Help with neighbor issues...

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TillyChinchilla

TillyChinchilla

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
515
Location
Knoxville, TN
Ricky and I just moved up one floor in our complex, from a one bedroom (3 room apartment) to a townhouse. We moved into the 3 room (kitchen/living combo, bedroom, bathroom) because we knew this one was about to become available.

Neighbors just moved into our old 3-room below. How do I know? Their bass is rattling my dishes. I went down the hill to ask them if they would turn it down a bit .... and it is a family with three kids (only saw three). I KNOW how small that apartment is. One is at least 9-10 years old, the others are younger. We barely had room for all our furniture, us, and the chins. We even had to keep a storage unit rented until we got the bigger place.. and we do not have a lot of furniture. This isn't healthy for the kids.

This cannot be legal, but I cannot find any info pertaining to TN. I know in CT you couldn't have more than 2 people per bedroom in a rented unit.

Truth is that this isn't uncommon here. We have a very high immigrant population and this seems to be the norm. But it is bothersome.

Suggestions on where to look for info/proper channels to find out what to do would be great.
 
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Here in Connecticut, things are notoriously strict when it comes to housing. In other states, however... Not so much. >:
 
Here in PA, children over 5 can not sleep in the same room if they are opposite sex. I am not sure what you can do, if they are renting, you can complain about the noise, and you can always call child welfare and ask them the specific laws on it, if you think it is a danger to their health to be there.

And in many cultures there is nothing wrong with big families in small cultures. I would weigh the reasons why this bothers( as far as the children) you and then go from there. However, I would complain to the powers that be of the property about the noise level, that is not fair to you.
 
I would go to your super or land lord and tell them about the noise.


I would be very careful about reporting the family though. Just because there is a big family in a small house doesn't make it unhealthy for them. In this economy most families are greatful to have a house at all. Did the house seem dirty or unfit? Or was it just the amount of people that bothered you. Coming from a big family with a single mom-things were not always beautiful in my life, but that didn't make them dangerous for us growing up...
 
The place isn't dirty. We left the place spotless when we moved out.

There was one boy and two girls that I saw. I know the landlord knows they are there. They knew about the other family two units down from us previously with 6 people in a one bedroom apt. This didn't bother me so much then because it is almost twice as large as the one I am talking about.

As long as they keep the noise down (obviously I understand SOME, as my washer and dryer as well as some walking on the downstairs tile can be heard by them) I have much less of a problem. But this isn't just a big family in a small house, it is a big family in a three room apartment, kids being different sexes.

I don't think there is much I can do regardless. Obviously it doesn't bother the landlord.
 
When I was younger I had to share a room with my little brother for a short while. Some families just have to make due. I know that we all wish that things could be differnt and done "correctly" but the truth is that for some this is the best they can do. I had a friend who was one of 5 kids whose father got layed off due to an injury and the mother was very ill so they lived in a motel. They lived there for as long as I can remember. The kid I was friends with is now head of his class at a very good school (he got grants). Just because the family life isn't perfect doesn't mean that the parents are not doing their job or thinking about their children. :thumbsup:
 
When I was single and had my daughter that was 5, I had to get a 2 bedroom apt. The landlord didn't rent out 1 bedroom apartments to people with children, I think it is a law in OH and probably a lot of places. I only wanted a one bedroom to share with her, but they made me get the 2 bedroom. We ended up using the other room for storage.
 
I think this is more on the fault of the landlord. I am more concerned about that at this point. What is their limit??

There are two bedroom units cheaper than that or same price the next town over. (and one bedrooms are as cheap as $250 there - not a bad town, but its not a major city, and only a few minutes away)
 
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I dont know, I think I would leave well enough alone, you don't know their situation, and as many have said, maybe they are doing the best they can.

Just because there is cheaper places does not mean they have not tried there, or maybe it is not practical to move a town over. I think I would let that one go and just stick with the noise complaint to the landlord. If he does not seem to be bothered by it, and the children seem healthy and happy and not neglected, then let it go.

There was a time in this country where that was all very common place to have families in smaller homes, etc.
 
I don't plan on getting them evicted or reporting them, I am not sure where that came from. Reporting them could be more than I'd want since a lot of people around here are not legal - and it is a hardship they don't need and I don't want to bring them. I don't have an issue with that. But if my dishes are going to rattle because their bass is so loud, I can't imagine how the kids are doing.

But where is the stopping point? 4 kids? 7? When does it become unhealthy mentally? The place could be spotless, but is it still ok? Would the landlord care as long as he got his money?

I don't believe the landlord should be going against the housing code. There are other channels for this, including low income housing elsewhere in the city.
 
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Found this http://articles.directorym.com/Landlord_Legal_Mistakes_Tennessee-r935359-Tennessee.html


3. Setting Policies that Discriminate Against Families

Although it's been illegal to discriminate against families for over 20 years, many owners' practices are far from family-friendly -- and are downright illegal. Excluding families because you feel children cause more wear and tear and you prefer a "mature, quiet" environment is illegal. And while you're permitted to limit the number of residents in a unit (in most situations, two occupants per bedroom), you may not apply that standard differently when dealing with families. The cost of this mistake can be another trip to your lawyer's office, to deal with a fair housing complaint.
 
Jinul said:
I don't plan on getting them evicted or reporting them, I am not sure where that came from. Reporting them could be more than I'd want since a lot of people around here are not legal - and it is a hardship they don't need and I don't want to bring them. I don't have an issue with that. But if my dishes are going to rattle because their bass is so loud, I can't imagine how the kids are doing.

But where is the stopping point? 4 kids? 7? When does it become unhealthy mentally? The place could be spotless, but is it still ok? Would the landlord care as long as he got his money?

I don't believe the landlord should be going against the housing code. There are other channels for this, including low income housing elsewhere in the city.
Click to expand...

Maybe they make too much money for low income places. Around here I make too much money for Low-Income housing(looked it up for a project) and I have a job right now that I make $9/hr and Im getting <15hr/wk.

And not to be argumentative but how do you know all these people are illegal? Illegals dont shout that from the roof top. And most apartment places do background checks on the people that live in their apartments. Im sure they have to have SOMETHING to stay legal (permit, visa, residency, something.. )
 
I don't think she meant to imply they were illegal, but asking how many kids will it take to make it illegal to house them properly where they are living.

Having said that, wow, 9 dollars an hour and you make too much.....no wonder people here who live in the Section 8 housing do not work, it is better for them not too.
 
I didn't mean to imply that, no. The company that owns the three complexes here doesn't ask for any ID, no credit check, only your name, last residence, and nearest living relative. (as far as them being illegal aliens, a possibility - I don't know.)

Low income housing here is under $32k a year for a couple. We checked too, but only my income would have qualified alone, doesn't work like that.

If you are making around $500 a month it is crazy that you wouldn't be approved for low income housing.
 
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Well its $11,704+/yr for affordable living here. Anything less is low income I guess. Doesnt matter to me I just bought a house. We closed two fridays ago. I was just looking up the info for a project but I was shocked to see how low it was.
 
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