Every property manager has been there: picking up the phone and finding a very unhappy neighbor on the other end of the line complaining about a tenant’s barking dog or loud music.
Noise disturbances are frequent among residents, especially in multi-family settings, and can become major headaches for property managers. Prevention through thorough tenant screening and face-to-face meetings is one of the best approaches for avoiding them and remaining on good terms with the community. However, if, despite your best efforts, your tenant does become the source of unwanted noise, you will need other ways to defuse the problem quickly.
Read on to discover prevention tactics to minimize noise disturbances and learn what to do if your noisy tenant’s behavior escalates.
Noise is part of everyday life. From children playing to neighbors chatting, reasonable noise levels are to be expected in most living environments. However, noise becomes a disturbance when its level or frequency increases to the point of becoming intrusive or affecting the quality of life or enjoyment of others.
What exactly constitutes excessive noise can vary from one place to another. For example, Charlotte, North Carolina, sets the limit for acceptable noise at 85 decibels. However, on the other side of the Atlantic, the London borough of Hackney explains, ‘Everyone’s perception of noise nuisance is different. It’s not just about sound levels in decibels but of what is acceptable,’ and doesn’t set a specific limit.
As a property manager, you need to check what your local authority deems as excessive noise and ensure you are always up to date with any changes to regulations.
Almost any noise can quickly become a nuisance. The most usual ones include:
Dogs left alone inside the property can be a frequent source of disturbances and a potentially trickier problem, as the owners may be unaware of the issue.
Late-night gatherings and loud get-togethers are among the most common culprits of excessive noise. They can also lead to other types of complaints, such as smoking, which can damage the property and increase cleaning costs. A comprehensive monitoring solution such as Minut can help property managers prevent parties by tracking occupancy and decibel levels, alerting you in real time to any emerging issues at the property. Minut can also detect cigarette smoke, helping you keep your to enforce no-smoking rules and keep your property safe.
Whether it’s someone playing their favorite songs or practicing an instrument, continuously loud music (especially during quiet hours) can make it difficult for other residents to go about their daily lives.
While sometimes there’s little residents can do about construction noise, it is always good to ensure that work is being carried out at reasonable hours and for as long as necessary only.
More than simply a source of unwanted noise, fireworks are also a fire hazard, so it's crucial to ensure residents don’t use them or stop doing so as quickly as possible.
Being proactive and taking steps to avoid noise before it even becomes a problem is an excellent tactic to keep tenancies running smoothly from the start. As a property manager, preventative measures you can take include:
Conducting in-depth screening of potential tenants will help you weed out those who have had problematic tenancies in the past. Past evictions (regardless of the reasons) are automatic red flags that you should never ignore.
While background checks can give you a good idea of who a prospective tenant is, a face-to-face interview can help complete that picture. If you hold interviews with candidates, ensure your screening questions inquire about any noise-related incidents during past tenancies or potentially loud hobbies or activities, such as playing a musical instrument or regularly holding large gatherings or parties.
It is always best to know beforehand if prospective tenants have pets that will live with them in the property. Pets can be a potential cause of increased wear and tear (and even damage) and excessive noise. Inquiring about what kind of animals they have, their size, breed, health status, and behavioral history is a good way to determine whether that tenant poses an increased risk for noise disturbances.
Understanding how a candidate’s previous tenancies went is a window into the future. And even when there are no obvious red flags on the background checks or interviews, speaking with past landlords can help you learn more about the prospective tenant’s lifestyle and character and assess whether they can be a potential source of unwanted noise.
Addressing noise disturbances in the lease, explaining what is considered excessive noise, and what penalties apply will clarify responsibilities from the outset of the tenancy. Scheduling a face-to-face chat with the tenant to review the clause and discuss noise-related rules before they move will help set expectations from the outset.
Sometimes, despite proactively implementing preventative measures to avoid noise disturbances, your tenants will cause excessive noise. Promptly and effectively addressing the issue is vital to putting the tenancy back on track and repairing the relationship with the community.
If tenants are consistently noisy and you continue getting complaints from neighbors, you can follow these steps to settle the conflict:
Having proof that a specific tenant was the cause of noise disturbances is crucial, especially if the situation later escalates into a legal dispute. Ask the neighbor complaining to document the times and dates of the disturbances and share them with you so you can track the issue. Using Minut can be especially useful in this situation, as it provides a log of all noise events that you can use as evidence to support your claim.
Schedule a face-to-face meeting with the tenant to talk about the situation at hand. Calmly explain the complaints, detailing when the disturbances occurred and highlighting quiet hours or restrictions. Referring to the pertinent clauses in the lease will also remind them that they are legally bound to the regole sul rumore e regolamenti ivi indicati. A volte, gli inquilini semplicemente non si rendono conto di quanto sia invadente il rumore proveniente dalla loro proprietà, quindi avere una conversazione può essere tutto ciò che serve per apportare cambiamenti positivi.
Se, ad esempio, l'inquilino ha un hobby rumoroso come suonare uno strumento o fare il fai-da-te, suggerisci l'isolamento acustico o stabilisci insieme specifiche ore del giorno o della settimana in cui il rumore sarà meno fastidioso per gli altri residenti. Puoi anche discutere di come limitare il tempo che dedicano a queste attività.
Mediazione professionale i servizi possono anche essere uno strumento efficace per trovare una via di mezzo e accelerare il processo di risoluzione.
Mentre nella maggior parte dei casi, una o due chiacchierate possono aiutare a risolvere il problema, a volte l'inquilino si rifiuta di apportare modifiche e è necessario un avvertimento formale. Inizia con un avvertimento verbale descrivendo in dettaglio le conseguenze dei continui disturbi acustici. Seguite questo con un avvertimento scritto, delineando chiaramente la natura dei reclami, le azioni previste dall'inquilino e le possibili ripercussioni se il rumore non si ferma. Conservalo come parte dei tuoi registri per un uso futuro, se necessario.
A questo punto lo sfratto è possibile, quindi assicurati di conoscere i requisiti legali e le procedure della tua zona per sfrattare un inquilino.
Se l'inquilino persiste con il rumore dopo che gli hai dato un avvertimento scritto formale, sfrattarli potrebbe essere l'unica via d'uscita. Contatta il tuo consulente legale per presentare una causa di sfratto presso le autorità locali. Sia tu che l'inquilino dovrete partecipare alle udienze e presentare i loro casi, quindi assicuratevi di avere tutte le prove e i documenti a sostegno della richiesta. Se il giudice decide a tuo favore, puoi procedere con lo sfratto, se necessario con il supporto delle forze dell'ordine.
Ricorda: lo sfratto dovrebbe sempre essere l'ultima risorsa, utilizzata solo quando tutte le altre istanze hanno fallito.
Dopo aver ricevuto reclami dai vicini, dall'operatore di noleggio a breve e lungo termine Controlla Vienna sapeva di aver bisogno di una soluzione completa per aiutarli a ridurre al minimo i rumori, i disturbi e le feste senza compromettere la privacy degli ospiti.
L'azienda ha installato Minut in tutte le sue proprietà e ha ridotto la frequenza dei problemi di rumore, risolvendoli con messaggi automatici e senza dover visitare la proprietà di persona. Grazie a Minut, Check Vienna ha inoltre riscontrato un miglioramento immediato nelle relazioni con la comunità, poiché gli eventi di rumore sono stati neutralizzati prima di trasformarsi in reclami.
Leggi la storia completa qui.
I reclami legati al rumore sono un evento comune e possono trasformarsi in un incubo per i gestori di proprietà se non vengono affrontati in modo rapido ed efficace. L'implementazione delle giuste strategie e strumenti di prevenzione, come Minut, che ti avvisa istantaneamente in caso di livelli di rumore eccessivi, può aiutarti a evitare che i problemi si trasformino in controversie legali. E se lo fanno, il registro degli eventi sonori di Minut può essere la prova concreta di cui avete bisogno per sostenere le vostre richieste in tribunale, porre fine alla situazione in modo efficace e proteggere il vostro portafoglio.
Più di 50.000 gestori di proprietà in tutto il mondo scelgono Minut per aiutarli a ridurre al minimo i reclami, prendersi cura delle loro proprietà e semplificare le operazioni. Prenota una demo oggi per scoprire come può aiutarti.
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