INSIDE EDITION interviews Cory Tschoel about her nightmare renting her home on Airbnb to a renter who wouldn’t leave.
One woman said she knows first-hand what it's like to have tenants from Hell.
Cory Tschoel told INSIDE EDITION, "I was pulling my hair out. I was sick to my stomach."
Tschoel wanted to rent out her vacation apartment in Palm Springs, California, so she turned to the popular website Airbnb.com.
You've probably seen their ads. Homeowners rent out their property for short stays.
In Tschoel's case, she rented to tow brothers. They were supposed to live at Tschoel's place for six weeks. Instead, she said, they wouldn't move out.
Pretty soon, she said, the renters stopped paying the rent. Then, she got a scary text message from him.
Tschoel explained, "It says 'I am pressing charges for blackmail and damages caused by your negligence and malicious misconduct."
When she read the text, she said it reminded her of the movie Pacific Heights, in which Michael Keaton made life miserable for the couple he was renting a room from and they were powerless to get him out.
"I had no idea what to expect," said Tschoel. "Are they professional scammers? Are they professional drifters?"
Tschoel said Airbnb sent her many emails promising assistance, but she was unable to get in touch with the renters.
"We will do everything to get this guest out of your space," the email read.
Tschoel's ordeal received national attention, including on INSIDE EDITION.
Tschoel said she faced a long and expensive eviction process. Now, lo-and-behold, the brothers up and left.
Tschoel has her apartment back, although she's still cleaning the place, and trying to remove all traces of the renters from Hell.
"It was amazing to walk into this place and find that there were no holes in the walls and it's not completely trashed," said Tschoel.
She had some advice for anyone thinking of renting through Airbnb for more than a few days.
"The individual host or property owner should do more vetting on their own," said Tschoel. "So not just take for granted that Airbnb is going to do the vetting."
