- This topic has 1 reply, 1 voice, and was last updated 15 years, 8 months ago by .
-
Topic
-
I am a newcomer to the Forum and hope someone can help with a problem we are having in our block of 11. Up until a tenant moved in about a year ago to a particular unit everyone was really great in the building. Everybody got on and life was good. Now this guy has upset the harmony in the building. Noise, smoking, parking issues, swearing, police being called, the usual sorts of things you might expect from time to time but there have been probably 8 or more incidents and residents are threatening to move out. His lease is up soon and we have asked the owner to please send him packing but she is thinking about it. We know we can probably issue notices and go to the tribunal but in practical terms what will that achieve? He gets a slap on the wrist and pretty well does what he likes. To be honest some of the residents are frightened of him. Should we camp outside the owner's home and play loud music and smoke and swear loudly to get some results?
-
Replies
-
The first thing you need to do is hold an EC meeting and issue a Notice To Comply to each of the by-laws breached by this tenant. You can download the official form HERE. Remember, you need to issue a separate NTC for each breach that has occurred. Notices To Comply carry the the threat of a $550 fine and tend to get people's attention. In fact, all you have to do in most cases is send one out. You certainly don't get results with antisocial recalcitrants by not sending them.
Now it gets tricky but the answer to a landlord who doesn't care is to give them something to care about. Again, notices to comply may be the key and you could look through your by-laws for one that reads something like this:
Behaviour of invitees: An owner or occupier of a lot must take all reasonable steps to ensure that invitees of the owner or occupier do not behave in a manner likely to interfere with the peaceful enjoyment of the owner or occupier of another lot or any person lawfully using common property.
I'd send the owner a Notice To Comply pointing out that this tenant is their “invitee”, he is breaching by-laws and therefore they, the owner, is in breach becasue they know about this and have refused to do anything.
Failing that, you could try a Notice to comply based on Section 117 of the Strata Act.
117 Owners, occupiers and other persons not to create nuisance
(1) An owner, mortgagee or covenant chargee in possession (whether in person or not), lessee or occupier of a lot must not:
(a) use or enjoy the lot, or permit the lot to be used or enjoyed, in such a manner or for such a purpose as to cause a nuisance or hazard to the occupier of any other lot (whether that person is an owner or not). (My emphasis)
Now, I am not a lawyer and those who are who read this Forum may correct me (as they often do) but that would be my approach. Even if the NTCs to the landlord have no firm legal basis, they may bluff the landlord into getting rid of this reprobate and choosing their next tenant more carefully.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.