Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

The house rules and the lease on my apartment state that there is to be no smoking on the premises, either inside or outside the apartment. I have a neighbor who continues to ignore the rules and smoke inside his apartment. The smoke gets into my apartment through the ventilation system and I can smell the smoke. This is a health hazard to my family and I want to force our neighbor to comply with the rules and stop smoking. Does anyone know what my best cause of action would be? Would it be a public/private nuisance, breach of contract or something else? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.


Asked on 1/07/12, 11:20 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Philip Iadevaia Law Offices of Philip A. Iadevaia

Your first course of action would be to write a complaint letter to the apartment manager or the landlord stating the problem. They would then have to deal with the violating tenant. If nothing happens within a few weeks of submitting your complaint, then you may be entitled to break your lease agreement with the management and move. There may be other remedies, such as withholding rent until the violating tenant complies with the anti-smoking rules, but I would not withhold any rent without first being absolutely sure that is a viable option to get the landlord to act on your problem. Good luck.

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Answered on 1/07/12, 11:42 am


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