Problem guest

[Rhadonna0]

I currently have a guest that has been with me for almost a month. She is from the area and was needing a temporary place to stay until the end of February. In this short amount of time she has managed to drag way more than what the room can hold into the bedroom. The reason I know this is because my dog went in one evening because she didn't pull the door shut all the way and became trapped. So when I opened the door imagine my surprise when there was only a path from the door to the bed. Stuff stacked to almost the ceiling. Closet packed full. I couldn't believe my eyes! So I explained to her what happened with my dog and told her that it was not ok to have all that stuff in there. I do rent and my landlord would be extremely upset if he saw this. I too explained that to her as well. I even became more concerned when she asked to use my address to receive her mail . I told her no that she should get a PO box. So I am feeling like she is trying to squat. Do I need to be concerned? 

[Anonymous]

@Rhadonna0 Yes, you should be extremely concerned.

This guest misrepresented her intentions and moved into your home with no intention of leaving at the end of the Airbnb booking. It's crucial that you are aware of your state's right - of-tenancy laws, as in many locations an Airbnb booking is considered sufficient for the guest to be considered a rightful resident of the home after 30 days or in rare cases even less. Airbnb only collects the first 30 days of rent upfront, and if subsequent payments fail, there is no longer anything they can do for you. 

That would leave your landlord with the burden of evicting a squatter, which might currently be impossible due to emergency eviction moratoria, or complicated by elaborate court procedures. 

And unless your Airbnb was permitted by the terms of your lease, the landlord would most likely evict you as well as the "guest." 

Don't let another hour go by without finding out what eviction laws and protections currently apply to the guest. If you determine that she is yet eligible to be considered a resident in your home, it's imperative that you terminate the booking before that can happen. 

Getting all of her belongings out of your home without attracting attention won't be easy, but somehow she got them all in there without you noticing, so I guess it's not impossible. 

Finally, if your sublet isn't allowed by the landlord, I would strongly recommend canceling any future bookings and delisting before there's any further opportunity for you to be at risk of losing your home. 

[Lorna170]

@Rhadonna0  I agree with everything that @Anonymous has said.  You need to remove this person immediately.  Do not listen to any sob story.  If she is between homes, her belongings may be stored in a storage unit, not in your home.   No guest should be bringing more than what they need for their personal use while in an airbnb, and you, as a host, need to be aware of the pitfalls of having a long term guest before you let them into your home.  

You need to check the lease you have signed with your landlord.  You may have no legal way to get her out of the home without involving your landlord, who, with the current Covid housing restrictions about rents and evictions may also be stuck with this squatter.   I have long term properties and my leases do not allow anyone to stay for more than 2 weeks as a guest of my tenant(s) without my consent.  I had a tenant who had her parents move in "temporarily" without my knowledge.  I did not renew her lease, and it took me a year to legally get rid of her parents, during which time I received no payments and was barred from my own property.  

Don't become another AirBnB horror story.  Ask the woman to leave.

[Rhadonna0]

Thank you all for the information. I do have on my side that my landlord is my really good friend so I don't fear losing my home. I do however know that I can legally set her stuff out on the curb and change the locks up to 60 days. She would need to at that point to contact an attorney to try and get back in. However with all the COVID restrictions I will definitely be doing some digging. She is avoiding talking to me. I have tried to speak with her on several occasions and she just walks way. It is very difficult to deal with. My landlord is ready to take action on whatever it is they need to do to get her out. She is supposedly a student at the University of Missouri here. She is in her late 40 so I was questioning her alot before she even moved in. She was at an Air B&B before here and that host left a good review. And I believe she has brought all her stuff in while I was sleeping and at work. I do have friends that work in the state capital here. I will be reaching out to them for help with learning the law and what I can do. 

[Rhadonna0]

She did change her reservation to be out on January 18th. Check out time is atc11 am. So hopefully with her doing that she will be gone by then. I will be home and I am sure with it being a Monday she thinks I will be at work. If qqam arrives and she is still here sleeping after she made the change in the reservation can I wake her up and tell her to leave?

[Anonymous]

@Rhadonna0  If you've confirmed the checkout date change in-system, it is binding and she must have all of her belongings out at 11 AM. I would not suggest waiting until the morning to handle this. Today, you should send her a message through Airbnb messenger that gives you documentation of her behavior and the condition of the room as you've witnessed it - this may become crucial in the event of a later dispute. Your message should reiterate the checkout time and request that she inform you of when she will begin moving out her belongings. This could be a lengthy undertaking, especially considering that you should not under any circumstances allow her to bring someone else into the property to help. 

Yes, of course you can wake her up and demand that she leaves if she's failed to respond, just as you can with any guest that's overstayed. But considering the potential for confrontation, you might want to have a friend at the house with you for backup, especially if your friend the landlord happens to be available.

On all counts, it's important to communicate your rules and expectations upfront and leave no doubt about the fact that you are the boss of your home. In the future, if a guest is so disrespectful as to refuse to speak to you, don't hesitate to kick them out on the spot. Airbnb does not have the authority to make you accept this treatment in your own home. And of course, be sure that your maximum length of stay reflects the longest time you're willing to live with someone you don't click with, and ends before they gain any form of tenancy rights.