Airbnb bans thousands of sketchy listing in NYC

Bad luck, suspicious subletters: Airbnb is in the process of removing over 2,000 New York City listings that aren’t “providing a quality, local experience to guests.” It’s not clear what a lack of “quality, local experience to guests” actually means, but it does come on the back of an affidavit filed by the state Attorney General in support of a subpoena for Airbnb customer info. That filing claims that as many as two thirds of NYC Airbnb listing break the law.

Airbnb is clearly tired of getting grief from cities that say its customers’ short-term rentals are frequently illegal or otherwise a drain on the community. The company has revealedthat it’s in the midst of removing more than 2,000 New York City listings that aren’t “providing a quality, local experience to guests.” While Airbnb hasn’t said exactly what that means, the move comes as the state Attorney General filed an affidavit in support of a subpoena for Airbnb customer info. The filing claims that two thirds of NYC rentals break the law by subletting an entire apartment without the official tenants being present, and it named and shamed 17 hosts that are allegedly the biggest abusers.