Is secondhand smoking bothering you in your New Jersey apartment or condo? Discover your alternatives here.
Every New Jersey renter understands that living in an apartment or condo complex may be difficult, particularly when your neighbors’ behaviors disrupt your life in unpleasant 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.
Smoking is prohibited in specific parts of apartment and condo buildings in New Jersey. Your landlord may also have a tougher nonsmoking policy, or you may have extra smoking restrictions if you reside in public housing or university housing. Whatever part of New Jersey you live in, you have various alternatives for dealing with secondhand smoke, notably cigarette smoke.
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Examine Your Lease or Rental Contract
As nonsmoking rules grow increasingly common (for example, in the workplace; see N.J. Stat. Ann. 26:3D-56 to 26:3D-61, 34:6B-1), an increasing number of landlords are enacting nonsmoking restrictions for their rental properties. Because there is no legal right to smoke, landlords may implement whatever form of smoking policy they wish, from outright outlawing smoking in a building to confining smoking to certain locations.
If you’re worried about secondhand smoke, one of the first things you should do is go through your lease’s smoking regulations. If the landlord does not have a smoking policy in the lease, be sure to inquire about it. If there is, have the 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.
Smoking is forbidden in all interior public locations, including lobbies, parking garages, and elevators of multi-unit residential buildings, under the New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act. If requested, a landlord may impose stronger non-smoking regulations. Somerset County, at least, gives tools and information to landlords who wish to implement smoke-free rules. The Coalition for a Healthy New Jersey also offers information for establishing smoke-free housing and a directory for renters seeking for smoke-free housing.
If you reside in public housing or university housing, your apartment building is more likely to have smoking restrictions or prohibitions. The Woodbridge Housing Authority, for example, has prohibited smoking in several of its public housing complexes. Similarly, certain New Jersey colleges, including Brookdale Community College and Rowan University, have implemented smoke-free rules.
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. Explain your worries and difficulties with secondhand smoke, as well as the exact lease agreement or statute 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. Keep in mind, however, that without laws on your side, these claims will be tough to win.
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 New Jersey, you may suit in small claims court for up to $3,000 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.
E-Cigarettes
E-cigarettes are personal vaporizers that emit liquid nicotine or other liquids and oils that the user inhales. The use of e-cigarettes is often referred to as vaping. E-cigarettes were included under New Jersey’s Smoke-Free Air Act as of January 2010. This implies that, like smoking, using e-cigarettes is illegal in all multi-unit residential building lobbies, parking garages, and elevators.