Post by High Priestess on Oct 19, 2015 2:14:24 GMT
See this story on SF Chronicle about Josh and Ernest's squatter in San Francisco:
www.sfgate.com/default/article/Airbnb-blurs-lines-between-visitors-tenants-5535061.php
From the article by Carolyn Said:
Evicting a tenant in San Francisco usually takes months. But when Beth Rifkin fell behind on rent for a room in a Twin Peaks house, her landlord simply called the police and had her removed on the spot.
Rifkin had booked the room through Airbnb, the marketplace that lets people offer short-term rentals of their homes. Now she's threatening to sue the landlord and Airbnb on the grounds that they violated San Francisco's strict tenant protection laws.
But booking her room through Airbnb may mean she's not covered by the same rules.
The dispute illuminates gray areas in how the hospitality company operates. As Airbnb continues its rapid-fire growth, it remains unclear if hosts and visitors have the same relationship as landlords and tenants - and what laws apply to them.
MORE ON AIRBNB
Airbnb, New York reach accord on data subpoenas
S.F. conference brings sharing economy into spotlight
Airbnb backers, opponents rally in S.F.
Rifkin, 46, a freelance writer, temporarily rented a room in Ernest Thayer's five-bedroom home starting in January while she looked for long-term housing.
Rifkin and her attorney, Joe Tobener, say her 75-day stay entitles her to coverage under tenant protections, which in single-family homes like Thayer's kick in after 32 days of continuous occupancy. (Tenants in buildings with two or more units have eviction protection on the very first day, and hotel guests gain protection after 30 days).
Seeking tenant protections
But Rifkin used Airbnb to continually rebook new stays of one to five days. Airbnb told Thayer, 83, that the string of short-term agreements puts her in a different category than a long-term tenant.
Thayer is a retired lawyer and a widower who has rented out three rooms in his house via Airbnb over the past year for the income and the companionship. Most guests were short-term travelers. He appreciated how Airbnb handled all the details, such as payment processing, and said he had more than 100 positive guest reviews.
As with many disputes, there are some "he said, she said" differences.
Rifkin said she requested and received permission to pay her rent in arrears on several occasions because of her sporadic income. She said Thayer's grown son agreed to this via e-mail on the final time.
But Thayer saw her as taking advantage.
"She kept promising and promising," he said. "She would catch up and then fall back behind. This wasn't just one delinquency. It was maybe a dozen delinquencies over the course of the time she was there." He said she didn't request an extension until she was already a few days behind on rent.
Thayer said he called Airbnb for advice several times, and customer service told him to call the police to report Rifkin for trespassing.
"The rules that apply to guests in these types of situations vary, which is why we advise hosts with concerns to contact local officials," said Airbnb spokesman Nick Papas.
When Thayer called police April 6, two officers arrived and asked Rifkin if she was behind on payments and if she had a lease. She showed them e-mails with the landlord. They told her she had to leave.
"They said they would arrest me if I didn't leave in 30 minutes and if that happened I would lose all my stuff," she said.
She packed hastily and now is staying with a friend. Rifkin said the stress exacerbated her medical conditions, including diabetes.
'I never moved'
Rifkin said she thought of herself as a long-term tenant. "I continuously occupied the same room," she said. "It's not like I ever restarted my tenancy; I never moved out."
Dean Preston, executive director of statewide advocacy group Tenants Together, agrees that Rifkin should have been covered by San Francisco law and even California's more landlord-friendly regulation.
"When you rent a place for over 30 days, you are considered a tenant under state law and are entitled to proper notice and court action before you can be removed," he said. "It doesn't matter if you rent by the day each day."
Preston said Airbnb's involvement shouldn't make a difference. If Thayer had used a traditional property-management firm to find a tenant and collect payments, the tenant would still have been covered, Preston said.
Airbnb's operations currently flout a San Francisco ban on rentals of less than 30 days. Supervisor David Chiu has proposed legislation that would legalize temporary rentals while establishing a strict framework for how they operate.
"The legislation says all existing applicable local laws must be complied with; that includes rent-control laws," said Amy Chan, Chiu's legislative aide.
Trying to clarify law
Airbnb, which has long resisted regulations, now appears to agree that it is time to bring some clarity to the law.
"This case illustrates the need for common-sense policies for home-sharing and we should start with the basics: tenants deserve to be protected and guests should honor their commitments to their hosts," said Airbnb's Papas.
Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
www.sfgate.com/default/article/Airbnb-blurs-lines-between-visitors-tenants-5535061.php
From the article by Carolyn Said:
Evicting a tenant in San Francisco usually takes months. But when Beth Rifkin fell behind on rent for a room in a Twin Peaks house, her landlord simply called the police and had her removed on the spot.
Rifkin had booked the room through Airbnb, the marketplace that lets people offer short-term rentals of their homes. Now she's threatening to sue the landlord and Airbnb on the grounds that they violated San Francisco's strict tenant protection laws.
But booking her room through Airbnb may mean she's not covered by the same rules.
The dispute illuminates gray areas in how the hospitality company operates. As Airbnb continues its rapid-fire growth, it remains unclear if hosts and visitors have the same relationship as landlords and tenants - and what laws apply to them.
MORE ON AIRBNB
Airbnb, New York reach accord on data subpoenas
S.F. conference brings sharing economy into spotlight
Airbnb backers, opponents rally in S.F.
Rifkin, 46, a freelance writer, temporarily rented a room in Ernest Thayer's five-bedroom home starting in January while she looked for long-term housing.
Rifkin and her attorney, Joe Tobener, say her 75-day stay entitles her to coverage under tenant protections, which in single-family homes like Thayer's kick in after 32 days of continuous occupancy. (Tenants in buildings with two or more units have eviction protection on the very first day, and hotel guests gain protection after 30 days).
Seeking tenant protections
But Rifkin used Airbnb to continually rebook new stays of one to five days. Airbnb told Thayer, 83, that the string of short-term agreements puts her in a different category than a long-term tenant.
Thayer is a retired lawyer and a widower who has rented out three rooms in his house via Airbnb over the past year for the income and the companionship. Most guests were short-term travelers. He appreciated how Airbnb handled all the details, such as payment processing, and said he had more than 100 positive guest reviews.
As with many disputes, there are some "he said, she said" differences.
Rifkin said she requested and received permission to pay her rent in arrears on several occasions because of her sporadic income. She said Thayer's grown son agreed to this via e-mail on the final time.
But Thayer saw her as taking advantage.
"She kept promising and promising," he said. "She would catch up and then fall back behind. This wasn't just one delinquency. It was maybe a dozen delinquencies over the course of the time she was there." He said she didn't request an extension until she was already a few days behind on rent.
Thayer said he called Airbnb for advice several times, and customer service told him to call the police to report Rifkin for trespassing.
"The rules that apply to guests in these types of situations vary, which is why we advise hosts with concerns to contact local officials," said Airbnb spokesman Nick Papas.
When Thayer called police April 6, two officers arrived and asked Rifkin if she was behind on payments and if she had a lease. She showed them e-mails with the landlord. They told her she had to leave.
"They said they would arrest me if I didn't leave in 30 minutes and if that happened I would lose all my stuff," she said.
She packed hastily and now is staying with a friend. Rifkin said the stress exacerbated her medical conditions, including diabetes.
'I never moved'
Rifkin said she thought of herself as a long-term tenant. "I continuously occupied the same room," she said. "It's not like I ever restarted my tenancy; I never moved out."
Dean Preston, executive director of statewide advocacy group Tenants Together, agrees that Rifkin should have been covered by San Francisco law and even California's more landlord-friendly regulation.
"When you rent a place for over 30 days, you are considered a tenant under state law and are entitled to proper notice and court action before you can be removed," he said. "It doesn't matter if you rent by the day each day."
Preston said Airbnb's involvement shouldn't make a difference. If Thayer had used a traditional property-management firm to find a tenant and collect payments, the tenant would still have been covered, Preston said.
Airbnb's operations currently flout a San Francisco ban on rentals of less than 30 days. Supervisor David Chiu has proposed legislation that would legalize temporary rentals while establishing a strict framework for how they operate.
"The legislation says all existing applicable local laws must be complied with; that includes rent-control laws," said Amy Chan, Chiu's legislative aide.
Trying to clarify law
Airbnb, which has long resisted regulations, now appears to agree that it is time to bring some clarity to the law.
"This case illustrates the need for common-sense policies for home-sharing and we should start with the basics: tenants deserve to be protected and guests should honor their commitments to their hosts," said Airbnb's Papas.
Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
