Airbnb resolves case with host where renters refused to leave

A huge mess got left behind when some stubborn Airbnb guests were evicted out of a Durham property they refused to leave at the end of their scheduled stay.

Farzana Rahman shared with Troubleshooter Diane Wilson pictures of a glass table cracked, a broken bed and cigarette burns on mattresses, sheets and furniture. Rahman said these are just some of the damages she found when she got access back to her Durham condo.

She said the biggest problem was the smell.

"They had to paint it and we had to hire agencies to get rid of the smoke through the ozone treatment. We had to throw away all our mattresses, our linens, upholstered furniture, everything had to be replaced." Farzana said the bill for treatments and repairs is in the thousands.

This all started when Airbnb renters refused to leave after their long-term rental expired on May 24, 2024. After the checkout date, Rahman called the police and she took a video of when the police talked to the renters. You can hear a person at the rental tell police they will leave.

"I assure you we will be gone in the morning, if they can just give us until the morning, that's all I'm asking for so we can get our stuff and we can go," a man said on the recording.

However, they didn't leave, instead, they left a handwritten no trespassing sign on the front door.

Rahman took the renters to court, and the magistrate granted the summary ejectment . Sheriff deputies evicted the renters, and Rahman finally got access to her rental.

"They left the place really in shambles, and to recover that place and to make it rentable again, it cost a lot of money," Rahman said.

When Wilson asked the renter about the alleged damages she said in part, "...that place was like that when we arrived; I have photos but I don't care to be part of a lie. Please do not contact me again. God bless."

Rahman said there was no damage before the renters moved in, it was spotless, and the extensive damages were solely caused by them.

We had to throw away all our mattresses...everything had to be replaced.

Before ABC11's involvement, Rahman said Airbnb was not helpful, but after we reached out, she said they responded to her satisfaction. Rahman said Airbnb worked directly with her to take care of her out-of-pocket expenses.

"I'm grateful to Diane for getting me to this point, because Airbnb has paid the money to me to resolve this issue, bringing the apartment back to its original state."

Rahman was able to rent the unit again and said because of how Airbnb ultimately handled everything, she kept her rental posting on the platform.

Wilson did reach out to Airbnb for comment, but no one responded. For a previous story on the issue Airbnb stated, "Issues like this are very rare on Airbnb and our team is continuing to work with our host to provide support."