As a landlord, you may have a tenant who is not in their unit 100% of the time. Maybe they travel for work. Perhaps they spend time staying with a significant other. Maybe they are simply busy and they spend a lot of time outside of New York for leisure or vacation.
Regardless of the reason, your tenant has decided that they are going to list the unit on Airbnb. When they’re not using the space anyway, they figure that they can make some extra money by renting it to someone who is coming to the city, perhaps as a tourist. Is your tenant allowed to do this?
2 potential problems
First and foremost, New York has special restrictions on Airbnb rentals, which are short-term rentals. They all have to be properly registered with the city and have the correct status. If your tenant has not done this, they could be illegally using your property in a way that violates local restrictions. They may not realize that they haven’t taken all the correct steps because they are not the property owner, but it could still lead to a lot of legal issues.
The second problem is just that it may be a violation of your lease agreement. As a landlord, you can stipulate that your tenants are not allowed to sublease the space without permission. A short-term rental – whether it is done through a platform like Airbnb or independently – is essentially just a string of subleasers. The tenant needs to be aware of the contract that they have signed.
Are you facing a legal dispute with one of your tenants over these types of issues? Make sure you are well aware of all of your legal options.
