Condo Noise Complaints - Bay Area (for sale, apartment, to rent)
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Hoping to gain some insight on what I should do. I live on the 3rd floor of a condo my space is small 1 bedroom - 600sqft. I have a downstairs neighbor who has a 2 story unit 1100+sq ft however her master bedroom is directly beneath mine. We have had a pretty terrible relationship i'd say over the past few years i've lived there. Initially she was sending noise complaints regarding noise I was making to the HOA. I reached out to the HOA with tips to deal with the situation since it was hard for me to remedy any of the noise without specifics and at their recommendation I reached out to her personally and wrote her an apology and asked if she would text or e-mail me so I could identify the noise immediately.
I got a noise from her last month complaining about slamming doors and more recently a few days ago she sent a lengthy e-mail and cc'ed the HOA saying I was slamming doors and stomping late in the night i'd say around 11:30PM and that it's affecting her work life and that it was getting old needs to stop etc and that she wants the HOA to escalate the situation to the board. I e-mailed back basically telling her that I don't wear shoes in my unit so stomping would be very hard to do and that I am getting ready to sleep which may involve me opening the bathroom door, opening the closet door, and opening drawers to access clothing however I try to make a conscious effort to not be loud doing these things and from my unit the sound is not at all exceeding a normal noise level (I do live in an older building though so I can hear the person above me snoring and their children walking around.. but I don't complain i'm aware I live in a multi family building)
Anyways last night she sent another e-mail basically saying that after I sent her my email I continued to stomp and slam doors and had the washing machine on late at night (granted I had the dishwasher on the overnight cycle which is located in my living room so I did not think that would affect her). At this point i'm not sure what to do is it still worth it to reply to her? She signed off her last email that at this point she is urging again that this be escalated to the HOA Board of Directors. I haven't informed her this but I did inform our HOA community manager separately that i'm actually planning on listing my unit for sale at the end of this month so i'm not sure it's worth their time if i I no longer plan on living there...
If anyone has any experience with their HOA/noise complaints/etc would love to hear their experience and what the outcome was!
OP, I would continue to work with the HOA manager. Make it clear you don't slam doors, nor have you ever, nor do you wear shoes in your unit. Invite the manager to inspect both units, perhaps having a staff person walk around in your unit, while the manager listens in the unit below.
These sound like really cheap construction. Anyway, it sounds like you'll be moving out soon (depending on when the unit sells), so the downstairs resident's complaints will be someone else's problem. If complaints continue with a new resident in your unit, it will be clear to the HOA who the problem is.
Here's a thought; for a week, leave all interior doors open. Don't shut any doors at all. See if the complaints continue. If they do--you'll have an open and shut case, so to speak. . Maybe even get rubber door stoppers to have in place, to show the HOA manager, if further complaints come in.
Sounds to me like she is being a bit unreasonable. Do you hear these noises also? Is it possible they are coming from below or beside? Living in such close quarters, we all have to accept some annoyances and inconveniences and if we're not willing to do that, then we should probably re-consider living in such a situation.
I too live in a condo with upstairs neighbors and can hear them walking, peeing, flushing, exercising, doing laundry, making whoopee and everything else. Sure, a bit annoying, but I've learned to put up with it and have never even considered complaining to them or HOA. I will eventually move, but until then I just deal with it. Now, if it was excessive or partying all the time, that would be different, but that doesn't sound like what is going on at all.
You're an owner? Heck, you're in the power seat. Just send an email to the HOA and copy the neighbor saying that you have bent over backwards to try and appease your neighbor, but what she's complaining about is reasonable sounds coming from behaving in a reasonable manner and if anyone wants to escalate anything any further, you'll be happy to refer them to your attorney, because at this point the only person behaving unreasonably is the neighbor. Love, you.
Then, just live your life the way you want to, in a manner that is reasonable for anyone to behave in their own home with close neighbors (as you have been), and just wait to see if anything actually happens.
Odds are, it won't - as far as any kind of legal action against you.
What will probably happen, is your neighbor will start making noise, and then you can complain about her :-)
But, I wouldn't let her move you out, unless you just want to anyway. But, you are not required to make some miserable person happy. All you have to do is behave in a reasonable manner. If they aren't happy with the condo they bought, let them move.
^ WOW how do you even know what noise is being made? Why would the downstairs neighbor just make this up? Clearly there is a noise problem and for you to post something like this shows me you have no clue what it's like to live with shared walls to a heavy walker/noise maker.
I haven't informed her this but I did inform our HOA community manager separately that i'm actually planning on listing my unit for sale at the end of this month so i'm not sure it's worth their time if i I no longer plan on living there.
I think this is a wise choice if you run the dishwasher and washing machine late at night which clearly disturbs your downstairs neighbors. In addition to slamming doors and stomping like an elephant.
When you share walls with other people...show some decency and respect for their right to peace and quiet especially when their Master Bedroom is directly beneath you!
THIS is why I make every effort to find townhouse style places where your only neighbors are next door. In my experience noise travels way more upstairs or downstairs. I've had a couple of nightmare experiences with that--both with neighbors complaining about me and upstairs neighbors stomping around all hours of the night.
Cheap construction is the bane of society. We are being forced by economics to live in high density housing, and that's the bulk of what's being build that is "affordable". Then because it's cheap and poorly planned we are stuck with noises that have no remedy and it's not just a little annoyance, noises can literally drive you batty.
I start laying the blame on the materials used, then on the design choices that put wood or laminate on upper units that amplify every sound 10 fold.
^ WOW how do you even know what noise is being made? Why would the downstairs neighbor just make this up? Clearly there is a noise problem and for you to post something like this shows me you have no clue what it's like to live with shared walls to a heavy walker/noise maker.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Matadora
I think this is a wise choice if you run the dishwasher and washing machine late at night which clearly disturbs your downstairs neighbors. In addition to slamming doors and stomping like an elephant.
When you share walls with other people...show some decency and respect for their right to peace and quiet especially when their Master Bedroom is directly beneath you!
Funny how you accuse someone else of assuming, then go ahead and make your own assumptions! OP clearly said they don't even wear shoes in the house, so I doubt they're "stomping like an elephant" unless they happen to be very large/heavy. Also doesn't sound like they are SLAMMING doors, but rather just opening and closing them as people do in their homes.
I tend to believe their story, as I've had neighbors like this myself... one woman below me complained about my "walking heavily," to which I responded "I'm a big girl, so I do everything heavily. And sorry, but I have yet to learn the art of floating from room to room." I was literally just walking around normally, so what else could I have done to appease her? Meanwhile, she had a new baby who cried at all hours, and yet I never complained about that.
This is why I usually pick lower-level units when I'm in an apartment, as I'd rather deal with hearing noise than having complaints about mine. Even better, I now live in a duplex with nobody above OR below me! Some folks expect complete silence on their schedules, which makes me wonder why they choose to live in stacked housing. Duh. In the meantime, maybe laying down some area rugs would help? Does the unit have carpeted floors? And if you decide to stay long-term, maybe install those soft-closing cabinets where/if you can.
Funny how you accuse someone else of assuming, then go ahead and make your own assumptions! OP clearly said they don't even wear shoes in the house, so I doubt they're "stomping like an elephant" unless they happen to be very large/heavy. Also doesn't sound like they are SLAMMING doors, but rather just opening and closing them as people do in their homes.
I did not assume anything. I went by the story given. Why would a neighbor have a terrible relationship with their downstairs neighbor for the past 2 years?
Quote:
Originally Posted by sc322
We have had a pretty terrible relationship i'd say over the past few years i've lived there.
Oh I know why:
...I got a noise from her last month complaining about slamming doors and more recently a few days ago she sent a lengthy e-mail and cc'ed the HOA saying I was slamming doors and stomping late in the night i'd say around 11:30PM...
...which may involve me opening the bathroom door, opening the closet door, and opening drawers to access clothing however I try to make a conscious effort to not be loud...
...(I do live in an older building though so I can hear the person above me snoring and their children walking around.. but I don't complain i'm aware I live in a multi family building)
...I continued to stomp and slam doors and had the washing machine on late at night (granted I had the dishwasher on the overnight cycle which is located in my living room so I did not think that would affect her).
Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980
I tend to believe their story, as I've had neighbors like this myself... one woman below me complained about my "walking heavily," to which I responded "I'm a big girl, so I do everything heavily. And sorry, but I have yet to learn the art of floating from room to room." I was literally just walking around normally, so what else could I have done to appease her? Meanwhile, she had a new baby who cried at all hours, and yet I never complained about that.
Some folks are oblivious to noise and others are sensitive. When you share walls with other people you need to be mindful of the fact (especially if the walls are thin) that everyone has the right to peaceful enjoyment of their home.
There are ways to walk without sounding like an elephant. I get that some people are "heavy" walkers but that can be worked on.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980
Even better, I now live in a duplex with nobody above OR below me! Some folks expect complete silence on their schedules, which makes me wonder why they choose to live in stacked housing.
It's the Bay Area and there are not many affordable duplexes to rent. Stacked housing seems to the norm here.
However I agree that folks who are sensitive to noise should never live beneath anyone...but even if they have a 2 or 3 story condo or town-home with shared vertical walls that can also be a noise issue.
Last edited by Matadora; 05-30-2018 at 12:32 PM..
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. Maybe even get rubber door stoppers to have in place, to show the HOA manager, if further complaints come in.
I was literally just walking around normally, so what else could I have done to appease her? Meanwhile, she had a new baby who cried at all hours, and yet I never complained about that.
