We're facing losing £25,000 from our basement flat tenant

A couple are facing losing £25,000 after their basement flat tenant started subletting it out as an Airbnb without their permission.

Tarot card reader Yasmina Mathias, 62, and IT firm manager Robert Mathias, 74, from West London, have been left feeling uncomfortable in their own home due to an influx of strangers reportedly arriving at their Chelsea property.

The pair described living in a state of discomfort and say they felt they had no choice but to double-lock their front door - with Yasmina claiming she has suffered health problems caused by the stress. 

The couple say they may even have to sell the property to get out of debt caused by unpaid rent and huge legal fees as they fight to evict their tenant.

Robert and Yasmina - who both work from home -  had hoped to retire but say this is now 'out of the question' as they estimate they will be left with a £25,000 dent in their finances at the end of the ordeal.

Yasmina told MyLondon: 'My health has really gone because of this, because of the stress. I'm constantly thinking about it. I'm worried. We have a mortgage to pay.' 

Alarm bells started to ring just two weeks after Robert had signed a new tenancy agreement.

He noticed a family of four wondering around outside the property looking lost and when he approached them they told him they had arrived from Mexico and had an Airbnb reservation for the basement apartment.   

Robert claimed that from that point on, people 'streamed' in and out of the flat, adding that the tenant had also stopped paying rent.

He said: 'It's really awful. Our home is being invaded. It's like burglary but worse. I can't even go in the back garden to prune the bushes, which [the tenant] doesn't bother doing and we stopped paying to have the front cleaned.' 

Yasmina and Robert say their tenant runs a 'very organised' operation hiring cleaners and installing a smart doorbell which they think is to track the comings and goings of guests.

They expressed concern about a constant flow of people turning up at the property in the early hours of the morning and believe this is happening outside of the holiday lets.

Recordings seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service taken in September show three adult men entering and leaving the property at different times between 3am and 5am in the same night.

One appears to be pacing up and down the pavement after leaving the flat before wondering off.

Another is glued to his phone as he goes down the stairs to the basement and a third flicks his hair behind his ears as he scales the stairs at 4.08am.     

The couple said they had seen the flat advertised on holiday-letting sites like Booking.com, Top Hotels London, London Hotels.

The LDRS also found the property on Vrbo where it came with a steep price tag of between £135 and £180 per night.

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A description of the property on the site boasted of a two-bedroom lower ground flat 'in the heart of Chelsea' with a fully furnished kitchen, flat-screen TV and free wi-fi.

Similarly on Airbnb the flat is described as a 'charming' and 'stylist retreat' where 'the perfect blend of comfort, convenience, and character make it an ideal choice for both short and long stays'. 

Here It is being listed for £180 a night and is reserved for most of October.

When the LDRS approached the host via the messaging portal on Airbnb for comment, they declined it. 

Airbnb then sent MyLondon a generic email saying using the portal to solicit third-party services or other websites was against its terms of service and threatened to suspend their account if this was violated again. 

The LDRS also contacted the tenant via phone and email but received no response.

After being contacted for comment, Top Hotels London, London Hotels, Airpaz and Booking.com said they would remove the advert from their platform.

Vrbo said it is investigating the matter and that as per its terms and conditions, hosts have to comply with legal requirements.

A Booking.com spokesperson said: 'All partners must agree to our terms and conditions, verifying that they are legally permitted to rent out their accommodation.'

The couple have also accused the estate agents Marsh & Parsons and RightMove of negligence, claiming they both failed to carry out in-depth reference checks on their tenant. 

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RightMove said it has confidence in its referencing process and when issues arise, it endeavors  to secure the best possible outcome for the landlord.

Marsh & Parsons said it does not comment publicly on matters involving customers and their properties but said it works directly with clients to help resolve any issues.   

The homeowners have begun the process of evicting their tenant and hope to have their request for a possession order heard by a court in December. 

By that time, they will have missed five months of rent, they claim.

The couple believe the sum of legal fees combined with the lost rent will see £25,000 down the drain.

Yasmina and Robert said their experience has left them feeling tenants have more rights than landlords. 

Robert added he thinks there should be equitable rights for landlords to protect them from people who have 'no intention' of paying their rent and who want to illegally make money.