Flat Chat Strata Forum Neighbour noise Current Page

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  • #9080

    Hi everyone,

    The weather is now warming up enough for my neighbour to once again stand on the balcony of his ground-level unit in south-west Sydney and repeatedly hock and spit into the small garden below.

    I live in the adjacent building so my bedroom overlooks his balcony.

    Six months of the year I am awoken at 5am as he has his morning cigarette on the balcony following by a coughing and spitting fit. He then repeats this performance between 11pm and midnight.

    In the colder months he stays inside to cough and spit in his kitchen, which is audible but more tolerable.

    My strata has no affiliation with his strata, and therefore can’t contact him. I was advised to contact council or police with a noise complaint, but although I know the street address I don’t know which unit number he occupies.

    There is a cultural and language barrier here, but he has teenage children who should be able to translate the neighbours yelling their displeasure.

    I read in another FlatChat column that occupants have the right to “peaceful enjoyment”, and this neighbour is ruining my peaceful enjoyment and my sleep.

    How can I let him know this is inappropriate, and get him to stop?

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  • #19768
    Whale
    Flatchatter

      Some local Councils including those in S/W Sydney have implemented procedures to educate, warn, and where necessary fine people whose cultural or behavioural predisposition leads them to think that spitting is acceptable, and further, spitting can I believe be considered as common assault IF it’s directed at someone or at their property, done in an aggressive manner, or with the intention to intimidate and/or with no regard for the fact that a person on the receiving end would be likely to feel intimidated. 

      Regrettably none of that applies to your situation, and whilst the “peaceful enjoyment” provisions of the NSW Strata Schemes Management Act (1996) do (apply), those relate to occurrences within each Strata Plan and not acts within one that affects the residents of another.

      It’s a difficult situation I agree, and the only practicable solution that I can think of would be to write to the Executive Committee Secretary of the adjoining Plan explaining both the situation and the physical location of the offender’s Unit and put that in the Owners Corporation’s letterbox, and perhaps try to find out the details of the Strata Manager for that adjoining Plan and copy your letter to them – they often have their details posted on front façade of the building or near its main entry door. 

      #19915

      The SMH article mentions that it would be good if the ECs could talk to each other. My EC thought that was too hard, which isn’t a good precedent. You might have to turn up in person at a meeting to argue your point. 

       

      Wade.

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