Renting a vacation house in Philly or N.J.? Airbnb announces stricter ‘anti-party crackdown’ ahead of summer holidays
A pilot program last year blocked nearly 200 people in Philly and more than 300 in New Jersey from renting entire houses during Memorial Day weekend.
Just in time for Memorial Day and the unofficial start to summer, Airbnb is putting the official kibosh on house parties in Philadelphia and beyond.
This week, the short-term rental company announced its heightened “anti-party crackdown” for Memorial Day weekend and July 4th, which aims to detect and deter “higher risk” bookings during the high-travel summer holidays.
The company — which says it expects 300 million guests this year — is also encouraging neighbors who witness malfeasance in merriment to report partying concerns to Airbnb’s “24/7 neighborhood support line.”
» READ MORE: Memorial Day weekend forecast to be mostly dry around Philly, but expect a chill at the Shore
According to Airbnb, “higher-risk” rentals include one-night and two-night bookings of entire homes, with the company taking into account whether the guest has received past positive booking reviews, their proximity to the house, and whether the rental is last-minute.
For the Memorial Day and July 4th weekends, Airbnb said it would block certain home bookings that the company determines to be risky.
After introducing similar rules for Halloween and New Year’s Eve, the rental company piloted its “strict anti-party” measures for Memorial Day weekend last year.
In Philadelphia, nearly 200 people were deterred from booking entire houses after being flagged for risk of raucous revelry during the 2022 Memorial Day weekend. A spokesperson said that number was “on the higher end,” compared to other large cities. And in New Jersey, Airbnb’s “party prevention system” blocked more than 300 people from renting houses.
Under the holiday guidelines, guests renting an Airbnb must promise not to party, and those breaking that rule may be suspended or removed from the platform, the company said.
“While these incidents on Airbnb are rare, we are committed to helping our Hosts promote responsible travel in their neighborhoods and working to reduce the risk of disruptive parties, which are banned on our platform and unwelcomed in the communities we serve,” the company said in a statement.
Airbnb has curtailed carousing at its properties since 2019, banning “open-invite” and “chronic house parties” after five people died in a shooting at a Halloween house party at a California Airbnb.
In 2020, the company announced its first temporary “global party ban” to curb the spread of the coronavirus, limiting gatherings to 16 people. Around 6,600 people were suspended in 2021 from Airbnb for violating that ban, the company said. Since 2020, the company has said it’s seen a 55% decrease in the rate of partying complaints, which were lodged last year against 0.039% of rentals.
In April 2022, two teenagers died and eight others were injured in a shooting at a 200-person house party at an Airbnb in Pittsburgh. Two victims have since sued the rental company. Shortly after the shooting, Airbnb made its party ban permanent, but lifted the 16-person cap on gatherings.
» READ MORE: Airbnb is alerting hosts about subpoenas from the City of Philadelphia. Here’s what’s going on.
In January, short-term rental competitor Vrbo also rolled out its own anti-party software, which assigns guests a “risk score,” and alerts hosts of a “high-risk” booking. In 2022, Vrbo estimated the system deterred more than 500 parties and saved hosts more than $2.5 million in damages.