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Depending on when the building was constructed and the materials used the problem can be very disturbing.
The other issue of water backing up is a simple plumbing issue that must be addressed in a timely fashion... something is obstruction the branch line from your unit to the main... it most likely has nothing to do with the upstairs neighbor directly.
A rooter cable machine should take care of it unless the line is damaged, which would require repairs which become very involved if your unit is on a concrete slab because the floor would need to be hammered out.
Noise is the bane of multi unit living. Mitigation measures can help as well as awareness. I know people that will only rent on the top floor because they refuse to have people overhead.
I went to great lengths at one building, special sound absorbing carpet pad and carpet, floor to ceiling drapes, double pane windows and acoustic material ceilings... made a world of difference... and the gorgeous hardwood floors will never again see the light of day.
As mentioned... habitability is often defined by statute... in my State it is reduced to a checklist of items and they are all things the landlord can be cited for if not remedied in a timely manner.
Noise from others is not a landlord citable offense and is treated differently. The first remedy is law enforcement... apparently, law enforcement declined to act.
The other remedy is moving.
Any other solution is problematic because it takes time and the outcome is uncertain.
I once took over the management of a building adjacent to a freeway and the sound was intense after the state put in sound walls that had the effect of magnifying sound exactly in the direction of this building.
I was told I would never be able to find anyone willing to live there... they were wrong.
What I did was send a flyer to the California School for the Deaf and offered reasonable rent and modifications suited to hearing impaired... door bells that flashed a light in the apartment and intercom with video monitoring.
Over the course of 6 weeks I was able to achieve 100% occupancy and as far as I know the building still caters to the hearing impaired.
It was a win/win and the noise was taken out of the equation simply by finding the right tenants for the property.
Withhold your rent!!! dont listen to those few people that tell you, you should most deffinetly pay your rent. They must not be to bright!!1 If your landlord isn't getting on the problem immediatly this must mean 1 of 2 things 1: There are so many other problems in the building that they can get to it for weeks upon weeks which means that the building most likely would have to be shutdown until it is back up to code
2: They dont care !!!! which obviously falls under negligence and you are within every right to sue for the time you've had to deal with these issues that arent being resolved... as far as the noise, without any police reports theres not much you can do there besides getting a sack n go up there n lay down the law to whoever is causing the disturbance... but your answer is right here :YES YOU CAN WITHHOLD YOUR RENT AND MAY BEABLE TO SUE FOR THE TIME DEALT WITH THE PROBLEM INCONVINIENCE NEGLIGENCE AND WHATEVER ELSE YOUR LAWYER CAN COME UP WITH... those other people that told you otherwise are obviously ll of some kind themselves and thats why they have responded the way they did because none of them are right at all, I hate when people give answers and have no idea what they are saying, especially when the person asking the question is really in need of help as such urself... it makes me sad ;(.... I would sue them if i were you!!!
1) This thread is from March. The OP has not been back to it since March. I doubt she will read it now.
2) Are you intimately familiar with the Florida statutes governing landlord/tenant issues? No? Because the withholding of rent may be an option but it has to be done right, and typically through a court process.
You may not agree with the advice given here, but your advice is does not appear to be based on knowledge of Florida laws, but on emotion. No one here said the OP's situation wasn't bad, but there are legal ways to get issues rectified. Withholding rent the wrong was can get a person evicted.
withhold your rent!!! Dont listen to those few people that tell you, you should most deffinetly pay your rent. They must not be to bright!!1 if your landlord isn't getting on the problem immediatly this must mean 1 of 2 things 1: There are so many other problems in the building that they can get to it for weeks upon weeks which means that the building most likely would have to be shutdown until it is back up to code
2: They dont care !!!! Which obviously falls under negligence and you are within every right to sue for the time you've had to deal with these issues that arent being resolved... As far as the noise, without any police reports theres not much you can do there besides getting a sack n go up there n lay down the law to whoever is causing the disturbance... But your answer is right here :yes you can withhold your rent and may beable to sue for the time dealt with the problem inconvinience negligence and whatever else your lawyer can come up with... Those other people that told you otherwise are obviously ll of some kind themselves and thats why they have responded the way they did because none of them are right at all, i hate when people give answers and have no idea what they are saying, especially when the person asking the question is really in need of help as such urself... It makes me sad ;(.... I would sue them if i were you!!!
the landlord
florida
section 83.5
keep the plumbing in good condition, comply housing and health code:
If the landlord is not comply:
You may be withhold the rent allow seven days to fix the problem.
If the problem is not corrected within seven days and you withhold the rent , the landlord may take you to court to collect it. Under these circumstances, you must pay the rent into the court registry, pending the judge's determination in the case.
This is a florida law people !
You will be winn at a court just keep doing it!
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you are dead wrong!
