“Are there legal issues with the way they are using this building as a hotel and long-term rental space?”

Photo by PoPville flickr user Jim Havard

Update: “All the desktops were stolen out of our lobby this morning… (this is with a key-card system and front desk staff watching the doors).”

“Dear PoPville,

I am the resident of a large apartment building in the H Street Corridor. When I signed the lease I was promised a tight-knit community and paid a hefty “amenities fee” ($700) for access to the building’s pool, gym, etc. (this is required).

Shortly after moving in I discovered that the building rents out apartments for the WISH Intern Housing program when I noticed all the expensive amenities being taken over by screaming, drunk college interns. After the interns seemed to disappear at the end of the summer, I noticed what appeared to be hotel guests with lots of luggage checking in at the front desk.

I was never informed when I signed my lease, and have not been informed while living here, that the empty apartments are rented out as hotel rooms. I have found that the building is listed on hotels.com, expedia.com, booking.com, and Airbnb.com through third-party companies and each lists different rules, but all boast access to the same great amenities that any resident has access to. According to our lease residents are not allowed to use Airbnb for their apartments, but supposedly the third-party companies have a lease that allows them to do so.

There are very strict rules on the use of all our amenities including the hours, the number of guests we can have, where pets are allowed, etc. and it’s been very frustrating for long-term residents to have loud hotel guests take over all of these amenities. We also go through extensive background checks, proof of employment, and previous rental history to be able to live in the building. If we have a pet, we must go through an entire lease addendum and pay a one-time fee ($500) and a monthly fee ($50) if our pet meets all the breed restrictions (it is not apparent if hotel guests go through this process, but I would be shocked if they do). Our leasing office claims that every “short-term renter” (hotel guest) goes through a background check, however, I have used these booking sites numerous times while traveling and have never been subject to a background check so I do not believe this is true. The hotel guests are managed by third-party companies so it is hard to get a straight answer or hold anyone accountable.

There have been numerous issues with break-ins, stolen bikes, and hotel guests harassing residents, one even tried to drunkenly break into a resident’s apartment in the middle of the night. I personally have been harassed on more than one occasion and the building staff did not do anything when they witnessed it.

Are there legal issues with the way they are using this building as a hotel and long-term rental space? Are they required to inform residents that the property is being used as a hotel? I avoided signing the lease for any apartment building that also provides hotel services and feel that it was very dishonest for my current building not to disclose this information. Residents are moving out as soon as their leases end because of these issues, but it is a beautiful building and I see many new residents moving in that have no idea how the space is being used. Is there anything I can do?

Help!”