I recently posted a question about any legal action I can take against neighbors attached to us in a townhome who CONTINUALLY bother us with loud bass from their surround sound, playing instruments at 2 am, etc. My HOA has literally said %26quot;we can do nothing,%26quot; and police will only respond after 11 pm. That gives them all day to freely act like idiots and disturb my family. I have tried NUMEROUS times to talk to them in person and write. Nothing ever changes. Someone recently said I have what is called a %26quot;right to quiet enjoyment%26quot; of my home. It seems this only exists in tenant/renter situations. Is the same true for a townhome that is owned outright? I%26#039;m at the end of my rope with these inconsiderate idiots, and I%26#039;m sick of not being able to be in any room where I can%26#039;t hear the BOOM BOOM of their surround sound. The bass carries through my entire house. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I have written down every time there is a disturbance. I will write one more letter to them outlining all the attempts I%26#039;ve made, but that%26#039;s it. I%26#039;m ready to consult a lawyer. Talking to them in person does no good, it%26#039;s already been done.
But, it infuriates me that I%26#039;ll have to spend money, when it%26#039;s their fault.|||I don%26#039;t know what you could do apart from having the walls sound proofed. I know it sounds extreme but it works, it really cuts down on the noise level.
If you decide to move you would have these jerks playing that bass while prospective buyers are looking at the residence, they would pass no matter what the price unless they really like music.
I don%26#039;t know how people live like that, I%26#039;d have a chronic headache.|||If the disturbance is very, very bad, you might be able to sue under the common law tort of private nuisance (as opposed to a public nuisance, such as a factory%26#039;s smell that affects numerous members of the community). Because the elements and tests for most torts can vary from state to state, you need to do some research on how your state%26#039;s courts have responded to private nuisance claims in the past; some states are more hesitant to apply the tort than others. The usual test boils down to balancing each property owner%26#039;s reasonable use of his own property. The general concept and history of nuisance actions can be found at the link below.
I just wanted to note that the phrase %26quot;right to quiet enjoyment%26quot; has several different meanings at law, only one of which pertains to landlord/tenant situations. The phrase has a second meaning when it is used in a covenant contained in a deed (i.e., it is a certain type of grantor promise contained in a general warranty deed, but not a quitclaim deed), and a third meaning when applied to nuisance torts.|||The right to %26quot;Quiet Enjoyment%26quot; is something that a landlord must provide to a tenant, or the obligation to pay rent may be excused by operation of law.
This applies not to actual noise cases, and generally refers to renting an apartment free of rodent or insect infestation, that has working plumbing, heat, and a roof that does not leak. Such factors have been determined by courts across the country to be necessary for an apartment to be habitable, and if such problems are present, the tenant may not have to pay rent until they are fixed.
Such collateral problems as torn carpeting, broken air conditioner, and noisy neighbors, have unilaterally been determined to not constitute a lack of habitability and thus not deprive the tenant of quiet enjoyment sufficient to effect the tenancy.
There is no similar legal theory establishing a duty to provide habitabilty between neighboring property owners.|||Read your strata agreement, you should have a process for complaints.
