Owners of residential houses have changed into bed and breakfast
The lawyer stated that there are gaps in relevant laws and regulations in the supervision of the homestay industry, and Beijing plans to stipulate that short-term rental houses in the community may require written consent from the owners of the same building
Resident Xiaojuan (pseudonym) reported that the house next door to his house was converted into a bed and breakfast for rent, causing noise to disturb the residents.
The lawyer said that there are no special regulations at the level of laws and regulations to regulate the management of homestays, and there are still blank areas in laws and regulations for the supervision of the homestay industry.
In August of this year, Beijing publicly solicited opinions on the strict control of "city homestays" and other short-term rental houses. It is proposed that the operation of short-term rental houses must obtain written consent from the house owners and comply with the community management regulations or the decisions of the owners' assembly; there is no management protocol or decisions of the owners' assembly If you do, you must obtain written consent from other owners of the same building.
Beijing News Recently, Xiaojuan, a resident of the North District of Apple Community, Chaoyang District, reported to the Beijing News that the house next door to his house was twice converted into a bed and breakfast for rent, and there has been a long-term phenomenon of noise disturbance.
The current homestay owner stated that it has a legal hotel management business license and does not allow tenants to party indoors.
Noisy in the middle of the night
Xiaojuan told reporters that in the past year, the house next door has been transformed into a guesthouse for foreign operations. She has heard loud singing, laughter, and noise many times late at night and early morning.
"I heard the noise for the first time in December last year. Later, there were more noises. One day I knocked on the door to negotiate and found that there was a party inside. The other party said it was a homestay rented on Ctrip." Xiaojuan showed reporters in multiple videos. From January to September of this year, it has repeatedly negotiated with the guest house tenants, hoping that the other party will reduce the volume, mostly after 12 o'clock.
Xiaojuan told reporters that in August and September this year, the frequency of renting out this homestay has increased significantly.
"I would be quarreled every night. I couldn't bear it anymore, so I called the police." Xiaojuan said that in October, she received a police notice that the homestay was banned and the website listings were also taken down.
On December 6, Xiaojuan heard the noise from the next door at home again.
The other party told her that she had rented a homestay on the short-term rental platform "Airbnb".
According to the house decoration situation and the address of the house, Xiaojuan found that after changing the landlord and re-decorating the homestay, it was put on the shelves again on Airbnb.
Xiaojuan believes that due to the size of the house, the sound insulation of the building itself is not very good. If the house is operated as a guesthouse and allows many people to gather, it will inevitably make noise.
"This voice is particularly clear in the dead of night, and it is irregular and difficult to adapt."
Homestays are temporarily suspended and no parties are allowed
On December 14, the reporter inquired about the homestay listings through the platform. The introduction mentioned that "small party can be easily controlled" and "allowed parties and activities".
The owner of the homestay said in an interview that the homestay officially opened on December 6th and is currently closed.
On December 12, I received a notice from the police station that some citizens reported nuisance behavior in the homestay.
"After that, we removed the bed in the house and only retained the functions of taking pictures and photography."
On December 14, the reporter saw at the hotel that the first floor was equipped with game consoles, TVs, projectors and small speakers.
There are two doors at the door. Behind the door is a notice prohibiting gatherings, saying, "Please keep quiet after 23:00. If you have any complaints, the power will be cut off." "Non-party houses, please respect neighbors."
"Since its opening, it has only been rented out once as a photography venue, and there is also a birthday party for friends. There is no phenomenon that particularly disturbs the people." The owner of the homestay said that the house has an additional door and there is no special equipment that disturbs the people. People have verified that they have not acted excessively.
“We have some responsibility for the current situation, but more reasons may be that the neighbors are too sensitive and the house structure is also problematic.” As for the follow-up, the owner of the homestay expressed willingness to negotiate with the neighbors under the coordination of the management.
Regarding whether operating a homestay in a residential building is legal and compliant, the owner of the homestay stated that he has a business license of a hotel management company and the scope of business includes accommodation. The homestay can be regarded as a product of the company.
On December 17, the reporter searched the display of the homestay on the short-term rental platform again and found that its introduction had been revised, deleting "small party can also be easily controlled", and said that "party and activities are not allowed".
■ Follow up
In the face of noise disturbance, how can residents defend their rights?
Han Xiao, a lawyer from Beijing Kangda Law Firm, said that affected residents can choose to legally defend their rights by negotiating, lodge a complaint with the competent department of ecological environment and public security organs, and request the ecological management department or public security organ to order them to rectify or impose administrative penalties in accordance with the law. .
According to reports, according to Article 46 of my country’s "Environmental Noise Pollution Prevention and Control Law", when using household appliances, musical instruments or other family indoor entertainment activities, the volume should be controlled or other effective measures should be taken to avoid environmental noise pollution to surrounding residents .
Article 47 stipulates that for indoor decoration activities in residential buildings that have been completed and delivered for use, the operation time shall be limited and other effective measures shall be taken to reduce and avoid environmental noise pollution to surrounding residents.
In addition, the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law" also clearly stipulates that if noise is made to interfere with the normal life of others, and the repeated education does not change, a penalty of 200 yuan to 500 yuan shall be imposed.
Han Xiao pointed out that if the short-term rental accommodation does cause noise disturbance to the residents, the affected residents have the right to file a civil lawsuit in the people's court, requesting the noise-producing passengers or the hotel management operators to eliminate noise hazards and cause losses, and demand compensation for the losses.
Can a homestay be opened in a residential building in a community?
Han Xiao said that there are currently no special regulations at the level of laws and regulations governing the management of homestays.
At present, my country mainly determines the operating standards of homestays based on the "Basic Requirements and Evaluation of Tourist Homestays" issued and implemented by the former National Tourism Administration in 2017.
At the same time, with the development of the homestay industry, Guangxi, Fujian, Shenzhen and other places have also issued policies and regulations for the management and development of homestays to regulate the development and management of the homestay industry.
"There are still blank areas of laws and regulations in the supervision of the homestay industry, and it is urgent to carry out standardization and legalization." Han Xiao said.
In August of this year, the "Notice on Regulating the Management of Short-term Rental Housing" (Draft for Solicitation of Comments) jointly drafted by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-rural Development, the Municipal Public Security Bureau, and the Municipal Cyberspace Administration of China, publicly solicited opinions from the public.
The notice intends to stipulate that the operation of short-term rental houses shall obtain the written consent of the house owners and comply with the community management regulations or the decisions of the owners' meeting.
For communities where there is no management agreement or decision by the owners’ meeting, the operator shall obtain written consent from other owners in the building.
In the future, street, township governments, and community property units will also be responsible for the supervision of "urban bed and breakfasts" and short-term rental houses.
■ Response
The owner can contact the neighborhood committee for mediation or report to the police
In response to residents’ complaints of noise nuisance in the guesthouses in residential buildings, a staff member of the Letters and Visits Section of the Shuangjing Sub-district Office told reporters that the owners can report the noise nuisance to the neighborhood committee of their community, and the neighborhood committee can mediate the conflict between the two parties.
At the same time, if the owner doubts the legality of operating a homestay in a residential area, he can also report it to the industrial and commercial department, and ask the relevant department to investigate whether the homestay is involved in illegal operations such as unlicensed operation.
The staff of the Apple Community Neighborhood Committee responded to the reporter that if an owner reports to the neighborhood committee that there is noise and disturbance in the residential building, the neighborhood committee will contact the landlord with the property to conduct on-site investigations and mediate disputes that occur in the neighborhood.
"If there is a violation of the law, we will also report it to the police station, and the owner can also call the police directly."
Regarding the problem reported by Xiaojuan, the Shuangjing Police Station stated that if there is a disturbance to the residents, the owner can call the police at any time and the police will deal with it according to law.
Beijing News reporter Wu Jiaoying Guo Wei