By Marilyn Hawkes | Phoenix Magazine
Are Airbnb guests wreaking havoc in Valley neighborhoods?
After 18 months of searching, homebuyers Santo and Libby found the perfect ranch-style house in South Scottsdale. The couple (who requested their last names be withheld) made an offer on the spot. “We’re both from the Midwest, and this has a nice neighborhood feel to it,” Libby says.
This May, they moved in. Shortly after, they say, parties started next door, with loud music and profanity-laced banter at all hours and cars lining the once tranquil streets. One July night, Santo looked over the fence to investigate and saw “some naked old dudes [and women] running around… doing a topless contest.” He went next door to get more information. A man said he could come in, but it would cost $80 for booze and “entertainment.”
A few weeks later, a woman pounded on a neighbor’s door at 2 a.m. crying that her friend was being sexually assaulted at the “party house.” Police were called and the situation was deemed consensual. Another weekend, a bus deposited 30 people at the five-bedroom house. As neighbors reeled from the ruckus, they learned the house, reportedly sold to investors, was being rented through online lodging service Airbnb.
