Airbnb Suspends Wellesley Home Owner's Account, Bans Student

WALTHAM, MA — Officials at Airbnb said they have suspended the account of the woman who rented her home out to a student who then used the house to throw a party, complete with bouncer, entry fee and DJ. The student has also been banned, according to officials at Airbnb.

"This host and listing have been suspended while we investigate this incident and the guest who booked this reservation has been permanently banned from our platform. Hosting is a serious responsibility and those who fail to meet our community standards will be removed from the Airbnb community. We apologize to the residents of Wellesley for this disturbance," wrote Crystal Davis of Airbnb to the Patch.

The ban and the suspension went into effect Thursday, according to Davis.

(Sign up for a free Wellesley Patch newsletter and breaking news alerts, delivered right to your inbox. Did we mention it was free?)

Last Saturday night a party and parade of cars and college students with red solo cups headed into a home on the corner of Shaw and Route 9 so disturbed area residents, they organized and asked the Board of Selectmen for help addressing the issue.

The town snapped into action and began a process that included the building department, the health department and the police. The hotel lobby put in their two cents as well, calling for more regulation on short-term rentals such as Airbnb. On Friday representatives from Airbnb reacted, noting if neighbors in other parts of town had concerns they should contact them.

"The overwhelming majority of Airbnb hosts and guests are good neighbors and respectful travelers, but when issues happen, we work to make things right. We want to do everything we can to help our hosts be good neighbors in the places they call home. To achieve that, we have a resource for neighbors of Airbnb hosts," wrote Davis.

Anyone can go to airbnb.com/neighbors to share specific concerns they might have about a listing in their community.

RELATED:

Wellelsey Residents Upset About Airbnb Party- Here's What They Did

Photo of the house on Shaw Road where the police shut down a party around 1 pm.