All Forum Posts by: Karin Crompton

It is my understanding you need a broker's license to do property management in CT, whether on your own or through a company you run. I believe there are some caveats to that - for example, if you live in a multi-family and rent out the other units, you would not need your license. The state Department of Consumer Protection is in charge of licensing in CT and could further clarify.

You made the right move, @Jennifer Proulx . It wouldn't have ended at the 5k - they'd have been after you for the next level, the next tier you need to belong to in order to be successful, etc etc etc. So congratulations for standing firm in the face of what I'm sure was a ton of pressure. I'd say you DO have the investor mindset - knowing when to say no is as important, if not moreso, than saying yes. You turned down a bad deal, and you turned it down with someone trying to put the squeeze on you. Good for you. That's an important skill right there and will come in handy as you advance in your investing career.

Spend some time navigating this site and you'll learn a lot. Click the "Learn" tab at the top, listen to podcasts, do a search for topics of interest to you, and post questions in these forums. And save your hard-earned money!

Welcome, @Rick Hupalo - you've come to a great site.

Here's a link (I hope) to a great blog by @Brandon Turner on some of the best real estate books out there. The list, plus the comments, will give you a super long to-read list.

I don't know how to say this without sounding like a dope ... but what the hell: Duuuuuuuude!!

What I mean to say is, thanks. :-) That's a great compilation and awfully good of you to share.

Nice job, @Cory T. . I had a feeling airbnb would become more responsive as your story gained some traction. ;-) Glad to hear, too, that you'll be getting some help w/your legal fees!

I don't know if other media outlets have expressed interest in the story, but one thing I wish was included was some expanding upon what a landlord might do to avoid this situation. Same as a typical long-term landlord, I suppose - background and credit checks, etc. And I'd like to know if airbnb (and other vacation rental sites) might expand upon its education of rental owners to alert them to this possibility and some tips on how to protect themselves.

Way to keep fighting! Now back to your original battle w/the squatter...

@Andrew Whicker - it's a good question, and I believe the answer is that the goal here is to educate the public. Though we've discussed the usefulness of bad PR quite a bit on this thread, there is also the notion that many thousands of vacation rental owners have no idea how vulnerable they are. They need to know, lawmakers need to know, and sites like airbnb need to know (if they don't already) and improve upon their policies and protections. Take a look at how long this thread has become, and you can imagine the interest this topic will stir up among the broader vacation rental community.

haha @Audrey Morgan - I'm just seeing this now. Thanks for the nomination! You give me too much credit for being able to pull off the organization of a networking event. I haven't found a ton of people out my way, though I believe there would be interest in a meetup that's centrally located at some point. Meanwhile, the Fairfield one is a good one and the folks in NYC kick some butt as well.

Welcome, @Stephen Quesnel !

What a first-class event. Kudos to @Darren Sager for organizing and to everyone mentioned above for their help. And if I wrote a blog, I could go into great detail on the nuggets that @J Scott offered last night - the obvious how-to stuff and then the subsurface lessons to be gleaned. (Hmmm, maybe I ought to get started on that...)

Lots of great updates on this thread, and @Cory T. you are handling things with a lot more clarity and patience than I would have!

I wanted to add a couple of thoughts to the approaching-the-press angle, for when and if you go that route. I should have mentioned in my previous post that, as a general rule, newspapers (and probably TV as well) won't write about landlord-tenant disputes. There's just too much he said/she said, and quite frankly, there's nothing all that newsworthy there; happens every day, all over the place. So keep that in mind - it'll be a short conversation at best if you approach reporters to talk about a problem with a tenant (especially seeing as you are essentially the landlord - there's never much sympathy for the landlord!).

I think your pitch here is focused on the uniqueness of the situation and on the growing pains associated with an emerging industry, not to mention the questionable tactics from airbnb. Deleting your conversations w/the renter???!!! That's crazy. (Tough to prove, also, but if you can demonstrate that other owners have had the same complaint and there's a pattern, you bolster the chances of a reporter hearing you out on that assertion.) So industry writers are probably a better route for you overall. Maybe even a crime angle, too - this is a new twist on an old crime, and it's interesting to know whether guys like this are taking advantage of a lack of jurisdiction, not to mention exploiting the apathy of a big company that's doing what it can to ignore a potential problem. I think airbnb and others are going to have to address this sooner or later, as the problem will only grow as criminals figure out they can take advantage of this scenario.

Bravo to you for your clear-headedness, and good luck getting rid of this jerk quickly!