Breaking lease - help needed
 

Hi all,
Husband and I rented a property starting date 29th August 2014. All goods arrived that day from the UK (very exciting) not seen them since May.
On closer inspection of the property (filling in the condition report) we noticed the following: no plugs in any of the 5 sinks and 1 bath, the gas hob ignition switch had broken off, so hob useless. The grill did not work in the oven. Both smoke alarms had been unscrewed slighly from the ceiling and no batteries in them. Huge down stairs back window where sun would shine in had no curtain/ blind etc. Crack in the bath about 1 inch long, I originally just thought it was a hair, but when I bought a bath plug I realised it was a crack/hole, so bath is unusable. Lots of issues with door keys etc not working. The place was filthy !!
I feel I could go on and on and I know it all sounds rather petty. Anyway we have paid the rent upfront, but decided to go back to our other accomodation until some of the problems were resolved, eg; the cooker, smoke alarms.

We finally moved in last week and started unpacking boxes etc. Right I will get to the point now, the neighbour and her front door and fly screen door (we have the same). Our neighbour gets up at 5am and bangs every cupboard and wardrobe door in her room, my head board backs onto the wall of her wardrobe, she then runs up and down the stairs doing exercises and then goes out of her front door banging them both numerous times to close them.
I am a very light sleeper but it also appears that these houses are made out of paper and the single glazing may as well not be there. So we are both awake from 5am, she then comes back around 5.45am and the door slamming starts all over again. Then again at 6.30am when she leaves for work. Then her 20 something daughter gets up and is twice as noisy if that is at all humanly possible.

So last night we decide we would have an early night and go to bed at 11.30pm instead of our usual 12.30am. And surprise surprise the daughter arrives home at 12am and proceeds to have a discussion with her mates on the doorstep, it would have been easier and warmer for them to have just joined us in bed !, she then bids them good night and slam slam slam those doors again, she then comes out half an hour later and has a cigarette on the doorstep and slam slam slam.

This morning I was again woken before 5am with the slamming of the wardrobe door, so I thought frick this I have had enough. I get up and get dressed and go and sit on the doorstep to wait for Mrs jogger arriving back.
I politely introduce myself and say that whilst I appreciate that our neighbour likes jogging at 5am, 7 DAYS A WEEK ! I also asked if she could bear in mind how noisy the doors are as we have the same doors and we make every effort to be quiet, (we leave around 7.45am) only 5 days a week, we appreciate people like a lie in on the weekend (including hardworking us).
Well imagine my surprise when the sour faced bitch, turned on me and smirked and said, "I OWN my property, you are just renting, don't expect me to move out, if you don't like the noise, good luck with your move".

I said, "thank you for being such a considerate neighbour" and she smirked and said "your welcome" !!!

We signed our lease for 18 months (the estate agent requested this to keep the rent from being put up !!) and like mugs we signed. We have paid our October rent a few days ago and are absolutely f****ed off to say the least. We have a 4 bedroom and 1 study house, crammed into this 3 bedroom rental, I have about 25 boxes I haven't even attempted to open and we are now planning on moving out.

Just wanted a vent really, and now we are going to have to spend this weekend looking at properties, which we did for the first 6 weeks we landed and drove us mental, as most of them are disgusting, old and very very overpriced. We are not staying here long term so buying is not an option for us.

I informed the estate agent today that we would be looking for another property, the receptionist said, put it in an email.

We are in Melbourne, thanks for listening

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

I think there is a law against excessive noise between 11pm and 7am but you might want to check that.

To be fair to the Estate agent, they are not responsible for noisy neighbours and so it's not reason to break a contract. If the repairs are all complete (hence why you moved back in) then I would think your only option is to try again with your neighbour and then the police. But, I doubt you'll get very far with a teenager.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Thanks for the reply,

The bath still has a hole in it, we bought all 6 plugs, we bought batteries for the smoke alarms but they were actually broke so 2 second hand ones were fitted !! no idea where you get 2nd hand smoke alarms but apparantly the landlord has several properties.

I know in the tenancy agreement it states that the landlord has to allow you to have "quiet enjoyment of the property".

The daughter is in her late 20's they are both professional women who go out to work dressed very smart and both have cars, forgot to mention the daughter sits reving hers up for 20 minutes whilst she has a cigarette in the morning outside our front door.

I know it is not the agents fault but I cannot function and neither can my husband on 4 hours sleep a night, he has a difficult job and has said he is shattered at work by 1pm and cannot focus, he works till roughly 6.30pm each night. I have been diagnosed with a few illnesses this year and my hormones and lack of sleep are giving me migraines. I feel sick to my stomach and wish we had just walked away from the property the day we moved in. I know we are going to have to throw about 10,000 at this and still lose our bond etc etc, I just feel sick that someone cannot shut a door quietly. It all sound petty but they are very very noisy.

This is not the Australia we came for, I cannot live in a house for another 17 months with a bitch and her selfish daugheter as a neighbour, this is a fking nightmare !!

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

I believe quiet enjoyment of the property refers to the landlord not disturbing you with unscheduled visits and so on. I don't think the landlord can be held responsible for noisy neighbours and the contract wouldn't be suggesting that they can.

I expect you just have to take the hit and pay up until they re-let it. At least properties do tend to go fairly quickly in Australia.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Suggest getting some advice from tenants organisation Victoria. Also read the lease as it will have something in it about breaking a fixed term. In nsw you can pay a lease break fee if the contract allows, but not sure about the position in Victoria. Annoying and inconsiderate neighbours are unfortunately not normally a get out of lease condition.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Just crank your music up so you can't hear them. Then tell them it's the only way you can't hear their noise. ;)

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Usually you can break the lease if you find another tenant, may mean paying for the advertising and rent till new tenant is found. Mind you pity the poor person who rents it:(.

We have had so many loud neighbours , tennis playing at 5am, kids in pool at 5am, dogs barking for 10 hour shifts.... plus in QLD its doors and windows all open for 10 months of the year, every house has some deck/patio so you can enjoy your neighbours every fart/sneeze/conversation/argument at all hours and the nightly stink of bbq smoke. People just seem pretty loud in general.

Can you move your bed off that wall?. As for smoke alarms, they are usually maintained in a rental property by a company licensed to do so, its a huge liability area, the managing agents usually discourage anyone else to even touch them. Professional inspections 6 mos, 12 mos and every tenant change that is in QLD. Put in writing the smoke alarms dont work, no sane landlord would want that on their head. Ditto stove, you got zapped? think someone will act then.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Use this as a starting point for knowing where you stand.
tenants union of victoria - Tenants Union of Victoria

Use this as a starting point for knowing where you stand with regard to Residential noise.
Prohibited times for residential noise | Environment Protection Authority | EPA Victoria

Build your case citing excerpts from each to your Rental Agent and get them to rectify, it is in their interests to keep the rental income going.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Hi Sadie, PMd you with some advice I can't put on the public forum.

BB

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Could it be that the landlord knew exactly what the situation was (with the "neighbours") and wanted a long lease for this very reason? 18 months min. term seems a bit high...

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

You could be on to something. Although we have an 18 month lease and they wanted 24 months. Nothing wrong with our house, they just wanted to keep us as tenants (we had already been there for two years).

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

I have never heard of having a new tenant on an 18 month lease. We prefer to put our tenants on a 6 month lease if possible to assess the suitablility both ways. If all is going well then onto a 12 month.
Sounds like they may have had issues before with the property.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

I may be wrong, but surely they are not allowed to fit second hand smoke detectors by law! Iould be chasing this up with both the appropriate rental authority in Melbourne AND Vic Fire.
Also if you do break the lease, I have had good advice to advertise it on Gumtree. That way you may save yourself money by letting the agency do the work.

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Sadieb, just out of curiosity is the landlord local or foreign?

Re: Breaking lease - help needed
 

Why in heaven's name would that matter? :confused: