Apartment noise issue

[angekfire]

So, I have been having a bit of an issue for a while now. I moved into a new apartment back in August, and we got a penthouse suite, because we figured it costed a little extra, but not having anyone above us would be nice. No noise, no banging, etc. We expected noise from our neighbors on either side of us, that is just a part of apartment living, but we figured that at least since nobody was above us, that would negate a main source of noise. When we moved in, they were doing construction on the elevators. Retrofitting in new ones. They told us it would all be done in January. "Fair enough", we thought. So we will only be able to use 2 of the 3 elevators at a time, should be doable.

Well, now we are into March, and they are just starting the retrofit on the 3rd elevator now (Just finished the second 2 weeks ago). Now, we were told that it would all be done by January, and it has gone on longer, and still has at least another 2-3 months to go, minimum. The issue here isn't that we have to wait longer for the elevator being on the top floor (don't get me wrong, that is annoying, but that is not my main issue. I can live with this.) The issue is the noise of the construction.

My girlfriend works shift work, her shifts are all over the place. One day she will work an overnight, the next she will work an early morning shift. And I am on a steady rotation where every 3rd month, I am on overnights. This means I need to sleep during the day, which adjusting that is hard enough.

However, every time I've been on overnights, and my girlfriend notices this more since she is home randomly during the days, is they are constantly making noise all day, every day. When I'm on nights, I get home at 7am, and some days that is when they start drilling. Being on the top floor, they are on the roof directly above us, as we are also one of the closest units to the elevator. Last week it was dropping weights on the roof. I was in the shower (after giving up on sleep when they started the work at 11am and woke me up, leaving me with only 4 hours of sleep.) and could feel the apartment vibrating, thats how loud it was. And it seems to change. This time I was working nights, the noise was mainly heavy weights and panels being dropped. The previous time was drilling. Before that, it was hammering and yelling down the hallways by the construction workers.

I am just wondering if there is any recourse? I know noise laws are in place specifically after 11pm, and thats fair, but this is during the day. And it is every day, and has been ongoing now for 7 months, and will still be ongoing for 2-3 more. I want to know if legally there is anything we can do to either get the noise to stop, or hell, even end the lease early. The noise can be any time from 7am to 3pm or 4pm.

[diggler649]

LOL. You serious?

Would you prefer they call you the day before each time to time when you and your GF are sleeping so they'll try to install an elevator as quietly as possible? Or maybe even take the time off while you two are sleeping?

Not to be facetious but why don't you guys get earplugs or a white noise machine.

[Syne]

Earplugs are an alright suggestion - but I think the OP actually has a solid grievance.

Unfortunately, I would have said something much sooner as now they'll try to string you along for the last few months.

Do you rent or own?

[angekfire]

I rent.

We have tried earplugs. I have taken melatonin as well to try to help maintain a deeper sleep but it doesn't help. My girlfriend just today used melatonin and sleeping pills, as well as earplugs and was woken up around 10am.

The big reason we didn't say anything sooner was we were under the impression all would be said and done January first, and I did overnight February, so it was only then that I personally noticed it.

I'm not expecting a call every day or anything, but there was a set timeframe given when we moved in, and that deadline was not met. The noise is loud, and again, the entire apartment was shaking from the construction. Ear-plugs don't stop the room from shaking.

[jaysfan4life]

Don't sleep in the day... It's obvious they are doing construction they can't stop the noise and shaking..

[sarnya]

The best you can do is remind the super and people are home during the day and hopefully he/she will remind the workers to be quiet. If it's that bad, maybe you could find some sort of 'reasonable enjoyment' clause in the landlord-tenant act and legally break your lease? I have no idea if such a thing exists.

I used to work nights and in the condo I was renting, they would test the fire alarms, people would renovate, the halls would be vacuumed... the list goes on. The worst was when they tested the fire alarms every month.

[angekfire]

Don't sleep in the day... It's obvious they are doing construction they can't stop the noise and shaking..

So when am I supposed to sleep? Am I just supposed to stop sleeping because I have to work night shift, because my job requires it, and I require my job to pay rent on the apartment I cannot sleep in?

I believe there is a "reasonable enjoyment" clause of some sort, and I do believe this would be violating it. Last week in addition to the construction, they were doing fire alarm testing. It sucks, but I understand fire alarm testing is requires for safety reasons. The difference is, fire alarm testing might screw with my sleep once a month. That kinda sucks. The construction screws with my sleep every single day. The other difference with people renovating (hasn't been an issue) but I could complain to the super and place a noise complaint against the other tenants. Its different when it is work on the building itself. It was the reason we got a top level apartment, we didn't want noise coming from above us because we have shift work, and it would be far less noise with a tenant above us, than this construction.

[silicontraveler]

You can break lease and leave not a big deal, but is it worth it for a few more weeks of construction? If you don't like the apartment anyways maybe move.
Obviously when you take a job that is at night you have consider all the pros and cons, if it is interfering with you health then find a day job.

[Syne]

I would go for at least some sort of rent reduction.

They're lucky to have their units occupied with construction going on all around them. They should offer you some form of compensation.

[angekfire]

You can break lease and leave not a big deal, but is it worth it for a few more weeks of construction? If you don't like the apartment anyways maybe move.
Obviously when you take a job that is at night you have consider all the pros and cons, if it is interfering with you health then find a day job.

A few more weeks? They were working on the elevators before I moved in, which was last August. There are 3 that needed to be re-done. 7 months later, and they JUST finished the second one. Which if the speed in which they have done the other 2 is any indication, it'll be AT LEAST another 3 months.

And taking into consideration of pros & cons is one thing, but this wasn't supposed to be an issue when we moved in. I did take it into consideration by getting a top level apartment to avoid noisy neighbors above, and this is far worse.

We are giving the super a letter tonight or tomorrow basically asking for a reduction in rent. The thing is, we like the building and we love our apartment, the only issue is the elevators, and the only part of that which we can't live with is the noise.

[fuzzy_avocado]

So, I have been having a bit of an issue for a while now. I moved into a new apartment back in August, and we got a penthouse suite, because we figured it costed a little extra, but not having anyone above us would be nice. No noise, no banging, etc. We expected noise from our neighbors on either side of us, that is just a part of apartment living, but we figured that at least since nobody was above us, that would negate a main source of noise. When we moved in, they were doing construction on the elevators. Retrofitting in new ones. They told us it would all be done in January. "Fair enough", we thought. So we will only be able to use 2 of the 3 elevators at a time, should be doable.

Well, now we are into March, and they are just starting the retrofit on the 3rd elevator now (Just finished the second 2 weeks ago). Now, we were told that it would all be done by January, and it has gone on longer, and still has at least another 2-3 months to go, minimum. The issue here isn't that we have to wait longer for the elevator being on the top floor (don't get me wrong, that is annoying, but that is not my main issue. I can live with this.) The issue is the noise of the construction.

My girlfriend works shift work, her shifts are all over the place. One day she will work an overnight, the next she will work an early morning shift. And I am on a steady rotation where every 3rd month, I am on overnights. This means I need to sleep during the day, which adjusting that is hard enough.

However, every time I've been on overnights, and my girlfriend notices this more since she is home randomly during the days, is they are constantly making noise all day, every day. When I'm on nights, I get home at 7am, and some days that is when they start drilling. Being on the top floor, they are on the roof directly above us, as we are also one of the closest units to the elevator. Last week it was dropping weights on the roof. I was in the shower (after giving up on sleep when they started the work at 11am and woke me up, leaving me with only 4 hours of sleep.) and could feel the apartment vibrating, thats how loud it was. And it seems to change. This time I was working nights, the noise was mainly heavy weights and panels being dropped. The previous time was drilling. Before that, it was hammering and yelling down the hallways by the construction workers.

I am just wondering if there is any recourse? I know noise laws are in place specifically after 11pm, and thats fair, but this is during the day. And it is every day, and has been ongoing now for 7 months, and will still be ongoing for 2-3 more. I want to know if legally there is anything we can do to either get the noise to stop, or hell, even end the lease early. The noise can be any time from 7am to 3pm or 4pm.

The crappy thing about your situation is that you did not (I'm presuming) get it in WRITING that construction on these elevators would be done before a certain month. Had you have had that then you could go to management and wave the letter in front of them and say WTF. So here's what you do. Go back to your building manager/whoever is responsible and tell them you want IN WRITING when construction will be done. You told me before X month but now it's Y, so if it's past Z then AA will happen. Don't threaten them as they may not oblige to write the letter, just say you want a letter for your personal record. You need to be on your crap, it doesn't matter if that means you have to be a paranoid parrot, you pay for this place, you were told a certain date. They broke that fine, and so now you will have a letter. It is only if they cross this line that you MIGHT be able to take some legal recourse at the Landlord and Tenant Board (google them/call them about your situation if you want help [if you're in Ontario]). I've been in and out of there several times and it's not this magical place where you just say how much life sucks in your apt because of the noise, and you instantly get compensation. Sometimes that place can be a bigger headache than the initial issue itself. There has to be CONSIDERABLE/REASONABLE evidence. So yea, get that letter and just see where it goes from there.

[RandomCDN]

The crappy thing about your situation is that you did not (I'm presuming) get it in WRITING that construction on these elevators would be done before a certain month. Had you have had that then you could go to management and wave the letter in front of them and say WTF. So here's what you do. Go back to your building manager/whoever is responsible and tell them you want IN WRITING when construction will be done. You told me before X month but now it's Y, so if it's past Z then AA will happen. Don't threaten them as they may not oblige to write the letter, just say you want a letter for your personal record. You need to be on your crap, it doesn't matter if that means you have to be a paranoid parrot, you pay for this place, you were told a certain date. They broke that fine, and so now you will have a letter. It is only if they cross this line that you MIGHT be able to take some legal recourse at the Landlord and Tenant Board (google them/call them about your situation if you want help [if you're in Ontario]). I've been in and out of there several times and it's not this magical place where you just say how much life sucks in your apt because of the noise, and you instantly get compensation. Sometimes that place can be a bigger headache than the initial issue itself. There has to be CONSIDERABLE/REASONABLE evidence. So yea, get that letter and just see where it goes from there.

If you decide not to do this you could also just ask the landlord if you can break your lease. Explain the shift work. They might accommodate. or you can look for someone to sublet. Ideally a subletter that works or is away from home during the hours of construction.

[Dilton]

Maybe if you have a lifestyle that requires quiet during the day, you should have thought of that before moving into an apartment building where you should have known it would be noisy during the day time.

[madkitty]

I had the same issues and moved from apartment to apartments for 10 years. At the end of it I decided to move in a Townhouse West Toronto, that was the only time I was able to sleep during the day. I stayed there for two years and never had to complain about noise again. Give it a thought :)

[IMWHFMPC]

i know how it feels... it is just something you have to get used to unfortunately... try making a complaint with other neighbours to the management, see if they can speed up the work.

[OnFiYa]

The best you can do is remind the super and people are home during the day and hopefully he/she will remind the workers to be quiet. If it's that bad, maybe you could find some sort of 'reasonable enjoyment' clause in the landlord-tenant act and legally break your lease? I have no idea if such a thing exists.

I used to work nights and in the condo I was renting, they would test the fire alarms, people would renovate, the halls would be vacuumed... the list goes on. The worst was when they tested the fire alarms every month.



LOL imagine you're the landlord and your tenant is leaving because they feel construction at appropriate hours in the day are affecting a job you knew the pros and cons of.



You really can't ask them to stop construction for the whole apartment just because you need your beauty sleep, sucks but you either have to suffer a bit longer or break your lease

[angekfire]

Well, last night my girlfriend submitted a letter and spoke with the super. She basically said she was sympathetic, and that they sometimes have empty units that we could buy and put an air mattress in to sleep during the day. The thing is, we are paying rent for an apartment as it is because we need a place to sleep.

She said she was going to pass the letter along to her superiors because there wasn't much she was able to do. So we will have to see how that progresses, but she hasn't been very good about following up on things in the past.

I understand that I can't ask them to simply halt construction, but there should at least be some form of compensation, or give us the option to out early. The fact is, the penthouse suite which we have, we pay a premium for, it is one of the most expensive units in the building, and we expect a certain quality from that as well.

[silicontraveler]

I don't think they have to compensate for noise during the day at least the LLTB is unlikely to award much money. Like i said before sometime it is better to cut loose while your still ahead if you don't want to live there just leave in 30 days and move somewhere else.

[Kohanz]

I don't think they have to compensate for noise during the day at least the LLTB is unlikely to award much money. Like i said before sometime it is better to cut loose while your still ahead if you don't want to live there just leave in 30 days and move somewhere else.

They moved in in August, I assume they have a lease until at least August 2012.

[Syne]

Well, last night my girlfriend submitted a letter and spoke with the super. She basically said she was sympathetic, and that they sometimes have empty units that we could buy and put an air mattress in to sleep during the day. The thing is, we are paying rent for an apartment as it is because we need a place to sleep.

She said she was going to pass the letter along to her superiors because there wasn't much she was able to do. So we will have to see how that progresses, but she hasn't been very good about following up on things in the past.

I understand that I can't ask them to simply halt construction, but there should at least be some form of compensation, or give us the option to out early. The fact is, the penthouse suite which we have, we pay a premium for, it is one of the most expensive units in the building, and we expect a certain quality from that as well.

The super just wants you to shutup and take it because then the super doesn't have to put themselves in the line of fire.

You're probably going to have to threaten to terminate the lease early to get anything moving here.

[silicontraveler]

August? Just don't pay any more rent. problem solved.

[sleepmode]

The noise and working with power tools bylaw for the apartments starts at 7pm. I don't think you can complaint about noise during the day, only if it is something out of the ordinary, such as a party at noon. Replacing the elevators once every 40 years would not be considered unacceptable noise. Look around you, everything has to be built and rebuilt at some point and you can't avoid that. Wait until they do the roof..

[angekfire]

Yea, we cannot just leave in 30 days. Also, even if we werent locked in a lease, you are required to give 60 days notice. We are locked in until August, unless we can find a way to get them to agree to give us an early termination of the lease due to the noise. The issue is, we expected some until January, when it was supposed to be done. But at this rate, it will be at like another 3 months before they are done, or 6 months past the original deadline we were given.

[silicontraveler]

No in this case you can break your lease because the LL has already broken the lease by denying your right to enjoyment. Did your lease say there would months of construction? No.
I would just give them 30 days notice in written that you are leave due to the noise and you are considering suing them for lost wages bla bla . They'll soon be disturbing you by walking right in the apartment to show it prospective tenant when ever they feel like it....

[OnFiYa]

No in this case you can break your lease because the LL has already broken the lease by denying your right to enjoyment. Did your lease say there would months of construction? No.
I would just give them 30 days notice in written that you are leave due to the noise and you are considering suing them for lost wages bla bla . They'll soon be disturbing you by walking right in the apartment to show it prospective tenant when ever they feel like it....


August? Just don't pay any more rent. problem solved.



Don't take this guy seriously, he has no idea what he's talking about




Just wow... the right to enjoyment doesn't revolve construction at appropriate hours nor does the lease have to state anything with future construction/renovations that are inevitable with an apartment complex. How about they don't bother to fix all the elevators so they don't have to disturb people and you walk up the stairs? That sounds like a plan!


Problem solved? LOL try that, there's a reason most places have a first+last month's deposit after that they'll be evicted.

[stuntman]

Don't take this guy seriously, he has no idea what he's talking about


+1000....that poster just posts dumb stuff to see how many responses they will get.

I also went through the posts and saw that noone mentioned the Landlard Tenant Board. It could have sufficed as the only answer required. No one here has stated they are qualified to give the legal opinion you seek.