Running a Rental Business

Short-Term Vacation Rental Horror Stories

Happy Halloween, hosts! Most of the time, having a vacation rental property is a dream, and guests act like angels — but sometimes it can turn into a nightmare. We are going to share some of the scariest stories told by short-term rental hosts. Read on about these vacation rental horror stories, if you dare!

By Taylor Ricca

Last updated: October 29, 2021

1. The Flooded Flat

A vacation rental in Los Angeles, California flooded so badly it resulted in over $10,000 in damages.

The flood occurred after a guest stuffed feminine products into the toilet and repeatedly flushed it. This caused the toilet to overflow, the pipes to back up, and water to leak everywhere.

The water crept out into the hallways in the dead of night, ruining the hardwood floors.

2) The Burned-Down Rental

This story is told by an employee who shared their experience on Reddit.

“I used to work customer service for Airbnb when one night I got a call that a rental was burning down. Twenty minutes later, I got a call from a host saying that a guest had burned their place down.

“It wasn’t my job to figure out who was at fault, or even what happened. One thing was certain, that place did burn down.”

3) The Rental that Host Wished Had Burned Down

After renting her property for the first time ever, a host from Minneapolis probably would’ve preferred her rental had just burned down.

The renters left the apartment looking worse than the set of the movie The Hangover.

The host was informed by neighbors that over 60 people entered her home, resulting in numerous cigarette burns, trash everywhere, and a stolen TV. In fact, just about every item in the apartment had been broken or stolen.

All of the property damage cost over $14,000 — not to mention the emotional damage faced by the host after having her apartment violated.

Every Host’s Worst Nightmare? A Missed Cleaning

Don’t let these horror stories scare you too much for the sake of your own rental.

Here is a statement from an Airbnb spokesperson: “More than 800 million guests have stayed in an Airbnb, and problems are incredibly rare. We were incredibly sorry to hear about this matter, and we’d encouraged the host to use our resolution tools to work with her guests on this matter.”

In most cases, the scariest thing you’ll have to worry about as a short-term rental host is a sink full of dirty dishes. When this happens, TurnoverBnB can help you find an experienced cleaner in your area.