With millions of out-of-town visitors expected for the presidential inauguration, students are finding that people are willing to pay thousands of dollars to stay in the city, giving those with extra room the opportunity to earn some extra money.

There are an estimated 95,000 hotel rooms in the D.C. area, most of which are completely booked. But with a wealth of private homes and apartments, visitors are not yet out of luck. Many local residents, including students, are renting out their homes and apartments to visitors coming to the District for the inauguration.

Be careful

The owner of inaugurationrental.net warns about taking the proper precautions when renting out an apartment.

“I tell everyone make sure they’re getting their real estate agent or attorney involved as far as drawing up the contract itself,” Hugh Gallagher said. “As long as they own the home they have to supply the lease for the client.”

Frustrated with Craigslist, Gallagher and his partner sought to create a more user-friendly Web site. Gallagher said he and his friends felt their properties were getting lost on Craigslist.

He was surprised by the “astronomical rates” some wished to charge to rent their homes. People originally had illusions of grandeur, but the prices are now beginning to even out, he said.

Not for everyone

Residents of the Statesman apartment building at 21st and F streets were informed last month that renting to inauguration visitors is prohibited.

“There have been some resident questions about subletting apartments within our community to event attendees,” community manager Lisa Nanni said in a letter to residents. “While this event is exciting and will attract an enthusiastic crowd, we ultimately care about the safety and comfort of all our residents.”

Nanni said it is not safe to have people staying in the building who have not undergone background checks.

Renting out rooms in residence halls

Seth Weinshel, director of GW Housing, has also made it clear that students in on-campus residence halls may not rent out their rooms under the terms of the housing license agreement.

Housing announced a new policy last month that students will be required to register their inauguration guests before Dec. 12 and “only those guests will be allowed to stay in the room with the student.”

“A student is always responsible for their guest, and a guest must be escorted by the host at all time,” Weinshel said. “If a student breaks a policy, they can face judicial action.”

Gabriella Schwarz