A slimy young entrepreneur ruined a quiet street by turning an Airbnb he ran into an illegal nightclub – then played dumb when grilled about it by lawmakers.
Daniel Soraci bought the sprawling house in Vista, California, near San Diego, with his father Antonio Soraci and began renting it out early last year.
Advertised as ‘The Fun House’, it lived up to its name with loud parties raging into the early morning by groups who would simply check out and move on.
Some even had wristbands for paid entry checked by bouncers at the gate, and DJs set up in the backyard.
Party guests used neighboring lawns as toilets and left broken beer bottles, or worse, behind for the sleepless residents to find the next day.
Soraci insisted he had no idea the house was so disruptive, or that he was supposed to get a license to operate a rental home and pay taxes on it.
But no officials believed Soraci when he pleaded ignorance at a local council meeting on March 11 after being fined by the city.
‘You’re disingenuous and dishonest in implying that you didn’t know. You knew. You knew you were causing this problem,’ Mayor John Franklin told him.
Daniel Soraci (pictured with his girlfriend) co-owns a notorious party house declared a nuisance by the city of Vista in California
Named ‘The Fun House’, it lived up to its advertising with loud parties raging into the early morning by groups who would simply check out and move on
Some even had wristbands for paid entry checked by bouncers at the gate, and DJs set up in the backyard
‘You ignored the neighbors. You didn’t have respect for other human beings in society. You treated other people with disregard for their property and their concerns so that you could make a profit.
‘You used a greed motive to mistreat other people. That’s one of the most disgusting things I’ve seen in a long time.’
Neighbors were indeed furious about the unlicensed, and therefore illegal, rental home listed on every booking website imaginable.
Police were called 20 times since the beginning of last year for noise complaints, theft, and armed and suspicious individuals.
Twice that number complained to the city, which started fining Soraci and his father Antonio Soraci, who co-own the property.
They racked up fines of $17,875 for violating city ordinances, plus $1,500 for every day they continue to violate them.
Soraci claimed he didn’t see the council notices because he rarely checked the letterbox, but either way left the illegal listings up.
Soraci pleaded ignorance at a local council meeting on March 11 after being fined by the city
Police breaking up a huge party that spilled onto the street from the house
The three-bedroom, three-bathroom 1,490sqft house, a massive backyard and parking, three storage sheds, and space for pickleball, basketball, cornhole, and yardies
The three-bedroom, three-bathroom 1,490sqft house, a massive backyard and parking, three storage sheds, and pickleball, basketball, cornhole, and yardies.
‘This property is not meant for adult rager parties the neighborhood is quiet and we would like music outside to stop by 10pm,’ Soraci wrote on the VRBO listing in an apparent attempt to cover himself.
The city finally hauled Soraci before the local council for the March 11 meeting, where he insisted he didn’t know he and his father were breaking the law.
‘When I first started my Airbnb I was completely new to the process,’ he said while dressed in a suit with slicked-back hair.
‘I completely acknowledge that when I first started I had guests who took advantage of the backyard space and hosted parties that got out of control.
‘I understand how frustrating this must be for my neighbors and I sincerely apologize for those early disturbances.’
Police arrive as one of the parties spills out on to the street
A drunk partygoer collapses on to the back of a neighbor’s van
But Councilman Dan O’Donnell was unimpressed, calling it a waste of public resources for police to so frequently be called to the house.
‘There are many other important things that they could be out there doing and this is not one of them,’ he said.
Franklin told Soraci the house would not be granted a license even if it applied for one, and suggested he sell it instead.
Soraci appeared to not heed the demands and was still hosting after the meeting.
The city responded by declaring the house a public nuisance and suing the father and son for not paying the fines, plus thousands in Transient Occupancy Taxes.
Vista officials claimed in the lawsuit that they tried to get the owners to comply with the law, and the Soraci pair contacted the city in September about licensing but never followed through on getting one.
The Airbnb and VRBO pages were finally taken down and Airbnb said it banned Soraci’s account for violating its policies.
Soraci with a moving van at the house as he finally packs it up with the property up for sale
The ordeal now seems to be over, as the house is for sale for $899,000 with a sale pending, according to property websites
The ordeal now seems to be over, as the house is for sale for $899,000 with a sale pending, according to property websites.
Neighbors also told NBC they saw moving vans and the TV station showed some coming and going from the house.
‘It’s joyous. I feel bad even saying that because they are humans too,’ Bill Froelich, who lives across the street, told NBC.
‘But the way they just disrespected this whole neighborhood was just – I don’t even know how to describe someone who would do that.’
