My new tenants are complaining about noise, any noise. Should I take them seriously? They’ve only been tenants for little more than a month.
Noise is one of the most common tenant complaints in multi-family housing. You should take their complaints seriously and respond with an acknowledgement of the complaints. Ignoring a complaint from tenants is never a good business practice.
Listen to what your tenants say is the problem. If this is their first rental they may not have realized community living does have noise. Tenant complaints of excessive noise against another tenant can be troublesome since one tenant’s complaint of noise may simply be part of another’s tenant’s daily living routine. Noise happens with ordinary living activities. In multi-family living, even ordinary noise can be magnified. All tenants create some noise but some tenants are more sensitive to noise than others. It may take some time and effort on your part to investigate and evaluate whether the noise is from an everyday type of activity, or whether the noise exceeds normal limits such as ongoing events, e.g., dogs barking, tenants yelling, loud music playing, etc., from neighbors within the community.
Tenants may complain about noise that is not within the landlord’s control. Noise and disturbances that occur off the rental property, for example, loud street traffic, or a barking dog on a neighboring property can be nuisances but are not your responsibility. A landlord’s responsibility is to manage his rental property by enforcing his rules and regulations. If a tenant’s dog barks all night or another tenant plays his music too loud, a landlord is expected to take responsibility, address the issue and take appropriate action.
It is important to address noise complaints in a timely manner. A landlord has the duty of care to ensure the tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment of the rental premises. The tenant’s quality of living can be compromised by a nuisance. Excessive noise is a nuisance. If a tenant’s nuisance complaint is ignored or dismissed without proper investigation, the landlord can be subject to legal actions filed by the tenant for tolerating the nuisance. Tenant remedies may include abatement of rents, release from the lease agreement, or even damage awards.
Additionally a landlord’s failure to protect tenants’ rights for quiet enjoyment could damage the reputation of his business and affect the marketability of his property. A landlord who tolerates a nuisance may find it more difficult to attract applicants, which could extend vacancy periods. More importantly, existing good tenants may choose to move on once their lease has expired.
Once your investigation has been completed, you must determine the appropriate course of action to be taken and follow through per your lease terms and conditions. You should provide feedback to the complainants. You should generate detailed documentation of the complaint, the actions taken, and the resolution of the matter should be kept in the tenants’ file. In the event of legal action, documentation of the matter may be needed to support your actions such as making an effort to solve the problem.