Hi All,
I have been reading some of the other neighbour complaint stories and have one of my own. For the past few years we have been living in a strata complex with two different neighbours below us who regularly smoke. Both of these are tenanted apartment lots. It used to be so bad that it would come in from our balcony door, main bedroom windows and now even can smell it in our kitchen with the windows closed. It is happening at least twice a day at the same time, but I cannot seem to "catch" them in the act even though it happens so regularly. They are also on ground floor and may be smoking within their apartment building which still somehow manages to enter via our balcony and kitchen windows. I do not want to be restricted and unable to open and close as I freely choose.
Originally there was no bylaw in place to stop this but after 1-2 years of going back and forth with the strata and getting approved at the last AGM we finally have a no smoking bylaw which states that residents or their visitors cannot smoke in common areas which includes smoking outside and entering into other lot owners apartment blocks.
After the bylaw got approved my partner was verbally harassed by that neighbour after returning home from work on common property, we notified strata. Nothing was done about it. One of the neighbours has moved as a result of no longer being able to smoke, but the second one continues to do it at least 2 times a day. It also results in common property stairway smelling very often as well.
Again I tried contacting strata manager about this and now they want me to take photographs and sign an affidavit confirming it is them and recording all the times this happens in order for Strata's lawyer to issue them an NCAT order. Now, I don't necessarily want to be going down NCAT route as it can drag out and might not result in any real change. Is this really my only option? Has anyone else had any success stories or provide any real concrete advice.
Let them smoke in their own house and close your windows the couple of times of day they do. 2 or even 3 times a day is really not much. You are not going to get effected by an occasional diluted bit of smoke. Whatever small amount of damage MIGHT or might not be caused by this is easily repaired by your body.
You cannot have everything your own way, you have your faults too, maybe they hate the sound of your kids or something? I certainly hate it when kids are noisy and I am not the only one.
My point is try to see it from their perspective and realize that it is better to just get along.
You are not realistically going to get effected by an occasional diluted bit of smoke. Ask your GP if you do not believe lil ol' me, I only have a science degree afterall, your GP will confirm this.. your worries are non-sense.