Popular short-term apartment rental site AirBnB has won a huge victory in court after a case against an East Village resident, who was originally given a $40,000 fine for renting out his apartment using the site, was overturned.
Widely seen as a test case for the legality of short-term rental sites, AirBnB elected to represent Abe Carrey, the East Village Airbnb user, in court. Although the initial Department of Buildings fine of $40,000 was lowered to $2,400 in the first court case, AirBnB lost the case. However, the new ruling found that Carrey did not violate city code governing transient hotels after renting out his room to a Russian tourist for three nights. The ruling also erases the $2,400 fine, according to DNAinfo.
“This is a clear victory for the sharing community,” AirBnB posted on its blog. “We are proud of our hosts and guests in New York and around the world, and we are excited for a future in which the sharing economy is here to stay.” [DNAinfo] –Christopher Cameron