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I live in San Diego, and it is common for my husband and I to occasionally walk around our apartment in the nude or a robe, and when we are on our balcony we either have robes on, or I will have shorts and a sports bra and him, minimum, shorts. We live on the second floor and usually have the curtains open as we like to have the natural light in the apartment (especially not to waste electricity). We have been doing this for the past 2 years without any complaint. Recently we received an email from our apartment manager stating we were not allowed to do this and we need to "dress more appropriately" asking us to "put more clothes on" or have our curtains closed at ALL times.
I understand that on the balcony there needs to be some sort of clothes on, but I am usually wearing more then people do at the pool (yes, there is one in my apartment building and have seen people walking around in a lot less then my sports bra and shorts). But can they really tell me how I need to dress INSIDE my own apartment? And, am I not wearing enough clothes on my balcony? Am I in the wrong here?
Two completely separate issues.
The second being the clothing on the balcony, unless they have a justifiable dress code that applies to all everywhere in the public view, they generally can not force you to wear anything special on your balcony if it doesn't violate any specific laws.
As for you individual rented unit, they absolutely can not tell you that you must wear anything inside. The issue however is what's viewable outside. If the interior of your unit is viewable from other balconies or public area where a person does not have to take any extra measures to see inside but look, they absolutely have the right to tell you to close the blinds. So long as a person who is enjoying their rental space or the public space can just see in, you can't claim personal privacy. If the person has to climb, bend down, strain, contort or use artificial magnification to see in your unit, they are the ones encroaching on your privacy and have no standing to complain.
The second being the clothing on the balcony, unless they have a justifiable dress code that applies to all everywhere in the public view, they generally can not force you to wear anything special on your balcony if it doesn't violate any specific laws.
As for you individual rented unit, they absolutely can not tell you that you must wear anything inside. The issue however is what's viewable outside. If the interior of your unit is viewable from other balconies or public area where a person does not have to take any extra measures to see inside but look, they absolutely have the right to tell you to close the blinds.
So long as a person who is enjoying their rental space or the public space can just see in, you can't claim personal privacy. If the person has to climb, bend down, strain, contort or use artificial magnification to see in your unit, they are the ones encroaching on your privacy and have no standing to complain.
We did not have curtains on our living room windows, but because we live on the second floor and there is a giant tree in front of the window and our apartment faces a woods I was not concerned about it. Until, one night I happened to drive past our apartment and I realized that in one particular spot of the road, just past the big tree, you could see almost our entire living room & dining room when the lights were on. While we do not walk around naked, I can imagine that people driving past who looked up at the right time saw far more than we wanted them to see. I certainly did not want strangers being able to see me or my husband walking around our apartment or sitting & watching TV or whatever we were doing. We bought curtains.
Last edited by germaine2626; 08-02-2016 at 02:55 PM..
314. Every person who willfully and lewdly, either:
1. Exposes his person, or the private parts thereof, in any public, or in any place where there are present other persons to be offended or annoyed thereby is guilty of a misdemeanor.
I cut out the stuff that would confuse you and highlighted the important bit. You could test the law like that VA man did a few years back but they are two very different laws and that would be costly. Or you can be a decent human being and close the curtains, get thin ones and the light will still shine in.
I live in San Diego, and it is common for my husband and I to occasionally walk around our apartment in the nude or a robe, and when we are on our balcony we either have robes on, or I will have shorts and a sports bra and him, minimum, shorts. We live on the second floor and usually have the curtains open as we like to have the natural light in the apartment (especially not to waste electricity). We have been doing this for the past 2 years without any complaint. Recently we received an email from our apartment manager stating we were not allowed to do this and we need to "dress more appropriately" asking us to "put more clothes on" or have our curtains closed at ALL times.
I understand that on the balcony there needs to be some sort of clothes on, but I am usually wearing more then people do at the pool (yes, there is one in my apartment building and have seen people walking around in a lot less then my sports bra and shorts). But can they really tell me how I need to dress INSIDE my own apartment? And, am I not wearing enough clothes on my balcony? Am I in the wrong here?
Use the reasonable person standard here. Could you been seen naked by someone who was in a public space (including communal/shared spaces for the apartment residents) - or by someone inside THEIR apartment?
If "Yes", keep the curtains closed until you get dressed.
This thread has GOT to be a joke. I don't understand how anyone with a lick of sense would think it's okay to walk around naked with your blinds/curtains open so everyone can see.
If this thread is real, they must get a kick out of knowing they are being seen naked by neighbors. It's obvious that when you walk around naked in front of a window with open blinds, you are going to be seen.
Your landlord isn't telling you HOW to dress. He's telling you TO get dressed. There's a difference. It's pretty stupid to think you can walk around undressed with your curtains open and everyone will just be fine with it. Make a choice. Wear clothes or enjoy natural light. Not both.
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While we do not walk around naked, I can imagine that people driving past who looked up at the right time saw far more than we wanted them to see. I certainly did not want strangers being able to see me or my husband walking around our apartment or sitting & watching TV or whatever we were doing. We bought curtains.
