  The feds have very strident rules on this concerning access to children in the rental industry.  I am concerned we can be held liable for this option on instant book.  Anyone know?

[Ann489]

@Vance10     some properties are simply not safe/suitable for children.  Judge much?

[Dave1011]

They want the income of being a hotel operator without the responsibility.  

[Sarah977]

@Dave1011  ??? Airbnbs aren't hotels, they are private homes.

[Dave1011]

By posting your home on airbnb, you are choosing to be a hotelier.  Regardless of how big your home is or whether it is public or private (though I contend that almost all hotels are private, too, even those owned by public corporations).  

If you don't want kids in your house, fine.  I understand.  Who wants toddler spittle on your nice couch?  But then don't put your house and couch out for rent.  I see you are in Mexico so maybe the laws are different there, but here it is discrimination.  The same way it would be discrimination if you said you didn't want people of certain ethnicities in your private home.

[Sarah977]

@Dave1011  It isn't the same type of discrimination as declining to host someone because of their race, sexual persuation, nationality, etc. at all.

Children have different needs than adults do, and there are different levels of safety needed with children in a home. Adults don't need baby gates on the stairs so they don't tumble down them. Adults don't need unbreakable plates because they think it's fun to throw them off the table. Adults don't require baby-proof covers on electrical outlets to prevent them from sticking something in there and getting electrocuted or safety latches on cupboards to prevent them from drinking the cleaning fluid stored there. If you are a parent, you are aware of this. It's not all about sticky handprints on the wall.

And no, most Airbnb hosts aren't at all like hoteliers. We don't provide daily maid service, or 24 hour desk reception, we don't have a secuity staff to deal with unruly guests. We don't provide a mini bar. We are just renting a homey space, perhaps a private bedroom in our homes, a converted garage on the property, a vacation home we use ourselves, etc. Of course now there are property-managers with hundreds of listings for places that are exclusively used as Airbnbs, and it could be argued that they are more like hoteliers, but the traditional -type Airbnbs are not.

There are plenty of Airbnb that cater to families, so that some don't accept children shouldn't be some big deal.

I raised three and have 6 grandkids. I like children just fine. But I also acknowledge and understand that not all Airbnbs are suitable for them, and respect a host's choice to only rent to adults.

[Cherie-and-Bill0]

I have a pool area that children can drown in. It happens all the time in Florida. It's a safety issue for me. 

[Dimitar27]

It's not a discrimination when your place is just unsafe for children. For example- I don't  have electric socket covers.

[Vance10]

Then your not within code to rent to anyone. There aren't special rules for kids.

[Ann489]

@Vance10  please show us the "code" you are referring to.  There is NO Federal law that requires you to rent to children.  And yes, you are correct--there are no special rules for children.

[Ann489]

@Cherie-and-Bill0   We do have an unsecured inground pool also,  therefore we do not allow infants and children.  When we first started out hosting, we did allow children.   After having to replace our couch covers and pulling an unsupervised toddler out of our pool, however,  we decided on a strict "no children" policy. 

When listing your property on Airbnb you have the choice to either allow infants/children or not.  If it were "ilegal", I don't think Airbnb would give us the option to choose.

[Mark116]

In many if not most cases, federal and state rules exempt owner occupied single or two, sometimes four family dwellings from these types of rules that apply to apartment houses, or selling or renting a property outside of the owner's primary residence.  

[Vance10]

"Judge much?" Yeah, that's what you do to people who are discriminating. The language of this conversation mentions nothing of dangerous conditions. And I guarantee any situation that is legal deemed unsafe for children would also be deemed unsafe for habitation of anyone. You have no right to deem something on your own while advertising to the public. The reason I found this awful thread in the first place was because it was so common to find this discrimination on airbnb posts in an area I was trying to find somewhere to stay. A residential area. A tourist area. 

[Sarah977]

@Vance10  There are plenty of places that accept children. You might spend time looking for those (there's even a Family category) rather than accusing those hosts who don't of being horrible people who are discriminating. I raised 3 children and have 5 grandchildren. I can assure you I like kids just fine, but my place would be unsafe for them. Balconies a kid could climb up on and fall to their death on the concrete below. A metal staircase with spaces in the wrought ironwork railings that a child could fall through and slatted steps that a tiny foot could get caught in.  And no, none of those things pose a safety hazard for adults, nor are they illegal or against building codes where I live.

And there would likely be more listings in the "Families" category if Airbnb didn't have absurd requirements for Family listings like a TV. There's hosts who have never had a TV, don't want one in their home, but would happily accept children. Complain to Airbnb about that one. The last thing I would have wanted as a parent was to spend my holiday arguing with the kids about them being allowed to veg mindlessly in front of the TV instead of participating in family activities.

[Bryson0]

Wait so you're saying you had kids or have had kids in your house, but now refuse to allow others that same opportunity? 

[Sarah977]

@Bryson0  No, that's not what I'm saying at all. The house I currently have isn't the one where I raised my children. And I have no problem with my daughters coming to visit with the kids (which the do quite seldom as they all live far from me) because they and I keep a sharp eye out and attend to them.

Guests are strangers to me- I have no way of knowing whether they are attentive parents or not and am not about to risk having some child get injured or fall to their death because Mom or Dad was busy texting and took their eyes off the child for 3 minutes.

I have friends who lost their child- their 3 year old drowned in the pond on their property in the 5 minutes that Mom thought her friend who was visiting was with the child, and her friend thought the child was with the mother.

I don't understand parents who are more concerned about accusing someone of child discrimination than they are about ensuring their child's safety by trusting a host to know if their properties pose dangers to children.

When my kids were young, I fully respected that there were many places that simply weren't appropriate to bring children. Like high-end fine dining restaurants where they could disturb other diners. Some hosts have high-end listings with expensive furniture, breakable vases and other decor- those places are suitable for adults, who are looking for listings like that. Just because one has children doesn't mean everyone has to cater to them.