Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in New Jersey

Hello,

My name is Kevin and I have a question regarding a letter that I have received from my landlord concerning a noise complaint from a neighbor. I have a year and 1/2 old daughter who runs in our apartment a lot and plays with her toys, occasionally making some "stomping" noises on the floor with her little feet,.or makes noise with her toys on our hardwood floor. My wife is a stay at home mommy, pregnant, and she does what she can to make sure our daughter is certainly not doing anything that would disrupt our neighbors, but simply having a good time in doing the things that kids do. My neighbor (directly below me) knocked on my door the other day and told me my child is "Making too much noise all day long and shaking everything in her apartment." and today I come home to find a letter from my landlord that reads:

"Your landlord has recently received a complaint regarding excessive noise coming from your apartment, as a result of your children. Specifically, the complaint alleges that you allow your children to run, stomp, bang and drag items throughout the apartment resulting in excessive noise and vibration to the apartment below and disturbance to neighbors around you.

While we are aware that children do play and make noise you must also be mindful and considerate of other tenants by ensuring that any noise or activity they engage in does not interfere with other tenants right to quiet use and enjoyment of their apartment. Your august 2010 lease expressly prohibits you and any individuals in your apartment from engaging in any conduct that disturbs other tenants and violation of this such provision is grounds for termination of your lease and possible eviction.

We trust that you will immediately rectify this issue and ensure that the noise and vibration coming from your apartment from your children is kept to a minimum, and that you may consider placing rugs or carpeting in the areas in which your children play heavily."

the issue that I have is this neighbor is telling my landlord that my 1 1/2 year old daughter is making so much noise by PLAYING, that she is not able to enjoy her apartment? I don't know what to do with this, because I cant stop my daughter from playing? the neighbor is constantly banging on her ceiling, my floor, in the mid afternoon around 3:30pm-6:30pm... how much noise can a 1 year old kid make? their are also false allegations of dragging things around the apartment. My wife is 5 months pregnant, and she does her best as a stay at home mommy to keep things in wraps.. certainly not allowing noise like this to happen.

Do i have any legal recourse top fall back on, or am i left at the whim of my neighbors allegations to my landlord... what can I do to make sure my neighbor doesn't keep making up exaggerated claims that my one year old daughter is causing her grief and the inability to enjoy her apartment which could get me evicted?

please help!!

Kevin Dunham

West New York, NJ

917-330-3246


Asked on 11/03/11, 9:56 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jeffrey Walters Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Walters, LLC

I have heard complaints such as this before. Either the other tenant is exaggerating, or there is something else going on. It is possible that some apartments are constructed in such a way that the sounds heard in the apartment beneath another apartment are truly disproportionate to what would be expected. I would suggest politely asking your neighbor if you could observe the sounds. You can tell them that this is so you can take steps to rectify it, such as by placing some area rugs or additional carpeting on your floor. Then have your wife allow your daughter to play, while you observe the sounds and vibrations. Ask your neighbor to point out some of the sounds/vibrations that she is referring to. I suggest that you have your cell phone with you so you can ask your wife to walk around certain areas of your apartment and simulate the types of things that your daughter would do, while you observe the sounds you hear below. Then you can assess if there is any merit to what your neighbor is saying. If there is merit, then you can take steps to rectify the situation. You can ask for your landlord's input, since they are partly responsible for renting you a unit where sound carries in an unreasonable way even when there is normal usage. They would also owe a duty to the other tenant for renting her an apartment that is so sensitive to what would otherwise be normal sounds. If there is no merit to what your neighbor is saying, then at least you will know. If your landlord ever tries to evict you, you will have the opportunity to appear in court to defend, and you will be able to tell the judge about your little experiment. I suggest that you bring an unrelated witness with you when you go to the neighbors apartment, who can also make observations. Then that same witness can appear with you in court to substantiate your testimony. If you are served with an eviction complaint, I suggest that you consider seeking the advice of an attorney who handles landlord/tenant matters. Good luck.

Note: Due to the limitations of the LawGuru Forums, the response to questions posted does not constitute legal advice or legal representation of the person posting a question. The information provided is general. The poster should obtain specific legal advice from an attorney, and should not rely upon the response as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.

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Answered on 11/04/11, 9:00 am


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