A Landlords Guide to Handling Noise Complaints

Hey landlords! Noise complaints are one of the most common issues rental property owners will face. In this episode, Kevin and I break down how to handle noise complaints fairly, legally, and without unnecessary stress. We cover everything from setting clear noise policies to mediating disputes and protecting yourself from legal liability. 

Whether it’s tenants playing loud music, children making noise, or even pets causing disturbances, we’ve got solutions to help you maintain a peaceful rental environment.

Plus, we share our best tips on tenant screening, lease agreements, and soundproofing strategies to prevent noise complaints before they start. 

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
✔️ How to assess whether a noise complaint is reasonable
✔️ Steps to mediate disputes between tenants and neighbors
✔️ The legal obligations landlords have regarding noise complaints
✔️ How to enforce lease agreements fairly and legally
✔️ Tips for soundproofing your rental property
✔️ The role of tenant screening in preventing future issues
✔️ Best resources for state-specific leases and property management tools

Resources & Links Mentioned in This Episode:
🔗 Hoarding & Landlord Responsibilities (Ep 72)

🔗 Listen to Our Episode on Cash Reserves (Ep 28)

🔗 EZ Landlord Forms: Get 15% off any new purchase with code STACIE15
🔗 TurboTenant: Free account signup!

Connect with Us:

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🤳Text Us: 650-489-4447. We love questions and love letters!

📩Email us at: Stacie@YourLandlordResource.com, Kevin@YourLandlordResource.com

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Transcript

Stacie: 0:00

You guys, we cannot know if someone has a noise issue unless we are told or happen to be on the property when it happens. So if someone complains to you and the complaint is fair, be happy it's happening so that you can know if you have crappy tenants. What is worse is when you lose good tenants because nothing is done about the noise violations of bad ones. Regardless of whether they pay on time or not, everyone around your rental property has the right to quiet enjoyment, and this includes other tenants and neighbors. But we do understand that people do not wanna complain. Maybe they fear they'll be targeted by the other tenant. Maybe they fear you as a landlord, will think ill of them for complaining and don't wanna be a bother. Regardless, you need to make it clear you wanna know when their living experience is no longer enjoyable at your rental property.

1:01

Welcome to Your Landlord Resource podcast. Many moons ago when I started as a landlord, I was as green as it gets. I may have had my real estate license, but I lack confidence and the hands-on experience needed when it came to dealing with tenants, leases, maintenance, and bookkeeping after many failed attempts. Fast forward to today, Kevin and I have doubled our doors and created an organized. Professionally operated rental property business. Want to go from overwhelm to confident if you're an ambitious landlord or maybe one in the making. Join us as we provide strategies and teach actionable steps to help you reach your goals and the lifestyle you desire. All well building is streamlined and profitable rental property business. This is Your Landlord Resource Podcast.

Stacie: 1:50

Hello there landlords. Thanks for tuning into the Your Landlord Resource podcast. I am your host, Stacie Casella here with my co-host and my partner in crime, Kevin Kilroy.

Kevin: 2:03

Hey there everyone.

Stacie: 2:05

So, today on the podcast we are going over how to handle noise complaints. I will say that we have been super lucky in this area with essentially no complaints that we've had to deal with.

Kevin: 2:20

Well, I think that would be because no one ever complained when the tenant was actually living in the unit. I mean, it seems like as soon as someone who is disruptive to other tenants and neighbors moves out, everyone just comes out of the woodwork to let us know how awful they were.

Stacie: 2:36

Right? I mean, we always tell them, if you have issues, please let us know. And that includes issues with noise levels of other tenants. So which story should we start with? The young guys in our jinx unit or our own kid.

Kevin: 2:54

Oh, come on, kid two wasn't that bad. Uh, let's start with the other guys.

Stacie: 2:59

Okay. In Sacramento, we have this unit that seems to turn over frequently. Which we have now dubbed the jinxed unit. The longest we have had a tenant stay in there was two years. For the most part, people only stay a year and then they move on. And side note that is because we seem to always get roommates for this two bedroom, two bath. I would say only one time was there a couple in there and they would have stayed longer, but unfortunately, his dad passed away. And lucky for him, he inherited the father's home, and they moved out after two years. Every single other tenant has moved on after a year or a year and a half. All right, so back to the noise issue. We had a couple guys who met up on Facebook that had gotten one year fellowships at the capitol in Sacramento. So without knowing each other, they moved in together. One guy apparently was a partier and had a party one weekend when the other roommate was outta town. Long and short of it is that the other tenants knocked and asked him to keep the noise down after the clock hit 10 or 11 o'clock that night. Now mind you, this is a Victorian home that was renovated into six units. Even with the noise, reducing floors and insulation, when someone is throwing a party, all the units are gonna hear it. And on top of that close proximity, the neighbors, which is a townhouse, right on the property line. Those neighbors are about 10 feet from the entrance of this unit, so of course they were affected as well. So this guy has a party and either him or someone who was there got sick to their stomach and instead of going to the bathroom, apparently this person was still from the frat college days and decided to go outside the front door, which is on the second story, and projectile vomit all down the neighbor's side of the house. And you guys we're not making this shit up. So apparently the neighbors had this guy come and clean it up the next day, but we never heard hide nor hair about this until they moved out.

Kevin: 5:14

And apparently these two roommates, I mean, didn't get along anyway, and they had frequent yelling matches as well.

Stacie: 5:20

Right. So we are working there after they moved out doing the turnover. And that is when everyone decides to let us know how horrible these tenants were. Did they pay rent on time? Yes. Was the unit well cared for when we went in for inspections? Yes. You guys, we cannot know if someone has a noise issue unless we are told or happen to be on the property when it happens. So if someone complains to you and the complaint is fair, be happy it's happening so that you can know if you have crappy tenants. What is worse is when you lose good tenants because nothing is done about the noise violations of bad ones. Regardless of whether they pay on time or not, everyone around your rental property has the right to quiet enjoyment, and this includes other tenants and neighbors. But we do understand that people do not wanna complain. Maybe they fear they'll be targeted by the other tenant. Maybe they fear you as a landlord, will think ill of them for complaining and don't wanna be a bother. Regardless, you need to make it clear you wanna know when their living experience is no longer enjoyable at your rental property.

Kevin: 6:38

All right. Uh, do we wanna tell more stories now?

Stacie: 6:42

Sure. We have a couple more.

Kevin: 6:44

Okay. I mean, so the other one about kid two is minor. And as you may know, we purchased a single family home rental for kid two and his roommates to live in while attending college up in Chico, California. I will begin with this, kid number two is not a huge partier, so we really didn't feel we had much to worry about. Kid two was also very responsible, and if there was gonna be excessive noise he'd usually let the neighbors know. And for context on one side across the street and then right behind this home, were regular people living there. Only on one side was there a house with college students.

Stacie: 7:27

Yeah. And a huge frat house three doors down.

Kevin: 7:30

Yeah, exactly. Which those guys were super loud at all times of the day. So that's why we really didn't worry about kid two. Only one time when we were up there working after he had moved out, did the neighbors come around. I think more to be nosy and see if we were selling it or if more college kids were moving in. And that's when they told us that for the most part, the house was quiet and respectable and only quote unquote a few times did he throw a party that got a little loud. Of course we apologized and at that point, what were we gonna do about it?

Stacie: 8:05

Well, I think they were politely saying, we know that was your kid and we put up with it because of that. But if you rent to more college kids, were not gonna be so forgiving.

Kevin: 8:17

Yeah, maybe, I guess. I mean, that old guy next door was a real pain, regardless of who lived there. I mean, he complained when it was vacant for crying out loud.

Stacie: 8:27

Yeah. All right, then back to Sacramento. We also had the single guy who worked at the capitol that was in a one bed unit. Never heard a peep out of this guy. And then one time we were up there and working in the basement, getting some stuff done, and oh my Lord. He was playing video games and screaming at the top of his lungs. Using a lot of profanity. Now, I have been known to have a foul mouth, but this guy was really bad and this was pre covid, so most of the tenants were still leaving work during the day. So we can't say if he did this on nights and weekends because we were not there much during those times. But this happened a couple times when Kevin and I were there.

Kevin: 9:17

Rather than go pound on his door, which exactly what we wanted to do. After the second or third time of experiencing this, we emailed him a warning saying that we had received a complaint from another tenant. And it ended up not being an issue because shortly after that he decided to move out with his girlfriend. But the point is, for the most part, people do not want to complain, so sometimes you have to ask how things are going to see if they mention anything. Let's discuss what to do about responding to noise complaints that come in either from other tenants, or even sometimes neighbors to your rental property. First and foremost, take all complaints seriously. You wanna acknowledge the complaint and then investigate it promptly. Meaning you need to gather details from the person complaining. So the nature of the noise, the frequency that it occurs, the time of day or night, and the cause of the noise. Because the cause could be a screaming child. And we'll talk more on loud children in a minute. It could be loud music, so like on a radio or if they're playing an instrument, or if they're singing really loud or there's a band practicing. I mean, it could be a domestic dispute of people yelling at each other. Maybe it's a dog that will just not stop barking. Or it could be something motorized like a car, a machinery that your tenant may be running. Not all noise comes from within the confines of the unit. It could be in a garage space or a yard of the property as well. So as we say with absolutely everything that you have to deal with on your rental property, document, document, document. Before you go and run to the person accused of the noise, you might wanna check with other tenants or neighbors to see if the noise has bothered them as well. And the reason why you would do this before approaching the loud person is to see if it's a real problem for everyone. Because if it is, you're gonna have a much stronger case.

Stacie: 11:25

Yeah, and let me jump in here and say that everyone's perception of noise is different and varies. So my son played the drums for years, so it doesn't bother me at all when I hear someone playing. But if I hear someone revving a Harley Davidson motorcycle in their driveway. Or the next door neighbors when they have their gardeners show up at 7:30 in the morning with their blower. That's gonna drive me nuts. And some older people are hard of hearing and play their TV super loud.

Kevin: 11:57

Like your parents.

Stacie: 11:58

Yeah.

Kevin: 12:00

What was it? 42? 44?

Stacie: 12:02

Yeah, exactly. Like my parents. Oh, that's funny. Okay. My point is just because someone calls and says that Joe next door is being really loud, that doesn't mean it's an open shut case. You have to investigate the issue and get all the information you can to support or shut down the complaint. You know, are the tenants or neighbors not on friendly terms? Is the person complaining someone who just likes to complain'cause they need the attention? Or is a complaint valid and needs to be addressed?

Kevin: 12:35

Exactly. I mean, when the old guy next to the house in Chico complained, we quickly discovered that he would complain about anything and everything if you stand still long enough to listen to him. So take the time to determine the cause of the noise. Is it from normal activity or is it really an excessive disturbance? You need to be able to differentiate between unavoidable noises like footsteps and occasional pet sounds and disruptive noise like loud music and frequent late night gatherings. You may get yourself into a situation where you're forced to address concerns of neglect or abuse with pets or children. And after you have gotten some background information of the noise complaint, you will have to move on communicating directly with your tenant who is making this alleged noise. You have the choice here of doing it in person, which likely is the most effective manner. Or you could email or text them too. Regardless of how you discuss the issue, you need to document the information like your life depends on it. You need notes on what was said, the day and time you discuss the issue with them, and who was present when you discussed the issue. And of course, obviously, what the tenant said in response. This is where you need to allow the tenant to share their perspective on the noise complaint. And depending on the nature of the complaint, you might offer suggestions on how you can reduce the volume levels. So, if it is because they wear shoes that are, you know, clickety, clackity and the noise bugs the tenants in the unit below, maybe suggest they remove their shoes when walking around or install an area rug to help lessen the intensity of the noise. If it's a noise in the garage that comes when the garage door is open, see if they can close the garage door when they are playing an instrument, using a big table saw or a woodworking project, or testing out a muffler on their Harley or hot rod. Work with the tenant to create a solution that will appease all parties. You don't want to go in there guns a blazing, pointing fingers and making all the change be with the person making the noise, unless you absolutely have to.

Stacie: 14:52

And when you go talk to the tenant, if they give you pushback, you might need to remind them of any clause that's in their lease. And while there isn't a specific national law regarding the right to quiet enjoyment, it is an implied right in most leases, meaning tenants are entitled to undisturbed use of the property and states generally have their own laws codifying these protections. This usually also applies to neighbors who might be the ones complaining about your noisy tenant. So let's go over some examples in how to handle'em. The homeowner next door to your rental property complains that your tenant frequently plays loud music late at night. You need to acknowledge the complaint and let'em know that you will speak with the tenant about reducing noise levels. When you do speak with a tenant, remind them of your lease policies that they signed off on and offer potential solutions such as setting quiet hours. If the issue persists, you'll need to serve them with a formal three day notice to perform or quit, meaning you're taking their first step in an eviction. If they do not stop having late night parties or playing loud music into the night, you'll have to serve them with a formal notice to stop violating the lease or you're going to move forward with those eviction proceedings. And this is a common notice and is often used when someone's late on rent. You should be able to find a state specific version online. And sideline here, if you do get to this point, you need to know your local ordinances regarding eviction and posting formal notices. You really need to be careful about how they are served and the dates associated with serving those notices. When you can take the next steps are crucial or else you're gonna need to start this process all over again.

Kevin: 16:47

Yeah, and let's hope it never gets to that point. Alright, you mentioned quiet hours. We include quiet hours in our leases, right?

Stacie: 16:56

You know, we used to note in our lease that we had quiet hours between 10:00 PM and 7:00 AM. But now, gimme a minute. Let me see if I can find it in my notes Okay, here we go. Pulling it up. All right. Here it is. It's a very small paragraph that is titled Quiet Enjoyment, Waste and Nuisance. And it states, resident and resident's guests shall not violate any criminal or civil law, ordinance or statute in the use and occupancy of the premises commit, waste or nuisance, annoy, molest, or interfere with any other person on the premises or neighboring property. Any such action may result in the immediate termination of this agreement as provided herein and by law. Resident shall refrain from creating or allowing to be created, any noise that is disturbing to other residents or with any other person on the premises or neighboring property. Residents are also responsible for compliance with any local noise ordinances. So one thing I think is important to note is that where we are discussing noise complaints, many things fall under the umbrella of the right to quiet enjoyment. Of course noise, but also if someone is a hoarder and has a ton of stuff stacked outside their unit, like in the garage or the driveway. That clutter can be horrible for rodents to nest, and pests are also part of this quiet enjoyment. Basically, anything that would violate a health and safety ordinance can be something someone can complain about causing them undue stress.

Kevin: 18:45

Right. So regardless of whether the complaint is tenant to tenant or neighbor to tenant, bottom line, you need to essentially gather information from both sides and work to create a solution that appeases them both. Often that means you will have to be a mediator between the parties working to keep the emotions to a minimum. And sometimes that means the noisy tenant at some point could be evicted, which of course should be the very last option.

Stacie: 19:16

I mean, that of course is going to be extreme situations, but yeah. What it comes down to is if they're violating the lease and local noise ordinances and refusing to make any changes and then also refusing to allow you as a landlord to make any modifications that might help with the situation, then you would have to advise them that the next step is eviction.

Kevin: 19:40

So let me discuss what Stacie means by modifications. That can be carpeting the upstairs unit, so the floors are padded and it lessens the noise for the tenant below. And sideline, if adding carpet to an upstairs unit, go ahead and spend the money for a minimum of seven mil carpet pad. That's the minimum recommended for noise suppression, and what we use in our units above the first level that are carpeted. There are also acoustical tiles that you can put on the ceiling and walls that will help suppress noise. Offering the complainant a white noise machine will also help dampen noise. Now if you seem to get a lot of noise complaints from tenants, when you do a turnover you can insulate the walls between units. I mean where it is best to actually remove the drywall and place dense insulation that is specifically used to cancel noise, if you know there is no insulation present and your wiring is all up to date, I guess you could look into using spray foam. I know some companies out here in California go around and cut holes down low between the studs and then spray the foam up into the walls. Now I know they do that for exterior walls, I'm just not sure they would do that for the interior walls though. I am not sure why not, but it's something to look into that could be minimal cost and repairs compared to removing the drywall.

Stacie: 21:06

So I wanna talk a minute about noise complaints involving children. If a neighbor complains that the tenant's children are too loud while playing outside during the daytime, you'll need to assess whether the noise is unreasonable or simply typical child's play. If the complaint is about normal daytime activities, you'll have to explain to the neighbor, or even if it's another tenant, children playing is generally not considered a nuisance. You'd be hard pressed to find anyone with any legal authority to say so. However, if excessive screaming, disruptive behavior, or late night disturbances are involved you will need to discuss reasonable quiet hours with the tenant and suggest solutions such as supervised playtimes or designated quiet periods. Maybe you can ask the tenant to take the child to a local park to play. You know, there there might be a situation where another tenant or a neighbor works nights and they sleep during these daytime hours, and both are valid. The complainant has the right to sleep when they need to, and the child has the right to play outside during the day when they want to. So who wins on that one? This is the perfect example of both parties needing to come together with an agreement. Maybe you offer a white noise machine or earplugs to the person who needs to sleep, and you ask the family with a young child to adjust their playtime to be inside or go to a park during the hours when that person needs to sleep. Another common complaint regarding children we hear about is young adults playing their music or their video games too loud. We already touched on our adult tenants screaming while playing video games, but he was a tenant and we could address him directly. If the person causing the noise is a minor who you know, honestly should know better, the complaint has to go to the adult on the lease. They're the ones who are responsible for handling the noise regardless of the minor's age. And another sideline. This is exactly why we suggest that when a minor tenant turns 18 years of age, you add them on as an authorized occupant. This way, if and when lease violations occur that involve them directly, you can address them one-on-one and not have to go through the tenant. If they do not comply, they alone can be evicted, not the whole family. All right, but getting back to dealing with complaints. Whatever the outcome, if you become involved, before you can close the book on the complaint, you need to follow up with the other tenant or the neighbor to ensure that the issue has been resolved.

Kevin: 23:50

Okay, now I wanna discuss what the legal considerations are over noise complaints. And here we go with our disclosure. We are not lawyers. We are simply providing information to assist and help our listeners understand how to handle issues and situations that may arise while acting as a landlord. It is up to you to do follow-up research and or consult with your legal counsel if you have questions pertaining to this episode and the legality of your situation in your city, county, or state. Alright, got that out of the way. So can landlords be sued over noise complaints? Bottom line? Yes, they can. But there has to be a lot of negligence on the landlord's part to make that happen. Landlords may be held liable if they fail to address ongoing noise complaints that violate lease agreements or local noise ordinances. If someone complains to you about noise, which is our subject today, and you do nothing to resolve the issue, you could be found to be violating your part of the lease to provide an implied warranty of quiet enjoyment. That is correct, tenants may sue for breach of the implied warranty of quiet enjoyment, which guarantees their right to live peacefully in a rental property. If a landlord fails to take action against a noisy tenant causing significant disturbances, other tenants or neighbors may seek legal remedies including small claims court action or formal complaints to housing authorities. And let me tell you, this is not worth being sued over. Do what you need to do either to work things out between the two parties, provide what is reasonable to help solve or mitigate the issue or move forward with an eviction. The right to quiet enjoyment, which we spoke of earlier, is a legal principle that ensures tenants have the right to use their rental without undue disturbances. If the landlord does not take reasonable steps to address excessive noise complaints, they may be in violation of this right leading to potential legal claims.

Stacie: 26:05

And you guys, this right extends to non tenant neighbors as well. Meaning that landlords must ensure that their tenants do not cause disturbances that impact surrounding community members. This provision is in the lease for the tenants to abide by, but it is also usually in the lease to protect the tenant as well as expectations for peaceful living. When you sign the lease, you agree to make sure tenants can live in the unit with little or reasonable disturbances. Again, today we're talking about noise, but in our episode about hoarding, we discussed this as well, and that is in episode 72. You can listen by going to your landlord resource.com/episode 72. Or you can click the link in our show notes. But noise complaints are by far the most common issue surrounding this right to peaceful enjoyment clause. Okay, we are getting ready to wrap up this episode, but not before we give you some advice on how to prevent noise complaints. We've already touched on soundproofing your property, so installing acoustic insulation of walls, floors, and ceilings. Changing out single pane windows for soundproof windows and doors, or adding carpeting or other noise reducing materials. You know, that can be difficult, but so can be listening to people complaining constantly. So really quickly I wanna talk about how here in the San Francisco Bay Area, thousands of residents received free double pane windows installed on their homes because of a noise abatement ordinance that forced SFO, that's San Francisco airport, to replace single pane windows with double paned ones for homes that were in the regular flight path. My first house in South San Francisco benefited from this, and the sound difference was amazing. It used to be when we were on the phone, we would have to stop talking when the planes flew over because it was so loud. I mean, it still was loud after the windows were installed, but they really did help. So because those implementations I mentioned can be expensive, we wanna remind you all of how important it is to have cash reserves held. This is exactly the improvements that those reserves are for. And if you'd like to learn more about what we have to say on cash reserves, head on over to episode 28 where we break it all down for you. You can find that at yourlandlordresource.com/episode 28, or by going to the link in our show notes.

Kevin: 28:40

Yeah, I mean if you have to spend money, it's better to be on the improvements to your property than employing a lawyer to defend you, right?

Stacie: 28:48

Right.

Kevin: 28:49

Alright, almost done here, but you know, we have to talk about two more things. Screening your applicant's properly and having a solid lease in place to protect you. I don't want to get into the details of it now, we will do an episode on tenant screening at some point here, but you need to vet your tenants before placing them. This means a few things. One, consider a no pet policy. Dogs bark, bird squawk. Animals make noise, so if you wanna avoid a noise complaint due to a pet, don't allow'em in the first place. And if you are going to allow pets, make sure there is a clause in your lease about the noise the pet can make. Vet pets like you do tenants. Talk to their veterinarian to see if they are rambunctious or they're known to make a lot of noise. Talk to previous landlords to see if there were any issues with that pet. And maybe even meet the pet yourself if you think that'll help. You'll also want to ask previous landlords about the tenant. Did they have noise complaints filed against them, is one of our questions we always ask previous landlords. And let me be clear here. You cannot refuse to rent to a tenant with children because you think those kids might disturb other tenants. This is highly illegal as families fall under the Fair Housing Act or FHA The law protects families with children from discrimination in renting, prohibiting landlords from refusing to rent or imposing different terms based on familial status. All you can do here is set expectations before the lease signing. And speaking of leases, make sure you have a solid state specific lease. If you need to find one. We have a couple of recommendations. If you handle all the management yourself and just need a lease, we recommend EZ Landlord Forms. We cannot recommend these guys enough. They have state specific leases and over 400 forms to make your landlord tenant relationship top notch. 200 of those forms are free for those not ready to purchase. That's all with the free account. You can get access to all their forms and leases for 30 days at a cost of$45, and that includes e-sign capabilities. If you want access to everything that's lease, forms, e-sign, rent collection, and a discount on screening services, you can pay$15 a month with a minimum purchase of three months. Or you can get a really good deal with a pro account, and that's an annual payment of$99 a year where you get all of the above for an average monthly price of$8.25. Plus you can use the code STACIE15. That's Stacie with an IE and the number 15,(15), to get 15% off all first time purchases. And you can find our partner link in the show notes.

Stacie: 32:00

Yeah, they used to have a lifetime membership, which was really a good deal, but I guess because it was so popular, they stopped offering it. Other ways to find a good lease would be to ask your Realtor or join a local real estate association. Like we are part of the California Apartment Association, and that grants us access to leases and addendums, we get E-sign, cloud storage of our leases, property management courses, legal aid, which is a huge one, and updates on our landlord tenant laws that are gonna affect our rental properties. And it's expensive to be a member, but we get a lot out of it. Most property management softwares also have leases as well. I'm not sure if they offer state specific leases or just more generalized ones, but we do like Turbo Tenant. Where again, you can sign up for a free account and that's gonna get you unlimited property listings, applications, tenant screening, uh, state specific leases, online rent collection and maintenance request. And that's all with the free account. If you wanna upgrade from the free account to the pro level, then you would get unlimited lease agreements, a landlord forms pack, expedited rent payments. That's means that your ACH rent payments would come sooner than the typical five days, custom screening questions. And that's for$119 annually, which gives you a average monthly rate of around 10 bucks a month. And finally, they do have a premium level where you get all the bells and whistles for$149 annually. That's gonna give you everything that you get above, and you get lower screening fees, unlimited E-signatures, which is nice when you have multiple tenants on the lease. And they also waive the ACH fees, which right there is worth it for us because we have paid much higher rates for ACH deposits. So just by using Turbo Tenant Pro for this service alone, it's worth it. Now we'll link Turbo Tenant in the show notes for you.'cause even just signing up for the free account is worth it, in our opinion.

Kevin: 34:07

Yeah, it is. And Kid two just signed up with them for this new rental, right?

Stacie: 34:12

He did. You know, listen, we're partners with several property management software companies, but Turbo Tenant is our go-to for those who are just starting out, either with rentals or for software. You can't go wrong creating a free account and learning what they're about. They're a great company and they do really take care of their members.

Kevin: 34:32

Alright, so let me go over what we have discussed today. As landlords your best practices, regardless of whether you receive a noise complaint or not, is to: Maintain open communication with tenants. Make sure they know the best way to contact you. Address complaints consistently and fairly. Look into both sides of the story and do your best to mediate the situation, and offer remedies on your own if you can. Make sure you regularly review and update your lease agreement to reflect noise policies. Use addendums in your lease when there is specific items to address for your property that are not otherwise covered in your lease. Thoroughly screen tenants to ensure you have done all you can to avoid tenants who might become a nuisance. Finally encourage a harmonious living environment to improve tenant satisfaction and retention by being kind, responsible, and organized when self-managing your rental properties.

Stacie: 35:36

Very nice recap there.

Kevin: 35:38

Thank you.

Stacie: 35:40

Yeah, noise complaints are common issue in rental properties, especially in multifamily units. As Kevin had mentioned, proactive prevention and effective communication, enforcement of your policies really does help resolve disputes and is key to ensuring peaceful living environments for your tenants. That's our show for today. If you enjoy this episode, would you do us a favor and leave us a kind review of the podcast? Reviews help others find out that you know we're the real deal. And if you wanna hear more, follow or subscribe to the podcast so that each week the episodes are downloaded right into your favorite podcast platform. We would love to stay in contact with you. In the show notes you can find links to all the free downloads we offer, ways to sign up for our free newsletter, and the wait list for upcoming course on tenant screening. There's also links to our private Facebook group that is just for landlords. Plus our social media accounts on Instagram and Facebook, as well as YouTube. I think that's about it. Thanks again for listening. Until next time, you've got this landlords.