Neighbor getting increasingly angry and harassing guests. Options?

[Tess64]

Hi, we have a nearby neighbor who for about a decade was great and helpful with guests. Many even mentioned him positively in reviews. However recently he has gotten increasingly belligerent with guests for what seems like no reason. We're very careful about who we rent to and none of the incidents seem to have been provoked by the guest (loud noise, parking in wrong spot, etc.) The latest incident, of about a half-dozen in the last couple months, was the most concerning as he yelled a racist remark to a guest packing up his car for snowboarding. The guest also said someone was trespassing in the backyard complaining about loud music the night before. (The county short term rental officer came by after the inevitable complaint and found nothing.)

The incidents seem to be escalating and any attempt to talk to him, despite being friends for years, just results in him screaming insults and threats.

Has anyone had experience in dealing with this kind of thing legally or maybe through local police? We researched restraining orders but they seem to only apply when the threat is to us personally, not to our guests or our home.

This has been really frustrating and getting a little scary so any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Lorna170]

@Tess64   Is this neighbor elderly?  Living alone?  It sounds like the gentleman may be suffering from some kind of dementia or other health problem.  If you know the person who he lives with or other immediate relatives, please contact them regarding this change in behavior.

[Tess64]

Thanks Lorna. He is in his mid 60s and has a wife who is very pleasant. We think you may be on to something but it may have more to do with long-term for alcoholism. He's always been a heavy drinker so we think maybe it's just catching up to him  Unfortunately suggesting anything like that to him just sets off a rage.

We're mostly asking for any legal options to keep him from accosting guests. 

[Gary1337]

Hello Guys,

A little late on this but I am a neighbor to an Air BNB. This is a slightly different situation than mine.  I am not happy living next to a STR nor am I happy with the host.  We have never had a relationship. I only say this to give you an idea where I am.  But I have researched what can be done legally both and civilly to this property and from the host to me.  

I do have regular provoked situations of noise, parking, etc that would justify me being angry which it does not sound like is the case for you.  I will tell you as a neighbor even the 'good' guests get old after a while. The impact of new people is far higher than the neighbor that doesn't move in and out every 3 days, doesn't know where to park right away, etc.  

On to what I have learned.  At least in San Diego county, the rules allow STRs to operate as a residential property basically with friends over.  For this reason, a large number of things that a neighbor could get support with from the sheriff and county will just end up with 'its not a permit resident or owner. It is also not habitual by the same person.  Not much we can do'.  The same laws or loopholes that protect the host by being held responsible as a business owner make it very hard for a host to step in to protect the guest.  This would be a civil matter.  I feel bad for you guys as it seems you are good hosts unlike my neighbor. You would have to build a civil case and have some sort of injunction or civil ruling that forces him to keep his distance.  

I which I had better news for you.  But I have been researching this for 6 plus months and even spoke to an attorney.  I cannot speak for San Bernadino county, but in San Diego county it is almost impossible to do anything about a host that is being a d***.  But the law works both ways making it just as hard for you against him.  I will say however, since he is the homeowner and permit resident, he is held to a higher standard as it can be habitual disturbance.   Also look up penial code 415.  If the threats are voiced a certain way, it is a crime.  

[Pete28]

I think all you need to do is to call Airbnb a few times about your neighboring property and they will remove it….

[Tess64]

Thanks Gary. Interesting getting the "other" perspective on this. And I feel for you too. Having a bad neighbor is just not fun, especially if they aren't responsive. 

Really appreciate your research and it does coincide with what we're finding. We're building a list of complaints (which are pretty substantial, from "racist comments" to a guest packing up in the driveway, to standing menancingly in front of the house without responding to a guest's "hello" or "can we help you", to frightened children and dogs). But it does seem like we'd need guests to support us in any court matter, and obviously they don't even want to come back to the house let alone go to court and face our nut-job neighbor again (which we totally understand).

We don't love the solution, but we've installed a bunch of cameras, and noise meters (Minut) to document if any of the issues he claims are happening are really happening (we're pretty sure they aren't), and capture any menacing behavior. 

Now the guy has taken to putting up "Anti-STR" signs all over the neighborhood threatening to call police or impose non-existent fines and other mean stuff. We may be able to do something about that as it appears to be violating the association's CC&Rs.

For us, though, the head scratcher has been that this neighbor has been a great friend for years, and he even openly helped guests and took pride in being mentioned in many of our reviews. All that changed last year with no specific complaint from him, or any of our other neighbors. There is a lot of anti-Airbnb chatter on the mountain since the big snowstorm, and deserved or not, it seems to be spreading to a lot of locals. It's sad, because we employee a lot of local folks (cleaners, plumbers, handymen, gardeners, exterminators, spa cleaner) and our guests (who we screen religiously) bring a lot of money to a mountain resort they love to visit. I get that transient traffic can sometimes be a hassle for full-time residents (your situation included), but without anything specific to address, all we hear is "We just don't like outsiders (flatlanders)" as the reason for all the hostility.

Good luck with your situation!