It's not easy finding a room in D.C. for Barack Obama's inauguration.

With hotels nearly booked up, lots of out-of-towners are suddenly deciding it's time to pay a visit to friends or relatives in the region.

Others are posting ads on Craigslist in which they offer to do the dishes and pay rent for a place to stay in Washington.

There is already a waiting list at the Willard InterContinental Hotel, where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., finished writing his "I Have a Dream Speech." A spokeswoman says guests are paying a minimum of $949 a night with a four-night stay required.

Many hotels are requiring a minimum three- to four-night stay. Other properties report setting aside their remaining rooms for VIPs and repeat customers.