Short-term vacation rental homes are destroying the quality of life for neighbors of these commercial, clerkless hotels across America.

It’s not only the neighbors of these commercial properties in residential neighborhoods who are suffering the consequences of individuals, LLCs, or even hedge funds looking to make a quick buck at the expense of others, renters who are victims of homeowners with safety violations are also victims.

The Weiner family suffered an unimaginable nightmare when they rented an $8,000/week home in the Hamptons, where they hoped to spend one last summer with the family’s patriarch after he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer.

On August 3, a fire broke out in the short-term rental home the Weiner family was renting in the Hamptons for $8,000/week at around 3.30 am on August 3. The Wieners are blaming the short-term rental company VRBO for the horrific deaths of their daughters.

The court case against VRBO blasted the Defendants for their “greed, corner-cutting, and willful failure to give any thought to the safety of the occupants of the premises led to the deaths of Jillian Rose Wiener and her sister Lindsay Eliza Wiener.”

The New York Post reported about the lawsuit – The family later learned the home’s outdoor kitchen, which they had tried to use in the hours before the fire, had never been inspected; the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms weren’t working, and the home had multiple violations from the town of Southampton, according to court papers.

The Wieners booked through a popular website that lets vacationers rent residential properties. HomeAway sent the family an email stating the owner of the Spring Lane house said there were smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, a fire extinguisher, and a first aid kit, among other safety features, the suit says.

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Daily Mail reports – A terminally-ill former federal prosecutor has filed a lawsuit against travel company VRBO after his daughters died at a ‘firetrap’ $8,000-a-week Hamptons getaway.

Lewis Wiener, a former chair of the US Courts of Federal Claims, accused VRBO, Homeaway.com, and property owners Pamela and Peter Miller of failing to maintain his family’s safety when the fire broke out on August 3, killing Lindsay, 19, and Jillian, 21.

While the charges are clear, it’s still uncertain why the fire broke out in early August when the family was asleep.

Jillian and Lindsay were asleep on the second floor when the fire occurred. The sisters didn’t make it out of the blaze in time, and their brother Zachary, 23, had to jump out the second-floor window.

Their parents, Lewis and Alisa, were able to flee in time from the 1,624-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-bathroom home to safety.

The grieving family is seeking $75,000 for emotional distress along with an unspecified amount in economic and medical damages to be determined by a trial, the New York Post reports.

Local communities across America are grappling with the nightmare short-term rentals are creating for homeowners where they are popular.

In Michigan, State House members passed a short-term rental (STR) bill in 2021 to allow these commercial, clerkless hotels to comprise up to 30% of neighborhoods. They would strip local homeowners associations and zoning from their ability to restrict or limit how many STRs would be allowed to operate in their neighborhoods and communities. The bill has gone to the MI Senate, where MI Senators will vote to allow local communities to decide how many STRs will be allowed in their neighborhoods or if the state will ignore their rights and decide for them.

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