I'm so sick of a neighbor's bass. What recourse?

In My Humble Opinion
1

In short, the county ordinances state:
*Currently, the County ordinance addresses certain noise restrictions in residential areas, with an emphasis on amplified music. The ordinance prohibits any person from operating a radio or similar sound device, as well as a machine, tool or similar device in a residential district where the sound generated by the device can be heard at a distance of 50 feet from the device.

A person who is found in violation can be ordered by a police officer to cease the activity. If the person refuses or fails to comply with the order, he/she will be found guilty of a misdemeanor and will be subject to a fine not exceeding $500 or imprisonment not exceeding 30 days, or both.*

The problem is, we live in a townhouse that we own (hooray overpriced housing market pricing everything freestanding out of our range by a good bit), though most neighbors, including the people who perpetually piss us off, rent from private owners who live elsewhere. The townhouses in our block are each approximately 15 feet wide. So, from one far wall of ours, to the far wall of the jerks who cannot listen to anything at a sane volume, is no more than 45 feet.

If you play with levels of the two-story townhouses and diagonals, you can get over 50 feet, but for most purposes of “within our own home, we can’t avoid these jerks,” it’s not within the letter of the ordinance for us to even have the gall to register a complaint, because we’re not over 50 feet away.

The music, or rather, the incessant and insipid droning bass that we feel more than we hear, gives us headaches, puts us in sour moods, makes it so that we can’t concentrate on work (if it’s during the day, and I often work from home) or sleep (if it’s during the night). In other words, it has a very real impact on our emotional and physical health, as well as our ability to normally function with work and socializing.

I would hope that some recourse should exist for us, living two houses away, and within the privacy of our own home, to not have to suffer because of the selfishness of neighbors who don’t have any stake in the neighborhood not going to hell, because their renting asses can just move on and ruin a new place.

It seems we’re out of luck with the county. We’re going to try going to to Homeowners Association (of which we are members, but the renters that are giving us headaches are not), but in conversations with the Association manager, I’ve basically been told “if the cops can’t stop it, there’s not much we can do.” I have the name and a PO Box for the property owner (courtesy of the state tax assessor’s public website), but I don’t imagine that will do much more than make an enemy. I’ve tried politely asking the renters to stop their music in the past, and met with various levels of assent from “Absolutely, I didn’t know it was that loud” to “Fine. (With dirty “screw you” looks).” These people have a fairly ill-tempered dog, and often there are at least two or three people at a time just loitering in front of the house. In other words, I’m intimidated from continuing to deal with them directly, especially since they so clearly care from my past attempts.

What is there left to do?

2

I doubt the officer is going to come out with a yard stick to determine the exact distance. Give the police a call anyway and explain the situation and see what they can do. Even if they can’t do anything, you’ll be no worse off than you were before.

I have a few additional questions as well.

  1. Can the music be heard outside their house? If so, how far?
  2. How late do they keep the volume up? If it’s past 9 or 10pm, then they certainly have a problem.
3

  1. Write the owner- send certified mail

  2. Call the police. It is Ok if the police do not arrest them.

  3. Complain to homeowners assoc each time, it is Ok if they do nothing.

  4. Document.

  5. If steps 1-3 do nothing, then sue- the owner. Use documentation of complaints for evidence.

IANAL.

4

Is there parking, or a street out in front? Perhaps a cop with a noise meter could pause for a few minutes, fifty feet from their door. If the county cops aren’t interested, and if your county councilperson is in the same party as you, perhaps you can ask for a little nudging to get the law enforced. All these perhapses are because I’m not much more optimistic than you.

5

You could try doing what a friend of mine in college did. Neighbors used to blast loud music all the time. He would try to do the same but nothing worked until the night he decided to try some bollywood. For some reason, the singer’s voices travel and seems to drive most people nuts. He said after that the music blasting was never a problem.

6

For a second, I thought you were talking about a fish.

“Stupid neighbor, always lording it over me with his pretty fish”

7

dude the ordinance states they are in trouble if it can be heard 50 feet away, it doesnt say jack about how far away you live.

call the cops, then when they turn it back up call the cops again

repeat steps one and 2 as needed.
there is nothing in there about the location of the person who calls it in and I seriously doubt that the sound thats driving you crazy magicly stops at the 50’ mark

8

This is an excellent question. The ordinance does not say that complainant must be 50 feet away; only that the noise must be heard 50 feet away.

On preview, what Critical1 said.

9

I second this idea. You should check your rules & regs, which may go beyond what the county ordinance provides. If by “Assocation manager” you mean the property manager hired by the association, he has no backbone. If your association has a board, go to the president.

The owners are members of the association, and the association can level fines on the owners for allowing such behavior by their tenants. (AFAIK tenants are never members of the association.) This is a very real penalty in that the owners cannot sell the house until such fines are paid.

There’s always the fight-fire-with-fire approach but that usually ends badly.

Here’s what you need to remember: The *owners * have *already * made an enemy of you. Do not shy away from getting them involved. It’s their responsibility.

BTW are you the only one bothered by this? There is strength in numbers. If you enlist support from at least two other owners it makes a bigger statement to the HOA, and the police, and will discourage retalitation.

(I used to live in a condo on the third floor. The guy under me would barbecue on his balcony. I tried to ask him very nicely not to because of the fire hazard, plus the smoke was coming in through my window, but he wouldn’t even answer the door. Fortunately for me the law was very clear on this and the fire department was only too glad to come out the next time it happened. Which was the last time it happened.)

10

I prefer catfish myself but bass can be delicious if cooked properly. I suggest a local local guide guide teach him how to prepare it.

11

Generally there is a system in place where you can file a complaint against someone else. You would charge him with the local ordinance with you as the complainant. Don’t expect cops to come around with noise meters and measuring tapes.

The Association manager is wrong. The association can have greater powers under the law than the police when it comes to such matters. In this case they are choosing not to (there are some cases going through the system now that might limit their power but they have not been heard yet)

12

There are some very effective, and quite comfortable, earplugs out there.
I mean, you can’t shoot them. The offenders, that is.
Peace, (and quiet)
mangeorge
http://www.earplugsonline.com/

13

Don’t mind me. I just love a good username/post combo. :smiley:

14

It’s against the law to BBQ on your balcony? Really!
The smoke thing I understand.
Peace,
mangeorge

15

In response:

They play it both inside (in which case it travels through the joined structures very well), and outside (which rules out us opening our windows, and can usually still be heard quite well inside our house.)

The earliest I’ve ever noticed the music playing for any considerable length of time has been about 10am on the weekends, which usually we’re up by then, but a few times, it has been the cause of us waking. The latest has been about midnight, which I damn well call the police without a second’s hesitation. Now that the weather is nice, they like to hang out in front of the house almost every weekday between about 5 and 8, and on the weekends pretty nearly all day, so it’s more that the music is coming from outside.

Yes, CookingWithGas (and I second the amusement over the username/post content juxtaposition), I do mean the property manager hired by the association. I have not yet contacted the Association board regarding the problem, but I am going to do so soon. Also I’m going to take “The owners have already made an enemy of you,” to heart. Damned good advice.

I refuse to retaliate in kind, because that’s just petty and stupid, and I really don’t want to be dragged down to their level.

And, unfortunately, earplugs won’t help because this is bass. It’s not that I hear it. It’s that I feel it. That and I may still wish to watch my own TV or listen to my own music and perfectly reasonable volumes.

16

This is generally the worst recourse - can’t fight fire with fire.

17

Then maybe, in addition to what you’re already doing, you and the other neighbors should totally shun them. You know, no “cup of sugar” etc. Nothing.

18

In many cities, yes, it’s illegal to use a grill on a balcony or patio in a multi-family unit. Stray flames or sparks can light the overhanging balcony and put many people out of house and home.

19

This goes county to county, and sometimes town to town, and occasionally neighborhood to neighborhood. I don’t know of any states where it’s a statewide law, but in Maryland you can be enjoined by your county, your town, or your homeowners’ association. The reason is ostensibly that it’s a fire hazard, and that in multiple-family dwellings (e.g. apartments, townhouses) the risk to everyone is too great to allow any one person to endanger everyone.

That said, I lived in a complex where the neighbors didn’t care that it was against the law. Those who grilled did it carefully, brought water or fire extinguishers with them, and everyone walking in or out of the place saw that they were being careful, so nobody ever called the cops or fire department.

20

Anecdotally (yes, I will join in hijacking my own thread, because I got some good advice already, and was in no small part just ranting a bit), when I was renting an apartment in Laurel MD, the lease specifically stated that grills could not be operated on the apartment balconies (stating county fire code) but could be brought into the grass in front of the building.