Condo Living: Do Non-Smokers Have Rights?
Categories: Community Information, In The News, Real Estate News
hiI’ve been a Realtor in the Miami/Coral Gables area since 1980 and I have recently learned more about homeowner “rights” than I ever wanted to know. Due to my own personal encounter with second-hand smoke seeping into my condo, I was lead to research the matter and have discovered that non-smokers do have rights.
First of all, I Googled “Cigarette Smoke Seeping Into My Condo”. I found a wealth of information and resources, and I found that I am not alone. Here are just a few eye-opening links:
Here is an excerp from Clark Wilson LLP’s STRATAgies which deals with this issue: “Drifting smoke from one unit into another unit can constitute a nuisance or hazard.
http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local-beat/Woman-Sues-Over-Neighbors-Smoking–62989052.html
My problem began about eight months ago when I moved into a condo I purchased in 2004. I’ve had it rented all these years and never had any complaints from my tenants. Unfortunately, the moment I moved in I began to experience an extreme allergic reaction to cigarette smoke infiltration coming from my next door and downstairs neighbors. There were days when there was no infiltration, just the left-over ashtray smell of stale smoke. A real mystery.
I discovered that I am highly sensitive and allergic to the smoke. I can’t breathe it, my eyes get red and itchy, my nose runs, I break out in hives, and in extreme cases am at risk of going into anaphylactic shock. Most nights I have to leave my home and sleep at a friend’s or a relative’s couch, my things packed in the trunk of my car, unable to sleep or work from home.
I attempted to resolve the matter with the condo association, the management company, and both of the smoking neighbors. As far as they were concerned this was my problem(!).
After 8 months, over $2000 in attempts to seal my unit, and no end in sight, I am forced to place my condo up for rent, hope that the problem is solved in time to get and keep a tenant, and I am forced to move. As I write this, I am at a friends home because the smoke was too much to bear again tonight.
My problem will be featured on a segment of WSVN’s Help Me Howard. Patrick Fraser has been unbelievably helpful in drawing attention to this matter. His segment and Howard’s legal opinion air tomorrow, July 5th, at 10pm and again July 6th at 5:55pm on local WSVN, channel 7.
