Rent-Stabilized Tenant Ordered to Pay Record High Airbnb Fine

A judge recently ordered a Tribeca rent-stabilized artist to leave her apartment and pay a fine of $185,000 for illegally listing it on Airbnb. The tenant, who paid $1,500 a month for her rent-stabilized two-bedroom apartment, was sued by her landlord in 2014, who claimed she was earning about $4,500 a month from Airbnb guests.

The $185,000 fine includes legal fees for the landlord and a penalty for violating New York’s Rent Stabilization Code. The tenant claimed that she used Airbnb only briefly to help pay the medical bills for her former husband and got approval from an attorney before doing so.

The tenant’s $185,000 fine is believed to be one of the highest penalties ever stemming from a case involving one Airbnb host renting a single apartment. Airbnb listers with multiple properties, however, have occasionally been threatened with larger fines.