Add new comment

Problems with noise are not going to end until the laws change or are enforced. This is not going to happen until enough people take action.

With the economy the way it is, rents skyrocketing, who wants to spend most of their paycheck on rent in a place where you can't even have peace and/or are being woken from your sleep. Just like a Landlord does a background check on a prospective tenant, a prospective tenant should have the right to know exactly what they are getting themselves into before signing that lease. There should be a website where noisy apartments are listed so that no one rents them. This will force owners to either noise proof apartments or take the action necessary to do something about noisy tenants.

In NYC the highest noise complaint reported to 311 is residential noise. Yet, when you read the NYC noise ordinance there are categories for many things like construction, a dog barking for 5-10 minutes, ice cream trucks, etc. I am yet to see the part that talks about residential noise or your inconsiderate neighbor banging, jumping, running for hours at a time. I would much rather hear the sound of an ice cream truck than have to hear my noisy neighbor stomping, banging, jumping, pounding for 3 to sometimes 5 times a week in the late evenings and late night hours.

I recently went to court as a witness to the landlord because of the noisy tenants above me. I have countless of police reports from 311 documenting the noise, the time and most of them state that the police took action. Yet the judge claims that the reports don't really mean much. Then why are we told to call 311 if there is noise? If the cops are taking the time to go to these apartments where there's noise, then they should document what they observed and it should be written on the report. The police do not write down what they observe and when they put that they took action, it could mean that they did catch the tenants making noise or that they spoke to them. This does not mean that the complaints to 311 should stop. Maybe one day someone will pay attention to those numbers and realize that this is a serious problem.

Another problem with noise is when noise is used as a form of harassment. A person going through this knows exactly what I'm talking about yet this is not recognized as harassment by the police. Yet if someone calls you stupid, you can file a harassment report. I would much rather be called a name than have people purposely wake me from my sleep night after night. Once tenants provide enough detailed evidence about the noise to Landlords, it should be the Landlords responsibility to get legal proof of the noise in order to take to court. It cannot be expected that a tenant paying the high rent has to spend thousands of dollars to get professional decibel readings. If the landlords do not want to be bothered with noise complaints, then they should soundproof apartments so that all tenants can live in peace.

If you are having a problem with a noisy tenant, make sure to document everything--dates, times, what you heard. The first option should be to speak to your neighbor because sometimes people are not aware that the noise from their apartment can be heard from another apartment. If that does not work, write them a letter, send it certified and keep a copy. Next send certified letters to the Landlord. Make sure your letters are detailed in terms of dates and times and what type of noise you are hearing. If it is a chronic problem call the police. Keep copies of all documents. Investing in a video camera is a good idea--that way it is proof that you are recording the noise from your apartment. All these little things make a difference when it comes to going to court. Also, try and get as many people to come to your apartment and witness the noise. Be persistent. You pay rent and have the right to have some peace in your apartment. Of course there's going to be noise at times but it shouldn't be something so chronic that it affects your life.

IF you're from NYC, email me at tiredofnoise@aol.com