any suggestions on problem with noisy neighbors?

[faithinkarma]

When we relocated to this area in 2003, we decided to rent an apartment for at least a year to get a feel for the area before buying. We found a lovely large ( 1250 sq ft ) two bedroom that seemed perfect, and signed a lease.

And it was perfect, until a couple of hockey players moved in downstairs.

These guys play for a triple A team which I gather means they are the farm team for a NHL team. Guess that makes them think they are exempt from common courtesy.

You might think the noise is music or partying. But it is not. The problem is that they slam every door they encounter. They slam the apartment door so hard that they have knocked glasses off a shelf up in our apartment.

They slam doors throughout the apartment. The slam cupboard doors so hard that the doors bounce back and slam a second time. They slam the shower doors and the closet doors. Bang, crash, bang.

And worst of all, they do this in the middle of the night. Last Saturday night they came in at 3 AM and it was after 5 AM before they settled down.

We have complained to the apartment manager, but she seems a bit in awe of these hockey "stars", and reluctant to do anything. Plus she rents a number of units to these hockey players and it is good business for her. I do believe she spoke with them, but they only upped the volume in retaliation.

My husband has tried to speak with them. The first time he tried, they refused to open the door when he knocked. The next they told him to F off.

I know in the grand scheme of things " this too shall pass", but I am at the end of my rope. Imagine being in a deep sleep and awakened by a loud noise on a regular basis. I wake with a start, my heart is racing, and then I have to live with the door banging for another couple of hours, making return to sleep impossible.

If this sounds like I whine, I apologize, I am just hoping someone will have a suggestion.

 

[JayCT]

Isn't there a noise ordinance in your community? Can't you contact the police? I would inform the landlord that unless something is done immediately you will contact a lawyer and stop paying rent. There should be some sort or recourse. Good luck.

 

[jipsy]

Move.

 

[MScott1851]

Welcome to my world. I have been living in the loudest place on earth for the past year. I have the man with 5.1 Dolby Digital and 100 pound Rottweiler upstairs, the family of six next door, and the neighbor who drives a busted up Cutlass downstairs who works on it EVERY SINGLE DAY outside my bedroom window while he is bumping some hideous gangsta rap at top volume.

I have called and called and called our office, and gotten into HUGE fights with them because they won't do anything. I went to www.apartmentratings.com and left reviews about the management's lack of concern, and she went so far as to download my comments, print them out, highlight things, and mail it to me wanting to "talk to me about the untruths" that my husband and I were posting because it made them look bad. I ignored her because we're moving out next month.

Since then, the noise has gotten worse, and the management has taken special pains to fill the vacant apartments around us with the most undesirable people. Case in point, we live in a very unpicturesque part of the complex. One window overlooks a construction zone (did I add that to the noise tally?) while our front door faces a parking lot. We are as far from the pool and office as we can be. In the five buildings in our group, five one bedroom apartments are open, and four three bedrooms are open. Well Rottweiler boy moved out last month, and I got some peace and quiet, until yesterday, when a new tenant moved in above us, and another family of five is moving into the apartment behind us today. WHY didn't the management move them into ANY of the other apartments in the group?!? It's like they're just trying to bait me now...

 

[Stepharoonie!]

And here I was thinking my bf and I were the only ones with these problems!! The downstairs tenants (who have only lived there about 2 months) play this ANNOYING loud music almost everyday. And it's not the music that's bothersome...it's the loud THUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMP that comes from the bass. It keeps my daughter awake. It shakes things in our apartment. We called security one night because they wouldn't stop, and that didn't help. On Saturday night, the three of us (my bf, myself, and my daughter) all stomped on the floor as loud as we could to get them to stop. I know, it isn't mature, but STILL! It made them stop at least. Sheesh!

 

[*Fantasia*]

I would have not knocked on their door and bother to ask them to quiet down. I would have just called the police for disturbing peace. Now, if worse comes to worse and you guys decided to call the police, those people would think that it's you guys who called the police, and they may attempt to do something negative to you guys.

I remember our neighbor down the road was having a party and the music is blasting and it was very very late at night. Well, ok, that's fine, but it was already 2am and there was fighting involve cause I can hear them using foul words. I waited and waited to see if it will stop, well...it never did until the police department got some calls from the neighborhood and I was one of them who called. Then the noise finally stopped.

 

[Chattyaholic]

No suggestions for you, just wanted to give you a little sympathy and a

Reading about the neighbors some of you have to put up with just makes me all the more thankful I live in the country and rarely have to put up with any "neighborly" noise.

 

[ScarlettO]

About 2 hours after they "settle down"...you know about 7am...start jumping above their bedroom!

 

[CajunDixie]

These guys play for a triple A team which I gather means they are the farm team for a NHL team. Guess that makes them think they are exempt from common courtesy.

Call the coach when....I mean exactly when this happens and let him know if it doesn't stop you'll be calling the police. I highly doubt the coach will want his players to be visited by the police.

 

[iNTeNSeBLue98]

We live on the first floor of a converted rowhouse. The tenants upstairs (2nd & 3rd floor) have hardwood floors so you hear everything that falls on the floor and each chair that gets pushed across the room. The sound carries down the wooden staircase and we share a common entrance - they pass by our door to get to theirs. We also share the water supply - not fun when we're on practically the same schedules.

Top that off with a houseful of college seniors next door. Wednesday night is "party night", with music blaring. I dread when it's time to open the windows again.

Fortunately all are good people. The "kids" will quiet down if you ask them, but I only hear them when I'm upstairs in the rear bedrooms. We had problems when they first moved in at the end of last summer. My upstairs neighbors smelled pot coming through their kitchen window (from the neighbor's roof!) and told them to do it somewhere else - away from our kids. The owner's son (one of the students) gave me his phone number should they ever be too disruptive.

Sometimes you have to put up with circumstances, but it sounds like your downstairs neighbors are being downright disrespectful of your right to peaceful sleep. How rude! I agree with many of the posts above, including calling their coach and finding somewhere else to live.

Because of my above situations, I'm hoping to be able to move by the end of summer. I like the neighborhood we're in, but don't care for the school or the fact that we're inner-city. I can't take it much longer, and we need to get out of this town and back out to the 'burns or the country where we belong.

 

[Pin Wizard]

You guys are scaring me! I haven't rented since 1995. I had pretty decent neighbors. But I remember the one thing that really bugged me was that every morning I could hear the people upstairs peeing. Annoyed me no end. I can't imagine putting up with what you do! Oh, noooooooooooooooo! I don't want to rent! And the prices of apartments is sickening!

 

[PammyK]

Luckily, in my apartment complex they're really good about talking to tennants who are noisy - even when the noise is slamming doors. However, if it is outside of office hours, they recommend calling the police who can drop by to remind the noisy neighbors about the local noise ordinances.

With all the slamming, you could always say you thought there was a domestic disturbance and were afraid someone would end up injured or worse.

I actually like the suggestion of calling the guys' coach - it might not help but it will give them a chance to behave themselves without you having to request assistance from local authorities.

Good luck to you!

 

[wdwpluto]

Check your lease - our lease has a clause that if a tenant gets 3 letters of complaint, they're evicted. Get your neighbors to join in and write letters. (believe me - it works! )

Also, if it's after 10pm, but before (I think) 7am it violates noise ordinances (at least here in NJ) - call the cops. You tried to do the right thing by talking to them and that didn't work. Time for strong action.

Lori

P.S. If you have hardwood floors, try putting down large area rugs to muffle some noise.

 

[faithinkarma]

So many good suggestions.

Unfortunately, moving is going to have to be a very last resort. Not only do we have a lease, but after we moved in I discovered I require a kidney transplant. My family members are currently being tested as donors, and hopefully it will happen soon. The added stress of a move is what I am trying to avoid.

I am going to approach some of the other neighbors to see if they will join me in complaining.

If that does not work then contacting their coach sounds like a good plan.

Also, the manager likes to think of this as a high class place. So if I tell her we are going to call the cops, she may finally get off her butt and do something to forestall that from happening.


Thanks to everyone for taking the time to help with suggestions.

 

[GlennandAnn]

We lived next door to people who allowed their stupid dog to bark endlessly beginning at about 5:45 AM EVERY DAY!!! The husband of the same family used to start (and start and start and start) his Harley in the driveway under our bedroom windows at 6 AM quite often. He could never start the thing on the 1st try, it was always about 3 or 4 tries until he could get it started. And their daughters used to play basketball really early on weekend mornings on their driveway under our bedroom windows. I didn't say anything until the dog and motorcycle started waking up my son. I tried to talk to them nicely, but they yelled and cussed at me, and the wife began ignoring me. We had lived next to them for 8 years and been friendly until they decided to forget about common courtesy. We ended up moving shortly after the blow up with them. The move didn't really have too much to do with the noise, but it helped us make up our minds. Some people just don't have any regard for others.

Ann

 

[sammi]

My heart goes out to you as I fully understand what you're going through. We have such "wonderful" noisey neighbours too! We live in a semi-detached home and they allow their kids to have an electric guitar and a real drum set which they play constantly! The husband freaks out on drugs and alcohol too.My DH works 12 hour rotating shifts including nights and weekends and he desperately needs his sleep. We finally had to get in contact with our local city noise by-law enforcement officers and for the past 2 weeks it's been good.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you......lots of luck!