Few feel sympathy for Toronto Airbnb host complaining of tens of thousands in lost income

A Toronto property owner who went public with his short-term rental horror story this week is not getting the sympathy he may have expected from fellow residents for his plight.

An 11-year Airbnb host who goes simply by “Daniel” is now at odds with the vacation rental giant over tens of thousands in lost income that he alleges the platform should be responsible for.

As he explained to the CBC Monday, Daniel’s Forest Hill home was the setting of a police investigation after his most recent guest was arrested on drug charges during her stay, leaving her belongings — including her vehicle — behind.

The multi-floor home, which apparently goes for a whopping $12,000 per month, was rendered unrentable as a result. This led to the cancellation of the following booking, which would have brought in $28,000, as Daniel awaited further guidance from Airbnb before touching anything.

Though the host sees this as a “little guy vs. big corporation” issue, hardly anyone online appears to feel all that bad for him — in fact, it’s quite the opposite.

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“Imagine running a business and then bemoaning the fact that a customer was unable to pay you because the police arrested them,” one person wrote in a Reddit conversation about the case.

“Yeah, I’m totally sure it’s his actual house he’s renting out and not an investment property. Cry me a f***ing river,” another added.

Still, others grumbled about how the proliferation of Airbnbs in the city has impacted the housing market. Many feel that having so many short-term rentals is pushing rent prices higher and even shaping condo construction in the city based on what is most Airbnb-friendly for investors.

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Still others speculated that the unit in question does not seem to be Daniel’s principal residence — a City requirement for short-term rentals that he can shirk if renting it for more than 28 consecutive days at a time — and so, like any investment, comes with inherent risk that is not anyone else’s fault. The fact that the investment in this case is so lucrative doesn’t help his case, either.

“You mean investment comes with risk? Maybe he should have legitimately rented the home out and not tried to duck the system,” one person commented, though others contended that lengthy backlogs and other issues at the Landlord Tenant Board (LTB) have made becoming a traditional landlord far more of a risk than it should be.

In addition to the lost rental income, Daniel alleges $11,000 in other damages, including “overstay fees,” that he again believes Airbnb should pay according to its own policies.