Is secondhand smoking bothering you in your Massachusetts apartment or condo? Discover your alternatives here.
Every Massachusetts resident understands that living in an apartment or condo complex can be difficult, particularly when your neighbors’ behaviors interfere with your life in unfavorable ways. Secondhand smoking, like loud neighbors, is becoming a typical tenant concern. Whether you have a respiratory condition like asthma, are concerned about the health effects of secondhand smoke (especially if you have children at home), or simply don’t like the smell of cigarette smoke wafting into your apartment, there are steps you can take to try to limit or eliminate your neighbors’ smoking.
The law may be on your side depending on where you reside in Massachusetts, particularly if you live in public housing or university housing. You have various choices for coping with secondhand smoke, notably cigarette smoke, regardless of where you live.
Examine Your Lease or Rental Contract
As nonsmoking rules grow more ubiquitous (for example, in the workplace; see Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 270, 22), an increasing number of landlords ban smoking entirely in their rental apartments or limit smoking to communal spaces. Because there is no legal right to smoke, landlords may implement whatever smoking policy they desire. It may only apply to a portion of a complex or to the whole complex. The landlord just has to clearly mark the smoking and nonsmoking sections.
If you’re worried about secondhand smoke, one of the first things you should do is go through your lease’s smoking regulations. If your lease contains no mention of smoking, you should inquire with your landlord regarding the complex’s smoking policy. If there is, have your landlord put it in writing and include it in the lease. (Ideally, you should have done this before signing a lease, especially if you or a member of your family is highly sensitive to secondhand smoking.)
Whether you reside in a condo, you should also check with your homeowners’ organization (HOA) to determine if your building or common spaces have smoking restrictions. Check the lease (or CC&Rs, if a HOA) for rules dealing with nuisances, since secondhand smoking might be deemed a legal nuisance in certain cases.
Check your state’s nonsmoking laws.
Currently, there is no statewide regulation forbidding smoking in private residential units such as flats and condominiums in Massachusetts. Nonsmoking prohibitions may, however, be imposed by landlords in apartment and condo buildings. These prohibitions may apply to the whole structure or only a section of it. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health provides information for both landlords and renters seeking smoke-free homes.
If you live in public housing or university housing, smoking in your apartment or shared spaces is more likely to be restricted or prohibited. Many Massachusetts communities, including Boston, Cambridge, and Lowell, have smoke-free rules in place for public housing. Similarly, several Massachusetts colleges, including Harvard University and the University of Massachusetts, have implemented smoke-free regulations.
Visit the American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation to determine whether your city or county has a legislation forbidding or regulating smoking in private or public dwellings; this group also provides substantial resources for renters worried about secondhand smoke (as well as information on e-cigarettes and vaping). To find out whether your institution is tobacco- or smoke-free, go to the Tobacco Free College Campus Initiative.
Speak with Your Landlord
If you discover that your agreement or a local law forbids or limits smoking in rental properties, you should first discuss the problem with your landlord. If other tenants are harmed by secondhand smoking, check if they would join you in informing the landlord of your concerns. You should clarify the lease rules or regulations to your landlord and request that they be enforced in order to persuade the infringing neighbor to cease smoking. You may feel better at ease writing a letter or sending an email to your landlord than conversing face to face. Putting your findings in writing and asking for realistic answers may frequently solve the situation. Keep copies of any letters, emails, and notes from meetings with your landlord in case you need them in the future.
Remember to be courteous while communicating with your landlord. Detail your concerns and difficulties with secondhand smoke, as well as the exact lease agreement or statute (if applicable) that forbids or limits smoking in your apartment building or condo complex. Give some possible solutions to the situation (such as fixing cracks in the walls or repairing faulty vents that allow smoke to drift into your home from a neighboring apartment). Please give your contact information so that the landlord may further discuss the situation with you.
Even if you have not discovered a lease term or local legislation that forbids or limits smoking on the rental property, you (and any other concerned renters) should contact your landlord, particularly if your health (or the health of another family member) is jeopardized by secondhand smoking. Maybe you can assist your landlord in establishing a smoking policy in your apartment complex. You may be able to find a sensible solution, such as limiting smoking to certain regions or periods. The American Lung Association website has a wealth of material that will assist you make your case; for example, read Smokefree Policies in Multi-Unit Housing – Steps for Success.
Your Legal Options Regarding Secondhand Smoking
If you are unable to reach an agreement with your landlord and the secondhand smoke is interfering with your life or impacting your health, you should consider moving out. Depending on the circumstances, you may be able to break your lease due to the health risks of secondhand smoking.
Depending on the severity of the situation, you may want to consider filing a lawsuit against the landlord. You may be able to assert that the secondhand smoke is a nuisance or interferes with your right to peaceful enjoyment of the rental property. Although one Massachusetts court ruled that smoke can disrupt a tenant’s use of an apartment (see Westland Housing Corp. v. Scott, 312 Mass. 375 (1942), a case about an oil burner that produced excess smoke and fumes), keep in mind that these cases will likely be difficult to win in the absence of laws on your side.
If you merely wish to sue for monetary losses (such as dry cleaning or medical expenditures due to secondhand smoking), you might file a complaint in small claims court. In Massachusetts, you may suit in small claims court for up to $7,000 in damages.
Remember that these types of cases may be expensive, time-consuming, and destructive to relationships. Before deciding to litigate, you should contact with a lawyer and assess if the hassle is worth it.