Renters of an AirBNB in North Carolina set up a sign saying they were going to stay without paying the host in the latest incident of squatting.
Farzana Rahman says she’s losing income from her rental after her last renters became squatters and threatened to press charges against her if she tried to gain entry to her property in Durham. The squatters initially rented her unit from October to May, but when their checkout date arrived, they decided to stay.
‘We are legal residents of this house … If you try to enter we will press charges for violation of expectation of privacy.’
“Now, they’re refusing to leave until there’s an eviction order. I think they’re just trying to gain time to stay there for free because they haven’t paid,” Rahman told WTVD-TV.
She said the squatters told her cleaning lady to leave.
“They answered the door and they said, ‘No, we haven’t moved out.’ She said, ‘Should I come tomorrow?’ And they said, ‘No, don’t come back,'” Rahman added.
They put up a sign claiming they were legal residents and threatening to press charges against the owner of the property.
“NO Trespassing. We will vacate the property when you have filed the proper paperwork with the civil magistrate for an eviction, for we are legal residents of this house,” read the sign.
The video report from WTVD showed the cardboard sign in handwriting.
“If you try to enter we will press charges for violation of expectation of privacy,” the sign concluded.
‘It is wasting my energy; it is stressing me out.’
Rahman says she’s a single mom with a son in college, and she depends on the income from the rental to sustain her budget.
“This is my place, and I mean, I’m counting on this income,” she said.
Rahman said she tried to contact AirBNB but that it was not very helpful despite her having another long-term renter booked after the previous term.
“They’re sending me messages as please get help for your safety and get whatever legal help you have to get to get them out,” she explained.
Rahman says she has filed for the eviction process to begin and has a court date on Thursday.
“It’s wasted my time; it is wasting my energy; it is stressing me out,” she concluded.
The average AirBNB rental costs about $184 per day, according to data aggregator AirDNA.
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