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Landlord liable for nuisance tenants?

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Bunwhisper

Guest
California

I am a renter, and love the place I live, and have great landlords. The problem is the four unit apartment across the alley. Over and over and OVER, they park their cars in the alley and block access to my garage. They are depriving me of the use of something I pay for. Once they left a car with a dead battery in front of the door and I was unable to leave for work. Last week, access was blocked for three hours as they unloaded a car with no engine from a flatbed truck and got it stuck across, you guessed it, my garage. We have long gone past any civility on this issue as being nice went nowhere. We now have epithets and gestures.The police and the city have been called but nothing seems to change.

As a tenant, can I sue the landlord of that building for the nuisance tenants? I talked to them once, but nothing ever changed. Help--I cant take this anymore! :(
 
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I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
Bunwhisper said:
California

I am a renter, and love the place I live, and have great landlords. The problem is the four unit apartment across the alley. Over and over and OVER, they park their cars in the alley and block access to my garage. They are depriving me of the use of something I pay for. Once they left a car with a dead battery in front of the door and I was unable to leave for work. Last week, access was blocked for three hours as they unloaded a car with no engine from a flatbed truck and got it stuck across, you guessed it, my garage. We have long gone past any civility on this issue as being nice went nowhere. We now have epithets and gestures.The police and the city have been called but nothing seems to change.

As a tenant, can I sue the landlord of that building for the nuisance tenants? I talked to them once, but nothing ever changed. Help--I cant take this anymore! :(

My response:

Sounds like you live in Pacoima!

Your landlord is responsible for other's parking in the alley because there is a presumption that "access" goes with the rented property. So, sue your landlord. Either that, or call a towtruck, or park on the street.

IAAL
 
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B

Bunwhisper

Guest
I'm sorry, I wasn't clear I guess. It is not MY landlord that I wish to sue, it is the owner of that nasty building and its nastier tenants. Isnt he responsible if his tenants create a nuisance?

I have had cars towed, but the owners dont seem to care and continue doing this.

My own landlord is a cool guy, I have no wish to sue him :)
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
Bunwhisper said:
I'm sorry, I wasn't clear I guess. It is not MY landlord that I wish to sue, it is the owner of that nasty building and its nastier tenants. Isnt he responsible if his tenants create a nuisance?

I have had cars towed, but the owners dont seem to care and continue doing this.

My own landlord is a cool guy, I have no wish to sue him :)

My response:

You are not in "privity of contract" with the other landlord. Therefore, he doesn't have to do what you want. He is under no obligation to control the bad acts of his tenants while they're off of his property - - and the alley belongs to the City. The City is immune from liability under Government Code section 815.6 - - to abate a nuisance from City property is not mandatory by the City.

You have no cause of action against the people who park their cars either. They are not trespassing on your property; rather, they are blocking your access - - but, they are on City property.

Your cause of action is, in fact, against your landlord for allowing a nuisance to continue, which is blocking your access to the rented property. Implied in every rental agreement, both residential and commercial, is a covenant of "quiet enjoyment": The landlord impliedly promises to allow the tenant possession and "quiet enjoyment" of the premises during the contract term and not to, through act or omission, disturb the tenant's possession and beneficial enjoyment of the premises for the purposes contemplated by the rental agreement. [Ca Civil § 1927; Marchese v. Standard Realty & Develop. Co. (1977) 74 Cal.App.3d 142, 147, 141 Cal.Rptr. 370, 373; see Lee v. Placer Title Co. (1994) 28 Cal.App.4th 503, 512, 33 Cal.Rptr.2d 572, 577 (shopping center lease); Ocean Services Corp. v. Ventura Port Dist. (1993) 15 Cal.App.4th 1762, 1781, 19 Cal.Rptr.2d 750, 760 (ground lease for development project)]

As stated above, you have the right to "quiet enjoyment" of the premises--a warranty implied in the rental agreement (Ca Civil § 1927). Basically, this means that the landlord cannot interfere with the tenant's possession--either actually or "constructively". Your landlord is "constructively" interfering with your "quiet enjoyment" of your rented property by his failure to abate the nuisance; i.e., your inability to access your rental property.

Your landlord is in breach of contract - - no matter how "nice" he might be. The fact is, you're paying rent, and you're not getting the full dollar value of your rent.

So, you can tow, or sue your landlord, or park on the street - - or, you can do all three.

IAAL
 
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Bunwhisper

Guest
Thanks so much for your reply... i appreciate it!

However, it leaves me with an ugly dilemma. My landlord is also angry at these clods--he wants them to stop this obnoxious behavior too, but they haven't listened to him either. I don't want to sue him--he certainly isn't at fault for the behavior of these jerks. I dont want to make an enemy of him--then I would have to move :(

It seems to me there should be some way to handle this besides yelling at these jerks :(

Parking is very limited here, so why should I park in the street when I pay for a garage?

Maybe some well placed nails under their tires would teach them a lesson--seems like there is nothing else to do ;)
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
Bunwhisper said:
Thanks so much for your reply... i appreciate it!

However, it leaves me with an ugly dilemma. My landlord is also angry at these clods--he wants them to stop this obnoxious behavior too, but they haven't listened to him either. I don't want to sue him--he certainly isn't at fault for the behavior of these jerks. I dont want to make an enemy of him--then I would have to move :(

It seems to me there should be some way to handle this besides yelling at these jerks :(

Parking is very limited here, so why should I park in the street when I pay for a garage?

Maybe some well placed nails under their tires would teach them a lesson--seems like there is nothing else to do ;)


My response:

Since I answered your questions with the law, I must presume that you current questions are rhetorical, and written out of frustration.

With that presumption, I bid you good luck.

IAAL
 

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