When an Airbnb guest won’t leave, it can turn your short-term rental into a long-term nightmare! As a new Airbnb host, your main concern is probably getting as many bookings as possible, and long stays can be very lucrative. In fact, many hosts have 1 or 2-night minimums. But do you have a maximum stay?
The Dangers of Extended Stays for Airbnbs
There are some advantages to longer stays. There is a longer time between turnover, less spent on cleaning fees, and fewer check-in logistics to deal with. It is important to keep in mind the maximum number of nights your guests can stay, however. Otherwise, you might end up learning how to evict an Airbnb guest.
One of the cons of Airbnb is that without a lease agreement, longer-term guests can cause legal trouble and financial problems for Airbnb hosts. We all want our guests to have a great time during their stay and to leave when that stay is up! Be sure you know the risks of a long-term guest before agreeing to their booking or allowing long stays in your house rules.
My Airbnb Guest Won’t Leave! What Rights do they Have?
Many hosts don’t think to look into landlord/tenant laws when renting out their space. Most people think that one advantage of being an Airbnb host is not having to worry about traditional landlord/tenant problems. However, if you allow a guest to stay for too long, they could develop tenants’ rights.
Know Tenant Rights In Your Area
The law regarding tenant rights is different in every state. In a nutshell, if someone develops tenant rights, you could be unable to get them to leave your property unless you go through the formal eviction process. This can take several months and thousands of dollars.
An Airbnb host in California learned this the hard way. This host approved a 44-day stay for a guest at her Airbnb. He refused to leave at the end of his stay. The guest, in that case, got tenants’ rights after 30 days (as is the law in California) and threatened to sue the host for blackmail (when she tried to get him to leave).
Learn How To Evict an Airbnb Guest
Unfortunately, Airbnb doesn’t yet have a comprehensive way to handle the situation where an Airbnb guest won’t leave. Because the laws vary state-to-state, and dealing with this problem often requires independent legal assistance, it can be difficult for Airbnb to resolve this issue itself. Airbnb does its best to help hosts caught in this situation, but you should do everything in your power to avoid this.
When Airbnb can’t step in, make sure you know the eviction process for your state. Here are a few steps that are commonly involved:
Court awards time limit for the tenant to evacuate
Law enforcement can help remove tenants who miss the deadline
How to Prevent your Guest from Obtaining Tenants’ Rights
The good news is that a lot of the steps you can take to protect yourself from someone seeking to gain tenants’ rights are things you’re probably already doing. Airbnb hosting best practices protect against a range of problems. Be sure to follow these rules to prevent this situation from arising, and protect yourself if you find yourself with an Airbnb guest who won’t leave:
1. Always Get Everything in Writing Through the Airbnb Platform
Nothing good ever comes from communicating with a guest outside of the Airbnb platform. If your guest books for 15 days and messages you outside the platform asking to extend for another 15 days, there’s probably something fishy going on.
We hear stories of guests messaging hosts through text, WhatsApp, and other messaging services. It is sometimes necessary for a guest to have your phone number to call you for emergencies or other issues. If you do have to communicate outside of the platform, be sure to send a follow-up message through the platform confirming any telephone conversations you may have had with the guest. Never agree to message outside the platform. A guest who is pressuring you to communicate outside of the Airbnb platform probably has a reason for this.
2. Watch your Length of Stay Limits- Be Cautious With Extensions
Some hosts think that they can get around the 30-day tenancy rule many states have. They might agree to let a guest stay for 15 days and then have them book a separate stay (or extension) for another 15 days.
While this would look slightly better than allowing one 30-day stay, you don’t want to rely on this to protect you in court.
Don’t agree to any extensions that may make it look like you’re trying to circumvent the laws in your state. Most court systems know when you’re trying to get around a rule, and they don’t look kindly at that type of behavior. Any attempts to exploit a loophole may work against you.
3. Don’t Extend Too Long or an Airbnb Guest Won’t Leave
In addition to refusing extensions that bring you into 30-day territory (depending on your state), you should also not accept any booking requests for 30 days or more. Some hosts get lucky—there are many honest guests who book for longer stays of 30, 35, or 40 days and leave when their stay is up. While we recommend you never let a guest stay for longer than 30 days (or whatever the length of stay is in your state that allows them to obtain tenants’ rights), if you choose to allow this, there are some further protections you can take.
4. Get Smart Locks and Security Cameras
We advocate that hosts use smart locks on their listings. At a minimum, it improves convenience for guests. Smart locks can also improve security by allowing you to lock the listing remotely and automatically revoke access to any guest after their designated checkout time.
Security cameras on the exterior of your listing will also tip you off if a guest is up to no good. Although these need to be disclosed on your listing description, they allow you to see how many people a guest brings with them and whether or not they’re following your house rules. When you notice them moving in their own furniture on the cameras, you can safely assume that your Airbnb guest won’t leave on time.
5. Be Picky About Who You Approve
If you want to avoid having a guest not leave, be picky about who you approve. There is a lot of advice about this topic that urges hosts to draw up a contract or agreement and have the guest sign, agreeing that they will not become a tenant even if they are staying 30+ days.
Unfortunately, that’s not usually how a court will determine whether or not the guest has tenants’ rights. Because tenants’ rights automatically come into effect after a certain period of time in many places, it’s more about behavior than contracts. Contracts won’t hurt you, but don’t let them give you a false sense of security.
6. Check the Ratings
The best predictors of whether or not a guest will cause you problems are things you should already be looking at: how many ratings they have, how good their ratings are, and your general impression of them. In the case of the California host who approved the 44-day stay, the guest had no reviews on Airbnb, and she never independently verified his identity.
If you choose to allow a longer-term guest, it is perfectly reasonable to require them to verify their identity, check their social media pages, and have a longer discussion with them before approving their request. If you’re careful, it’s highly unlikely you’ll have a situation where an Airbnb guest won’t leave.
7. Ask Other Hosts How To Evict an Airbnb Guest
We hear stories from hosts all the time who regret not trusting their gut feeling about a guest. Usually, the guests who ask for discounts before you’ve even approved the booking or who complain that your listing doesn’t look like it should cost as much as it does will be the same guests who cause damage or write a negative review.
When it comes to approving a long-term stay, the stakes are even higher than a bad review or a broken lamp. Do not approve their request if you have anything other than a great feeling about a potential longer-term guest.
8. Make the Rules Clear
Your listing, welcome book, and messages with guests should always include your house rules about check-in/check-out and extensions. Every host knows that many guests don’t read your entire listing, and some don’t read your welcome book. Because of this, it is important that you have the rules and information clearly written in several places.
We also recommend reminding them of the policy in your initial check-in message using automated messages. For example, note that guests must check out by 11:00 on the last day of their stay, and cannot extend without prior agreement from the host.
If you choose to put an Alexa in your listing, you can have it automatically remind guests of these rules.
Use your Alexa to set a reminder about checkout times.
You should also state that no agreements will be made or discussed outside of the Airbnb platform.
9. No Late Checkouts
It can also help to remind the guests that the check-out time is non-negotiable, as you may have new guests arriving that same day. If an Airbnb guest won’t leave and tries to claim that there was some agreement that they could stay longer, your messages and posted rules about new guests arriving, along with your policy against extensions, will help.
This shows that you are running a short-term rental and have no intention of becoming a landlord. It also shows that you were not trying to mislead your guest into believing they were becoming a long-term tenant.
10. Don’t Take Matters Into Your Own Hands When an Airbnb Guest Won’t Leave
If you find yourself in a situation where your Airbnb guest won’t leave, your first step (as always) is to notify Airbnb immediately. If the guest has been there a short time and has not yet obtained tenant rights, Airbnb can usually help resolve the situation.
Things get trickier when the Airbnb guest won’t leave and may have tenant’s rights. You should still contact Airbnb, and if they cannot resolve it, call the police. What you should never do, however, is attempt to forcibly remove the tenants from your home.
Tenants’ Rights Are Legal Rights
It sounds crazy, but if they have indeed gotten tenants’ rights, then you could be breaking the law in that case by illegally evicting them without going through the proper process. At best, you are looking at a scathing review. At worst you could be facing criminal charges! Once you find yourself in that position, you’ll want to hire a lawyer to follow the process properly.
As always, trust your gut about all guests, regardless of the length of stay—and take the time to learn the laws in your state, local municipality, or country to avoid finding yourself in a situation where your Airbnb guest won’t leave.
Have other specific questions about your situation? Ask our community over over 80,000+ hosts!
Guests who refuse to leave—and how Airbnb can help
These situations are incredibly rare, but if they happen, we'll work with you to try and help resolve the problem with your guest. Should you face such a situation, let our 24/7 support team know as soon as possible and we'll get in touch with you.
Screen and verify your Airbnb guests. You should only accept bookings from verified guests on Airbnb (those with the verified badge beside their name). ...
Yes, an Airbnb host can kick out an Airbnb guest. This is usually done when the guest has violated the house rules or caused damage to the property. In such cases, it is within a host's rights to ask a guest to leave immediately and not return for any future bookings.
Some might be surprised to hear that short-term rental properties suffer from squatter issues because it is more commonly seen in longer-rental property agreements. Hospitable defines Airbnb squatters as “Airbnb squatters are guests who fail to check out after their check-out date.
This becomes part of the Airbnb guest rights. Evicting a guest at this point can only be done through a formal eviction process via a housing court. This process can take months to complete and costs a lot of money in legal fees. You will need to hire a real estate lawyer to carry out the procedure properly.
So until someone stays long enough on your property to be legally deemed a squatter, they're just trespassers or loiterers. They can be removed by law enforcers.
Keep yourself, your payment, and your personal information safe by staying on our secure platform throughout the entire process—from communication to booking and payment. You should never be asked to wire money, provide credit card information, or otherwise pay a Host directly.
Lonely Planet co-founder Tony Wheeler was one of the first to offer a rule for house guests: “The oldest line is still the best – guests and fish begin to smell after three days. Or, like fish, guests should go off after three days.” There you have it – Rule #1: Three days max, even for family.
Canceling a reservation mid-trip is a big deal. Penalties will be applied unless the cancellation reason meets certain limited exceptions. Try to avoid it if you can.
If you stay past checkout, the Host has the right to make you leave in a manner consistent with applicable law, including by imposing reasonable overstay penalties. You may not exceed the maximum number of allowed Guests.
What we don't allow. Physical intrusions: Hosts, guests, and those affiliated with them or working on their behalf must not access or attempt to access any private spaces without prior permission.
Stays longer than 28 days are subject to our Long-Term Cancellation Policy. The first month of the stay is non-refundable. If a guest cancels before check in, they are due the first month of their stay.
One of the greatest risks is that guests will sue you because they're injured, they become ill or their property is damaged in your home. Despite taking every precaution to make your home safe, you can't predict everything. And even if a lawsuit is baseless, defending yourself can be expensive and time-consuming.
Does Airbnb screen guests? Airbnb does screen guests, but it's a limited screening process, focused on fraud prevention. In your Reservation Requirements settings, you can require guests to have a “Verified ID” badge to book your property.
You can report a party, noise complaint or neighbourhood concern here. For help with a reservation, hosting or your account, contact Airbnb Support—our Neighbourhood Support team is only available to help with concerns related to home sharing in your community.
If a guest has truly overstayed their welcome, let them know they ought to start pitching in around the house. Have them pick up after themselves, and suggest they do a fair share of the dishes and the tidying up. At worst you've a new helper around the house.
The host pays a flat rate of 3% of the total booking cost and the guest pays a percentage of their reservation fee (this is somewhere between 5-20% depending on the length of stay, the location, and the cost of the reservation to start with).
Travelers should use Airbnb's resolution center to submit a claim within 60 days of checkout. Through this process, you can request money for incidents related to your Airbnb trip. If you and the host aren't able to come to an agreement within 72 hours, there is an option for Airbnb to mediate the claim.
Before you book, a Host will only be shown your first name and identity verification status. Your full name and profile photo will be shared with the Host after your booking is confirmed.
While Airbnb is a safe option for accommodation when traveling, there are plenty of things you can do to further protect yourself as you explore. Never give your personal contact information to a host or pay outside of the platform. Always pay and communicate through the Airbnb website or app.
Look around you. “With cameras you should look for tiny holes, which is where the lens will be,” says Roberts. “Check common items: the back end of books, mirrors, light bulbs, house plants. Look in logical places; if someone was looking for information, they'd put a device in the lounge.
“Check your door and window locks to see how secure things are from a break-in standpoint.” Consider the safety needs of your fellow travelers in mind as you scan the property.
I've expanded the Disney concept in my customer service training workshops by encouraging employees to greet customers within 10 seconds of coming within 10 feet of them. I call it the 10-10 rule.
You are usually not required to give a guest a 30-day notice, no matter how long that person has lived in your home. Most of the time, you can sue to evict a guest as soon as you have asked the person to leave and they have refused to move out.
The law does NOT limit the number of related people who can live together in a house. If you have children and the landlord limits the number of children who can live in the house, that practice is probably a vilation of federal, state, and local non-discrimination laws.
Airbnb prohibits security cameras or recording devices that are in or that observe private spaces like bedrooms, bathrooms, or sleeping areas. You must indicate the presence of all security cameras or other recording devices in or around a listing, even if they're not turned on or hooked up.
Guests need to agree to a host's cancellation policy when they book. A host will be able to see the number of reservations a guest has cancelled over the previous 12 months when the guest submits a request to book.
What should you do if a host asks you to cancel a reservation? "If your host lets you know that they can't accommodate your stay anymore, don't cancel for them," Airbnb's website advises. "Instead, send [the host] a message asking them to cancel. That way, you'll be eligible to receive a full refund."
As a host, if you get a negative review on your Airbnb, you cannot delete it. Airbnb does not give hosts the chance to delete a bad or negative review made by guests against their properties. At most, you get a 30-day grace to respond to the bad review.
Airbnb hosts may not:Decline a booking based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status. Impose any different terms or conditions based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status.
Come Spring 2023, Airbnb will require all users booking reservations on its platform to verify their identity to book a reservation, further expanding a program that asks for credentials like a photo of a valid government-issued ID or a legal name and address.
Is It Legal To Web Scrape Airbnb? Since Airbnb information is public, it is legal to web scrape. Airbnb is a big corporation, with very capable servers. Therefore, a simple parse through using an efficient program such as ParseHub will be ethical, as it will not slow down their resources at all.
The original owner is required to refund any deposits. The new owner is not required to honor the booking. The only exception is when the rental is booked through a property management company.
Airbnb provides a Neighborhood Support platform for concerned neighbors that allows them to report any issues online whether it is from excessive noise, parties, uneasy personal safety, etc. If the neighbor reports your Airbnb listing, Airbnb will then evaluate the situation and contact the host of the listing.
Listing owner: The person who lists the space in their Airbnb account. This is usually the person who owns or lives on the property. Full-access Co-Host: Usually a friend, family member, or someone the Host hires who helps manage their place.
Guests who refuse to leave—and how Airbnb can help
These situations are incredibly rare, but if they happen, we'll work with you to try and help resolve the problem with your guest. Should you face such a situation, let our 24/7 support team know as soon as possible and we'll get in touch with you.
Contrary to common belief, living out of Airbnb full-time can actually work out cheaper than a traditional lease. Plus, there are lots of perks that come with it. You can earn thousands of points and miles from your "rent" each month and enjoy the flexibility of moving whenever you wish.
Many guests at Airbnb book stays longer than one month. Review your availability settings to make sure guests can book longer stays: Go to Listings and select a listing. Click or tap Availability.
In addition, you agree to pay, if requested by the Host, for each twenty-four (24) hour period (or any portion thereof) that you Overstay, an additional nightly fee of up to two (2) times the average nightly Listing Fee originally paid by you to cover the inconvenience suffered by the Host, plus all applicable Guest ...
Yes, Airbnb hosts can sue guests if they feel they have been wronged. Airbnb hosts can file a suit in small claims court if they feel the guest has caused damage to their property or has violated the terms of the rental agreement.
Valid reasons beyond the Host's control, such as emergency repairs (like a gas leak or a burst pipe) or serious personal illness that prevents hosting.
Proof that a guest intends to break house rules, have an unauthorized party, or otherwise violate our Party and Events Policy.
Airbnb prohibits security cameras or recording devices that are in or that observe private spaces like bedrooms, bathrooms, or sleeping areas. You must indicate the presence of all security cameras or other recording devices in or around a listing, even if they're not turned on or hooked up.
You'll never be charged without advance notice or a chance to appeal before and after you've been charged. You'll have 60 days to appeal after you've been charged. Dealing with damage is never fun, but this process is designed to be as fair as possible.
If they come upon a listing they feel isn't up to their standard of quality, they will temporarily suspend the account. Examples of grounds for suspension include: maintaining a low overall rating, slow response time, too few accepted reservations, or too many cancellations.
Anything over a week will be too exhausting and stressful for everyone — host and guest. It is best to minimize the disruption of everyone's lives." Although three days and two nights is the ideal visit, Hokemeyer admits that when guests are coming from a great distance, the stay may have to be extended.
Call the police. You might also consider getting a restraining order or a domestic violence protection order that prohibits that person from having any contact with you. For additional assistance, contact a domestic violence prevention organization or check out these victim resources.
Guests need to agree to a host's cancellation policy when they book. A host will be able to see the number of reservations a guest has cancelled over the previous 12 months when the guest submits a request to book.
Hosts who cancel confirmed bookings without a valid reason may experience other consequences, as explained in our Terms of Service. For example, Hosts may have their Listing or account suspended or removed, and may lose their Superhost status.
Introduction: My name is Lidia Grady, I am a thankful, fine, glamorous, lucky, lively, pleasant, shiny person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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