Not So Super

AIrbnb and the big game

By Jessica Fiur on Jan 27, 2014 in News

This year, the Super Bowl will be held in East Rutherford, N.J. I live in New Jersey, not too far from there. Because of this, my apartment community recently sent an email memo to all residents saying that all subleases need to be approved, and that they will not be approving any near or around the Super Bowl.

The reason the management company listed was to keep the community quiet and peaceful for all of the residents. After all, new people coming in and out of the building at all hours could be loud and disrespectful to their neighbors. Especially people who are there for a short time—they’re likely to treat the place as a hotel instead of a place where people live. Plus, after a day of tailgating, they might end up damaging the units or the common areas.

Short-term rentals continue to be controversial—and sometimes illegal. Take, for example Airbnb. This website, which is an Internet service that allows people to rent out their apartments when they’re out of town. Which is illegal in some places, such as New York City. However, according to an article in the New York Times, the legality of renting out an to strangers for a short amount of time has not deterred people from using the service—in fact, according to the article, people are making substantial amounts of money from doing so.

So, as a property manager, how can you make sure your residents aren’t participating in this practice?

The first step is to have this written out in the original lease. That way if you discover residents are turning your beautiful community into a sleazy motel, you’ll be able to step in and take action according to the lease terms. Additionally, an email, similar to the one my community sent around, might be a good deterrent as well. This way residents know that they would be violating policy if they did try to illegally sublet their apartments.

Now, just because you might not necessarily want your residents subleasing their apartments for a huge event, doesn’t mean that you might not be able to rent out your apartments for a huge event. If you have vacant apartments, this could be an excellent way to earn some ancillary income. However, the same problems might arise whether you’re renting out the units or your residents—a lack of respect for the units and for neighbors. But at least this it would take out the middleman, and the temporary resident would have to check in with you.

What is your policy on subleasing and your thoughts on services such as Airbnb?

Read the original blog here. Jessica Fiur is Senior Editor at Multi-Housing News. Find more of her insights on multifamily living on the “What Renters Want” blog.