Cure or Quite?

[PinkLimoncello]

err...

that should be cure or QUIT.

Hi, everyone. I'm in Massachusetts. I've been having a lot of trouble with my downstairs neighbors and, because they've had the police called on them so much for noise violations, my landlord has finally agreed to evict them-- sort of?

He sent them a 3 day notice to cure or quit. I'm confused by this. So, they get this letter on Monday, that means they have 3 days to remedy their behavior. Well, they only party all night long on Fridays and Saturdays. (sometimes Thursday) So basically they're complying. Until they're not 5 days later.

I don't see how this is helpful to remedying the situation as they'll technically be in compliance. Am I missing something?

Thanks in advance,

Pink

 

[Banned_Princess]

If they continue to be loud and out of control anytime after the notice, that counts as non compliance.













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[Cvillecpm]

You need document any more noise with police reports with incident #s to your landlord AND name and badge #s of responding officers.

Recordings of the noise would be helpful also

 

[PinkLimoncello]

I've totally been documenting. so here's what's happening. I moved in July 1. I was under the impression the landlord was moving in to a vacant apartment upstairs, or I wouldn't have waited so long to complain. Finally, in September I wrote this letter to my landlord:

September 6, 2009

Dear A.,

I'm writing to you about a situation of which I believe you must be unaware. My right to the quiet enjoyment of my apartment as set forth in my lease is being violated by the constant noise and parties coming from both Corey's apartment and Shawn's apartment.

I'm not talking about get-togethers, I'm talking about drunken parties that last until 2:30 and 3:00 in the morning, parties that spill out into the back yard parking lot and front porch underneath my bedroom window. Frequently the next morning there are broken bottles in the parking lot and empty beer cans on the front porch that remain there until I pick them up. The screen on the back door is now broken as a result of one of the parties.

When I first viewed the neighborhood, I had some apprehensions, however the apartment the realtor showed me won me over because it was so nicely renovated. For the most part my misgivings were unfounded. The street, while active during the day, is actually quiet at night-- with the sole exception being this apartment building.

Here is a list of the parties since I moved in on July 1.


7/4 -- C and S combined (police arrived some time after 2:00 in the morning)

7/15-- C

7/16-- C. This was the party where one of C's friends pulled the fire alarm, as I mentioned in my previous email.


8/7-- S

8/15-- S

8/22-- C (police arrived at about 3:00 a.m.)


9/4-- S (police)

9/5-- S (police)

It seems as though they don't have much awareness as to how their actions affect their neighbors. My daughter told me that C sounded like he was bowling upstairs. When I mentioned this to him, he gleefully admitted that he bought a bowling set, and that was exactly what he was doing-- (at 1:30 in the morning).

This situation has become unbearable to me. I'm the only woman in a building full of men and I'm feeling increasingly like the house mother in a fraternity. In fact, I asked S on 9/4 (and not for the first time) to please not leave his apartment door open so the music goes up the hallway and into my apartment, and I asked him get to his friends off the front porch and the sidewalks and into his apartment. The very next night he did it again. I feel as if I have done all I can.

When you and I went over my lease together, you pointed out that you would fine me if my animals urinated on the floor and asked me to keep my heat at a certain temperature so that the pipes would not burst. To me, this was a sign that you really cared about your property. Since I still believe this to be true, I would respectfully ask you to deal now with both C and S since I've done all I can and am now starting to get worried about what kind of retaliation I might have to deal with since I'm the one constantly asking to them quiet down.

Will you please speak to them this week before I'm faced with yet another weekend (and, for that matter, weekday) filled with parties? I would also ask that you let me know the outcome of your discussion.


Sincerely,

He responded with this:

I talked to R (maintenance man), S, and C about the incidents. They said they hadn't really spoken to you about the noise (maybe once each). And they said they would respond if you asked them to turn down the noise. So if things start getting loud, please ask them to quiet down or give R a call as he is the property manager and should be able to get them to quiet down more readily.

Both S and C were aware that they shouldn't be partying during the week and didn't want to upset you either. They also didn't want to cause any unrest between you and them and don't hold any grudges or bad feelings - so I don't think reminding them to quiet down is going to hurt their feelings - so go ahead and knock on their doors and ask them to hold off making noise as you also work late and need to sleep.

Overall, they responded and said they would keep it down and didn't want to cause tension between you and them. R said he would keep them in check, so call R when they get loud.

Hopefully everyone will be mindful of each other!

I thought this was kind of bogus, but I let it slide and hoped that now that he'd spoken with them, things would quiet down.

(cont. below)

 

[PinkLimoncello]

I waited another month then had to write him another letter, pictures included this time.

Dear A,


I've enclosed three pictures that I took Saturday morning. The first is vomit all over the back hall rug after a night of partying from either C or S. I don't know which one as they were both partying. The second is vomit on the back door. The third is a broken wine glass in the parking lot.


Shortly after you spoke to S, C, and N, I had about one week of quiet in September when S and N went to California. C still parties a lot, but his apartment is over my daughter's bedroom and she's here infrequently so I only hear people when they tromp up and down the stairs. Since my last letter to you, there have continued to be parties weekly, the loudest ones have been 10/1, 10/8, 10/9 and 10/10 (so far). I even went out and bought $100 noise-canceling ear buds to listen to white noise when I'm sleeping and try to block them out. It doesn't help much, nor does it block out the constant slamming of doors and the pounding bass from their stereo.


The M.O. for S is that he and his friends drink at the bar and gather back here after last call, so I'm asleep when they arrive. I give it about a half hour, then at 2:00 in the morning I go down and ask them to be quiet. On Thursday night, I waited until 4:00 in the morning. When I finally went down and asked him to be quiet, he was completely indignant, claimed he wasn't “that loud” and really couldn't understand why I keep asking him. (I should add that this was the third week in a row that I've gone down and asked people to move off the porch, go inside, close the door, etc.) We had a long talk-- although I'm honestly not sure why I bothered as he was drunk and barely understood me anyway. I told him that I thought he was being unfair, I asked him what he thought was a reasonable time for his parties to end and he couldn't answer me. So that's on a Thursday night, and then Friday night at 2:00 in the morning he's back partying out on the porch, music blasting, friends coming in and out and slamming the doors.


I'm not being unreasonable to ask for quiet-- weekend OR weekday-- after 1:00 in the morning. However, I'm not getting it. And, frankly, I don't feel as though it's my responsibility to ask at all.

S and C were very angry with me after you spoke with them, and since they and their guests are disrespectful enough to continue with their behavior, then I continue to be concerned about retaliation.


I did not become your tenant so I could enforce your rules for anyone other than myself. Please resolve this. I really like the town, the neighborhood, and my apartment and I don't want to be forced by out them.


Sincerely,

To which he responded:


I hear your concerns and it concerns me greatly as this is still an ongoing issue. I've been working with Officer DK from the S police department over the sound problems with 21 H. I've attached the letter he sent me which I've also shared with C and S. Please feel free to contact Officer K about the noise levels as he may have recommendations for your situation. He suggested to me that everyone in the house could meet and discuss with him in the room, which may be an option if you can't amiably resolve the issue amongst yourselves.

The letter from the cop, dated in September, talked about the amount of times they've had to come to the house, how they were going to start issuing him citations for noise violations, etc. So I called the police officer myself.

(cont.)

 

[PinkLimoncello]

In the meantime, they had ANOTHER party and someone pulled the fire alarm in my building. After I called the police officer (but was unable to reach him) my landlord wrote this:

Hi J,

Officer K called me today and said that you had reached out to him. He also informed me the police were called again on the 17th around 2am. I spoke to S and he is willing to meet with you and i, along with a mediator that Officer K can arrange for us. We both know music at 2am on a weeknight is unacceptable, however it may be in the best interest of the whole household for us to meet up and discuss these things face to face and resolve all the issues.

Are you available any day this week after 6pm?

I wrote back and cc'd the police officer:

Dear A,

After reading the letter you forwarded me from Officer K, I realize that before I moved in there were complaints about noise that also led to neighbors calling the police.

I can only come to the conclusion that you do not you understand how this has greatly impacted my quality of life and that somehow you think (or hope) that one more discussion is going to make S live up to the terms of his lease when he has so far-- even with police involvement, a neighbor begging him weekly, and his landlord speaking to him-- been unwilling to do so.

While I (and the neighbors in other buildings) have to live with this problem, the solution is entirely up to you and S, and therefore I am declining the offer to meet with you, S, and a mediator. Mediation suggests that you are looking for me to somehow compromise with Shawn about his drunken get-togethers. Loud drunken parties that go on after 2:00 in the morning are not acceptable at any time, not just weekdays. I am not the one vomiting in your hallway, I am not the one pulling fire alarms, I am not the one that neighbors are calling the police on. They are breaking the law and making this apartment unlivable for the one tenant who actually respects your property and so I am respectfully asking you to make them live up to the terms of their lease. This is something only you have the authority to do. No amount of mediation between two tenants will do that.


Thank you,


J

And the police officer then responded with:

J,

I feel that everyone involved here has identified the problem. We will continue to respond to calls at thhis location as they come in. Also, I will be putting out information at roll call to take into consideration the amount of times we have responded in the past. This will provide more of a basis to issue city nioise ordinance violations and or arrests. It is imperative that A takes the appropraite actions as well.

I hope to help rectify this problem as soon as possible. I did not get your message during the time frame that you provided, but hope to talk to you soon.


Sergeant DK

(cont)

 

[PinkLimoncello]

Finally, my landlord sent me this letter yesterday:

Hi J, Officer K,

I was hoping we could all meet together in the effort to curtail the noise at 21 H by making our case personally to S and N that the noise isn't tolerated. I'm sorry that you felt it was implied you would have to make concessions - which was not the case. However, since mediation is not an option at this point, I sent a 3 day notice to cure or quit to both S and N along with a letter explaining that the eviction process has started if they don't remedy their behavior within 3 days.

Not only that I also spoke to each of them on the phone today about the issue (as the letter should arrive by mail today). They are fully aware that they are about to be evicted and that the process has been started. The remedial behavior I expect is quiet from 10pm-8am regardless of the day. If they choose to comply, their remedial behavior will align them with both the terms of the Lease and the law.

Unfortunately, I have the feeling you don't think I am taking this seriously or taking the necessary steps to resolve the issue - so I hope this e-mail alleviates your worry. Bear in mind that I am not privy to any of the parties or noise levels at the house except by way of the police reports and your notifications of the situation. With that in mind, and the fact that I felt that the tenants I was dealing with are all good people I was trying to be fair dealing with everyone at the house. After several talks with them I found I had misplaced my trust in them to modify their behavior. It's unfortunate that they won't cooperate with you and adjust their lifestyle. I won't be calling them or talking to them again about this situation or their behaviors as S and N have had their warnings by me, you and the police. The next time they will hear about this situation it will be in court. As I've never done an eviction before, there is a learning curve to the process, however in this situation the law appears to be on my side as my case will stand in court because of the police reports. Therefore, they will be evicted if they don't change their behavior in 3 days.

Please feel free to call me regarding this issue. Although I am not always immediately available, I will return your call.

So that's where I'm at. I apologize for the lengthy descriptions, but I'm at my wit's end and I'm hoping this notice to cure or quit will do the trick but I'm worried.

 

[Banned_Princess]

What the heck was all that about, how bout you just sum up your second question. into a neat few sentences.

If they have the cure or quit, and they have another all out party call the cops, and bring it to your LL, your ll should begin to evict them...what more do you want?

 

[PinkLimoncello]

What the heck was all that about, how bout you just sum up your second question. into a neat few sentences.

If they have the cure or quit, and they have another all out party call the cops, and bring it to your LL, your ll should begin to evict them...what more do you want?

Chill. I thought maybe posting the whole thing would be better than someone suggesting something that I've already done and me having to correct them or tell them that I'd already done it. (as in someone suggesting I document when I'd already done that)

What mean what more do I want? I asked the question up above: if they stop partying for 3 days, does that mean the cure or quit is invalid? Not sure why you're all huffy over my trying to explain things fully.

 

[Banned_Princess]

I answered your question 2x now.

3rd time

3 days to quit does not mean only in the 3 days.

Continue to call the cops and continue informing your LL, and if in the end you feel you were not treated fairly, let the LL know you will not be renewing your lease due to this ongoing issue.

really, your letters did not even remotely change the answer, but thank you for going through all the trouble to post letters between yourself and your landlord, you appear to be handling it quite properly.

 

[PinkLimoncello]

I answered your question 2x now.

3rd time

3 days to quit does not mean only in the 3 days.

Continue to call the cops and continue informing your LL, and if in the end you feel you were not treated fairly, let the LL know you will not be renewing your lease due to this ongoing issue.

really, your letters did not even remotely change the answer, but thank you for going through all the trouble to post letters between yourself and your landlord, you appear to be handling it quite properly.

When I posted the correspondence, I was replying to Cvillecpm not with a question but with the history of what was going on to make things as clear as possible. Your answer was helpful and I was not looking for a different one, just fleshing out the story. However, if the mods feel I've done something against the rules of the BB, I'm sure they'll delete them.

 

[Banned_Princess]

If the mods feel I have done something untoward by posting my letters, they can chastise me or delete them. When I posted the correspondence, I was replying to Cvillecpm not with a question but with the history of what was going on to make things as clear as possible.

Ahha. well, it was un necessary, but thanks, I was bored today.


it was quite clear. The LL served them cure or quit.. that applies to forever after the notice. All YOU can do is call the cops on their parties and notify the LL again and again.

tell LL that you will not renew your lease if he does not act on his notice to the neighbors. That aught to make sure he follows through.

 

[juber0]

This could be enough evidence to prove that the landlord is not providing a fair and resonable quiet. After all this issue keeps occuring even after the landlord has talked to the tenant. Send the landlord a letter stating that you will find that if the other tenant does not be quiet that you may decide to break the lease due to a violation of the lease.

You have had your take.