I have had many requests from other victims of anti-social neighbours to produce a "how to" guide... so here it is:
How to put Housing on notice that you are not going to take this anymore!
Firstly - print out this statement in large letters and stick it on your fridge; say it to yourself every morning and repeat it to every Housing staff member you encounter:
I have a RIGHT to quiet enjoyment of my property.
The Landlord must take all reasonable steps TO ENSURE that my other neighbouring tenants do not interfere with my reasonable peace, comfort or privacy.
1. Gather Evidence:
a) Record every single incident on paper. Housing provide a nice little form called the "Serious Incident Report". Go to Housing and collect 20 of these forms. Note the time and date and be very accurate.
b) Tape record incidents and noise. You are not allowed to video record anyone without their permission but you are allowed to tape record if you are wholly within your own property.Transcribe all tapes so that the court can hear the evidence as well as read the evidence. Make sure times and dates are accurately recorded.
c) Photograph damage, vandalism, etc preferably with the time/date stamp on the photo.
d) Get medical reports from your doctor about how the stress is affecting your health.
e) Get witnesses. And get witnesses that will actually come to court and give evidence. The more independant the better - your mother's evidence doesn't carry much weight.
f) Write a letter every single week. If they have not satisfactorily dealt with last weeks letter, ask them why... IN WRITING! Do not miss a week. If you do not keep up a constant stream of letters, when it gets to court they will defend their position by saying that it hasn't been ongoing and constant noise/ violence/ anti-social behaviour.
g) Keep your papers and evidence neat and organised in date order, in a folder. When you reach court, you will need three copies. One for you, one for the Tribunal Member and one for the Housing Legal Rep. Number every page in the top right corner in large numbers, in dark texta. You will need to find pages quickly in the courtroom and then you can easily refer to "on page 59..." etc.
2. Present evidence to Housing:
a) Do not phone Housing to complain. They will not record that you called and will deny that you complained.
b) Deliver all paper reports to your Housing office - get them to date stamp them and photocopy them and then keep the copy.
c) Do not attend any interview with Housing without an independant witness. Get this witness to take along a pen and paper and record everything that is said. Write this up straight after the interview and give Housing a copy.
d) Remind Housing of their responsibility to you - the legal, law-abiding, rent-paying tenant. Remind them that by LAW they must manage their properties and that their own website says they are "individually accountable".
3. Legal avenues:
a) Issue the DoH with a Notice of Breach of Duty - (the Landlord 'has not allowed you quiet enjoyment of the property'.) Give them 14 days to respond. If they do not respond in a manner that satisfies you, apply to the Tribunal for a hearing.
b) If the problem is with "visitors" of the tenant (ie. they are not actually on the lease) then you can apply to the Local Court for an AVO (if violence or threats are involved - see point 1b) or a Noise Abatement Order to prevent the visitor attending the property.
c) Apply to the Tribunal for a Hearing under the Residential Tenancy Act (see footnote). It will cost $5 (in NSW) and you will have to provide good, comprehensive evidence so that's where point 1 comes into play.
You need to prove two things: One - that the anti-social behaviour of the neighbour breached your lease and two - that Housing did nothing about it.
4. Be prepared
a) Be prepared to be frustrated by Housing staff. They will fob you off with every excuse and every delaying tactic. They will lose papers and tapes and deny that you had meetings.
b) At the Tribunal, Be very prepared. Know your evidence and let that evidence speak for itself. If you lie you WILL be caught out and you can watch your case go down the gurgler.
c) Be prepared to be bullied by the Housing Legal Rep. Ask the Tribunal Member to allow you to have a Legal Rep or a Spokesperson or Advocate. The Tribunal Member is impartial and deserves respect. Try to stay emotionally detached and just answer the questions.
d) If you can, go along to the CTTT and sit in on a case or two to observe how it operates and how you should present your case.
5. Don'ts:
a) Forget "writing to the Minister or your MP". They are useless and simply refer straight back to the same people who are ignoring the problems in the first place.
b) Don't listen to Housing staff when they tell you to call Police for anti-social behaviour. Most ASB is not criminal activity and the Police can't do anything. Leave calling the Police for when you really NEED them.
c) Don't abuse Housing staff. They will take your sleep-deprived desperation and your frustration and turn them against you. They will mark your file that you are the abusive party in the dispute.
d) Do NOT trust Housing to do their jobs. Expect them to ignore your complaints and act accordingly.
e) Don't be an idiot and leave it for two years like I did. 2 months is more than enough!
If you have a WIN, please come back and tell us about it or email house@ourhouseswap.com.au
Footnotes
Residential Tenancies Act 1987 No 26 Sect 22 Tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment
(1) It is a term of every residential tenancy agreement that:
(a) the tenant shall have quiet enjoyment of the residential premises without interruption by the landlord or any person claiming by, through or under the landlord or having superior title (for example, a head landlord) to that of the landlord, and
(b) the landlord or the landlord’s agent shall not interfere, or cause or permit any interference, with the reasonable peace, comfort or privacy of the tenant in using the residential premises.
(2) A landlord or a landlord’s agent under a residential tenancy agreement shall not, during the currency of the agreement, contravene or fail to comply with subsection (1).
Now amended to:
Residential Tenancies Act 2010 - Sect 50
(3) A landlord or landlord's agent must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the landlord's other neighbouring tenants do not interfere with the reasonable peace, comfort or privacy of the tenant in using the residential premises.
Most valuable information you have given here. I am on a disability pension and like so many others, not stupid, simply addled and drained and not know where to begin. Big thank you.
ReplyDeletethankyou so much for all that information ,without people like you we wouldnt know what to do.Your coloumn is superb keep up the great work.
ReplyDeleteYour information is great, but after speaking to DOH at a meeting some months back, I asked do all tenants sign the same lease and if so why do some get special treatment?
ReplyDeleteI was told, yes all DOH tenants sign the same lease, BUT there are 3 cat- agrees of people that are accepted by DOH
First the one who are able to work they are accepted Last on the list.
Second the ones who are in need of special help,(drug takers,mental ill, disable and so on),They go FIRST on the list.
Third the disable who can work but need support, also people coming out of goal and so on.
So if you are a poor hard working tax paying good person with no criminal record you go last on the list even if you have 8 children.
That is the Government for you.
Just through you would like to know that, I just sat at the meeting in disbelief and said so where is the sense in us all signing the same lease, if the special species/ferals (some of the above are I know not all ) have an unwritten law to them selves supported by our Government.Such as the mental health,out of goal support team and so on.
I think the best lesson to learn is to never go into DOH
Your information has opened a window for me and I have the skills to apply your steps. Thank you. I could prove antisocial behaviour and breach of lease. I could prove that housing hasn't acted on the claim. I have always known I have the right to quiet enjoyment of my property.
ReplyDeleteBUT..... WHAT DOES ONE DO IF, IN FIGHTING, ONES VERY LIFE IS THREATENED AS A RESULT.
At a minimum there would be destruction to personal property as I have experienced. Sadly, and more importantly, I would have grave concerns for my physical wellbeing. In my case a wizbin set alight under a child's bedroom.
I have lived in this 15 home complex for 14 years. We are a very caring and supportive small community We share our life path, our joys, our sorrows. Over time lovely friendships have grown.
As well we have lived within a world of heroin dealers, violent criminals, drug addicts, thieves, people with anger management issues........shall I go on?
What do you suggest? Perhaps the Law requires review to enable people to complain without threat nor fear. Now that would be freedom of speech.
I suggest you would do what people in private rental do... call the police.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes I know that may just antagonise the situation further - but the alternative is to let the bullies win. I know which path I would take.
When I was a tenant elected representative on the Surrey Hills Neighbourhood Advisory board, to the Department of Housing New South Wales, back between 2000 to 05. I would also suggest to leave a paper trail, by making sure that any information you give them, is photocopied, stamped and signed, and that information is given back to you, that way they can never say they have lost the paper work.
ReplyDeleteWhere I used to live in South Hobart, you would call the police, and housing over the anti sociable behavior all both played was blame games at each other. Your cars property was damaged. The police said to me they will not lay charges because the person was drunk. They changed their attitude once I complained to the state ombudsman office, who found the police were not doing their job.
ReplyDeleteTo Jayblueaus. Good old Surry Hills office. Well try talking to them. Hitting a brick wall is what you get. One particular family, that's all. If they are in the mood for destruction of all kind, well bad luck for you.Client Service Officer won't do a thing. We are all going ten steps over his head.They are the most slack, unworthy office of the century, in particular one. The police, they just tell you to see Housing. I didn't know you can breach your tenancy several times by making people's lives hell.
ReplyDeleteFunny you say to be aware of the Legal rep. I found the guy form the legal department to be professional and no-nonsense compared to the people and the local housing office.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you do if you are living in a privately owned property next to a DOH residence? I have had many problems, and teh DOH will do nothing
ReplyDeleteOh I really needed this information 2 yrs ago. But then karma got the better of my obnoxious neighbour - he dropped dead from a heart attack!
ReplyDeleteI have had anti social behaviour, drug dealers, foul language, threats of rape, violence, being bashed. Porn left on my back door step with notations to my body parts,storked for 2 years,purposely woken between 12 and 3am night after night for extendered time frames till i was suffering sleep deprevation,foul notes left on my front door.Because i have stood up for my self against the DOH when they were bulling me and creating a false debt fausley trying to extort mony from me by taking me to the tribunal to which they droped the case when i turned up with all my evidence to which i have got them off side. I have taken them to the Tribunal this time this is the 5th ajurnment again they are trying to extort extra mony from me again under a different title this time they called me and asked me to drop the case which i declined. Anyhow while i was waiting at the tribunal and they where acting all nice and sweet asking how things were going to which they already new i had on going probs to which i have an active transfer they asked me for a name i said if they say anything at all about this to the ofender i will be a target they assured me they wouldn't say a thing so i gave them the name a couple dayes later i got a brick through my window and was confronted by the offender at my front door at 3am accusing me of putting him in he told me Department of housing told him that i put him in. They purpossly put me in harms way, now i carnt trust them at all.They certainly have not showed a duty of care in my case. I have been on the transfer list for 1 year there has been 2 offers from the area i want to transfer to and my office have not noticfied me the reason i no is i phoned the office in the area i want to move to too see where i was on there list and the told me that i have already had 2 offers but my office has never pased it on to me.I have many support from Dr ect.I am still collecting evidence and i will take them to cort Bail Boshev Lawyers when the time is right.
ReplyDelete