What turned out to be a simple Airbnb stay turned into a viral story after a renter allegedly pretended to own the property and held a house blessing there.
Facebook user Badette Dulay Galo, who was among those invited to the event, said that Giovah Rosh Hanna Arafiles had only rented the Airbnb property in San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte.
However, Galo claimed that Arafiles went on to hold a “house blessing” at the property while claiming it was her own.
“HOY, MADAM HANAH! ANG GANDA NG BAHAY MO, AH!” Galo wrote in a now-viral Facebook post on Wednesday, July 1.
“Giovah Rosh Hanah Arafiles, nagpa-house blessing ng hindi niya bahay! ‘Yan ‘yung AirBnb na sinasabi mong bahay mo. Nanggigigil tuloy ‘yung owner. [Sampal] ko sa’yo ‘yung titulo niya sa’yo eh! ‘Di kita titigilan! Dodoblehin ni Medem Owner ‘yung 10k [P10,000]! Sareh!” she added, sharing photos from Arafiles’ post.
The post has reached a Reddit community, where one user questioned the tenant’s “thought process” behind holding a house blessing at the rented property.
House Blessing ng AirBNB Rented by Tenant
by
u/Top_Raccoon2683 in
Philippines
In an interview with the Philippine Entertainment Portal, Galo said Arafiles was among her “followers” who ordered her perfume worth P29,500. Galo added that Arafiles sent her two fake receipts.
“So ang mga kabigan kong bakla ang tumuloy. Hindi ako sumama. Since iba ang kutob ko dahil ‘di ko nailabas ang payment niya. Then, enjoy-enjoy sila dun sa Airbnb. At airbnb nga ang bahay,” Galo shared.
“Wala ding alam ang owner na inaangkin na pala ng Hanna ang bahay. So naging instant frenny [friends] kami ni owner at siya mismo nakiusap sa akin na i-post ko ang Hanna,” she added.
Galo said Arafiles was a renter based in Canada, adding that the latter had already returned to the North American country.
The Airbnb owner
Meanwhile, Lucky Joy Dumlao, the owner of the property rented by Arafiles, said in a statement that Arafiles had rented the property “on several occasions.”
Dumlao added that she only knew Arafiles through the Airbnb platform, where the latter made her bookings.
“The first direct bookings were paid using her credit card. However, for the third and fourth stays, Hanna and her family occupied my property without making any payment whatsoever. Despite repeated promises that payment would be made, I never received any compensation for those stays,” Dumlao said.
Dumlao also revealed that Arafiles’ husband was allegedly interested in purchasing the property.
“I informed her that I would think about it, but no agreement was made at that time. By the end of February, we reached an agreement regarding the purchase price of the property after Hanna stated that she would withdraw funds from her RRSP to complete the purchase,” the Airbnb owner said.
RRSP refers to Registered Retirement Savings Plan, a Canadian retirement savings account.
“In March, my family and I traveled to the Philippines to prepare the necessary documents and complete business matters related to the proposed sale,” Dumlao said.
She added that “none of the promised transfers or payments were ever completed” after that, but allowed Arafiles to rent the property “based on their promise that they would pay for the period they occupied it.”
“Hanna also requested permission for her family to have a small gathering at the property,” the Airbnb owner said.
Dumlao also said that Arafiles had made changes to the property after communicating with her architect, Julio Valdez.
The Airbnb owner added that Arafiles had asked her to pay for the catering, citing “her hard life”, and that she agreed to do so.
“The following morning, I discovered through a Facebook Live video posted by Julie Jose that they had held a house blessing ceremony at my property and had displayed family photographs inside the house as if it belonged to them,” Dumlao said.
The Airbnb owner added that a “cooler,” which originally belonged to the property, had also been taken without her permission.
Dumlao also shared that she had asked Barangay Captain Wilfred Quidilla and a tanod to request that Arafiles vacate the property.
“Hanna again promised that she would pay for the days they had occupied the property and even provided a credit card for payment; however, the card transaction was declined,” she added.
Dumlao said she had continued to contact Arafiles regarding the payment, but the latter “has not responded” to her messages and “has made no payments as of July 5, 2026.”
An Airbnb is a property intended for short-term rental under an agreement between the owner and the guest. It is not meant to be treated as a property for sale unless the owner has expressed an intention to sell it.
