NEW YORK CITY (PIX11) – New York City collected nearly $400,000 in fines from property owners illegally renting out rooms in January, according to the Department of Buildings.
The city charged a Manhattan property owner $17,500 for violating its Airbnb rules, which require a host to be present for any full-unit rental under 30 days. DOB officials accused the owner of renting out a basement unit on West 137th Street without being home.
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Business leaders, including the Partnership for New York City, have called on the city to relax Airbnb rules during the FIFA World Cup this summer. If the city refuses, fines can reach $5,000 per infraction.
The city fined the owner of a Queens building $307,500 for illegally converting a two-family home into five separate single-room rentals. The building on Blossom Avenue had illegal electrical work and an insufficient fire alarm system, according to the DOB…