Neighbor renting out their "Poolside Paradise." Renters keep coming to my house.

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C

Captchaos

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Bronze Supporter
Jul 18, 2017
312
Maryland
So this has happened a couple times now, fortunately we've been home both times. Back in June we're enjoying our pool and two strange cars show up in the driveway. I ask if I can help them, "Hi we're here for a pool rental?" Uhh, not at this house? She had my address but someone else's name I didn't recognize (not any of my small neighborhood residents either). I assumed the poor woman got scammed, but she and the other 4-5 cars that pulled up behind her in the next few minutes would have to take it up with whoever they paid.

Fast forward to today, two cars pull in and a guy in his bathing suit shows up at the door, repeatedly ringing the doorbell as I'm on a conference call. He says he's here for a pool rental but actually had my neighbor's address two doors down. Evidently he didn't pay any attention to my house number and just saw that I have a pool from the street and am the first house. We directed him to the neighbor's house and he was apologetic. However, I just checked my surveillance cameras and find that two of these individuals decided to first stroll into my backyard where my wife and children were swimming before coming to ring the doorbell.

Anyone else have to deal with this sort of thing? I'm really concerned about somebody just showing up at my house when I'm not home and deciding to use the pool assuming this is the one they rented. I have absolutely no appetite for strangers using my pool and have no idea how $75/hour compensates my neighbor enough to do so (and letting them use inside bathrooms??), but I really don't want to have to worry about this. Unfortunately I have no HOA (the one time I wanted one!) so not sure I have any resource here. I guess I'm going to have to put signs up or something, but what a ridiculous thing to have to deal with.
 
Sounds like u need a self locking gate! This is recommended for safety purposes anyway. Also perhaps a big sign that says “not for rent, trespassers will be prosecuted”. I would contact the police next time & get the info from the “renters” if u can (screenshots & what not) - most local police departments now have an online division.
You can also look for the listing online & try to get it removed - here’s one site I know of
swimply.com

Swimply - Rent Private Pools, Courts, and More by the Hour - Pools Near Me

Rent private pools, courts, backyards, and more by the hour. Find the perfect space for your escape on Swimply. Book today.
swimply.com swimply.com
Facebook marketplace is another avenue.
it’s possible they pulled old pics from the mls & google maps for their ad. It’s pretty easy to which houses have a pool on google maps.
Google your address & see what pops up, maybe pics on zillow or something , u can have them removed. Scammers do this all the time, falsely listing houses that are on the mls for rent as their own & collecting $ online for 1st & last. It’s become a huge problem here.
 
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Yes, Swimply was the first place I checked and sure enough, the neighbor's listing was right there. I did check Facebook previously the first time it happened and they had my address and assumed that's exactly what they were doing; satellite views are easy to find pools and I imagine this sort of scam is pretty easy to pull off with Venmo/Cashapp.

I do have locking gates, but it's really a shame that I need to lock gates in my own backyard. This is also not really an option because we may need to get to the other side of the fence quickly (dog fits through the fence) and can't constantly be carrying keys. I do lock them when we are on vacation (learned that the hard way once) but day to day this isn't really an option. I guess a sign is the only recourse here really, which is disappointing. I'm guessing those who think they are at the right address will still ring the doorbell too.
 
Not a lawyer...

I would be tempted to file a complaint with the local department that regulates public pools. If someone is being compensated to allow strangers to use their pools then that would usually fall under the requirements of a public pool. That means permits, inspections, record keeping, and possibly insurance requirements.
 
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@Captchaos - Sorry to hear this is happening to you. I would not be a happy camper either! At a minimum, I'd put a sign on my gate.

I've never heard of swimply.com. I just did a search at a town 13 miles away (no pools were listed in my development) and people are renting their pools for thirty bucks an hour. What the heck???????? And letting strangers come in and use their bathroom????? It never ceases to amaze me what people will do for a few bucks.
 
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Donldson said:
Not a lawyer...

I would be tempted to file a complaint with the local department that regulates public pools. If someone is being compensated to allow strangers to use their pools then that would usually fall under the requirements of a public pool. That means permits, inspections, record keeping, and possibly insurance requirements.
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That’s an interesting thought. I don’t plan to go that far though, it may not be for me but I can’t blame him for wanting to rent his pool if he’s not using it and is willing to deal with it. If it becomes a real problem I guess I’ll walk down there and ask him to be a little more clear with his renters, hopefully it doesn’t come to that. I was mostly curious if others were seeing this in their areas and thoughts on keeping squatters away.
 
I'd probably keep an eye on swimply.com to make sure my house wasn't listed. I'd also make sure my house number was easily visible from the street so people wouldn't mistake my house for the pool rental house. You also mentioned your pool was visible from the street. Is there any easy way to block that view during the summer (temporarily park a travel trailer or whatever)?
 
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Captchaos said:
If it becomes a real problem I guess I’ll walk down there and ask him to be a little more clear with his renters,
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Go anyway. Be kind and they'll probably be mortified. Or they'll be total jerks and you won't feel the least bit bad going to plan B.

The town would likely care about rental permits and you could call the big 6(?) homeowners insurance companies to give them the address to cross reference with their clients. They won't tell you if it's their client or not, but they'd love to know. 'Are you running a business on the property' is one of the first questions they ask.
 
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bertschb said:
I'd probably keep an eye on swimply.com to make sure my house wasn't listed. I'd also make sure my house number was easily visible from the street so people wouldn't mistake my house for the pool rental house. You also mentioned your pool was visible from the street. Is there any easy way to block that view during the summer (temporarily park a travel trailer or whatever)?
Click to expand...
Good call, last month I checked to make sure some scam artist wasn’t listing my house but I should check regularly. No easy way to block the pool unless I plant a bunch of trees which then blocks my view of the open lot I own and cut for a nice view. You can’t really see into the pool since it’s up on a hill but if you’re looking for a pool you can tell what it is. The waterfall is also visible as is of course a yard that’s fenced in but only in a certain area.
 
just had to check my area. hard to believe someone will rent access for...$14/hr. bathroom access extra $5. i'm curious. wouldn't you rather include bathroom access in your rental rather than give someone incentive to pee in the pool? this is the link to that listing:
swimply.com

Private Pool for Rent · Liberty Township · ★5 · 20 Guests

Affordable Family Fun! · Rent this pool in Liberty Township by the hour on Swimply.
swimply.com swimply.com
 
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I looked up my area and they were getting $60-$100 an hour, plus add ons like access to the grill. It's not for me but I could see that swaying alot of people.
 
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