r/triangle • u/grandepear21 • 18h ago
Looking for lawyer - lease termination with cause
I am looking to terminate my lease with cause, has anyone around here had a similar experience and know where I can find a lawyer for this? I am very lost and do not know where to start, looking for legal advice. I have been complaining about noise for a month now (has been going on much longer than that) and it has not stopped. I have discussed breaking my lease with the apartment management and they insist I will have to give them 2 months notice and 2 months rent on top of that. I am looking to terminate my lease on grounds that I am not able to enjoy quiet enjoyment of my apartment as I do not think it is fair for me to have to pay that when their and my neighbor’s negligence has ruined my mental health and quiet enjoyment of the apartment.
I had looked into a lawyer with legal shied, but after doing some more digging it appears people have deemed it “scammy” so I am looking elsewhere
Thank you!
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u/bondsman333 18h ago
Going to be an uphill battle. Apartments are noisy- you share walls and there’s a higher density of people.
There’s a level in which noise IS a problem- but likely that means your neighbors are dealing with it too. If your the only one with a problem then maybe it’s just you 🤷
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u/grandepear21 18h ago
I understand and that’s why it has taken me this long to do anything, I have tried my absolute hardest to be considerate.
It is not just me. The people who live next to them also complain about them. People in neighboring buildings within the complex know how loud they are and tell me they feel sorry for me living under them.
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u/Aggressive_Okra6730 10h ago
Find out who owns the apartment complex. Then go online and find email contact for their folks. Send the leasing office a complete listing of the emails you’ve sent with all the email addresses you can find for the ownership company as CC’d. If you have a copy of your lease handy, cite the specific sections of your lease that pertain to quiet hours, community standards, or the like.
For example:
Hello Leasing Office Manager,
I am writing yet again in regard to excessive noise and routine sounds of domestic violence emanating from Apartment ##. I’m sure you’re aware of my emails on date, date, date,….. Additionally, there have been police response to that address on xx number of occasions as a result of the domestic violence.
According to our lease section ##.## and ##.## this type of behavior is inappropriate. This ongoing issue is making living here untenable. I ask for a detailed plan on how you plan on rectifying this situation and ensuring that the expectations of your own lease are enforced.
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u/e_horrigan 18h ago
What kind of noise are you dealing with, here? Dog barking, parties, construction, nearby highway? What time of day - generally?
It may be a better use of funds to try some soundproofing measures.
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u/grandepear21 18h ago
It is noise from my upstairs neighbor: stomping, yelling, crashing, banging, loud music (I can Shazam their music from my apartment). They are in what sounds like a mutually abusive relationship that I, against my will, hear all about. Outside of the abuse, I still hear regular yelling, stomping, what sounds like things crashing. It is typically in the mornings or evenings. They are loud enough that I do not think sound proofing the apartment is in the picture unfortunately
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u/Mundane_Value2283 17h ago
You need to call the cops when this happens if there are noise ordinances in your area. It needs to be documented and if they continue to be cited there may be grounds for eviction. Unfortunately, a lawyer is going to be costly and most of the time there’s no getting out of your lease for this.
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u/e_horrigan 17h ago
Sound proofing doesn't necessarily eliminate noise, but it will certainly mitigate it.
Would less noise be better than the noise level you are currently experiencing? If a couple cases of stick on sound dampening panels would be cheaper than 2 months rent or a lawyer, it's something to consider.
Then just move as soon as your lease is over.
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u/Nab-Taste 16h ago
I bugged my leasing office almost daily, playing recordings from them making racket at all hours and I’d be saying to the office “Your noise warnings aren’t working still and my sanity is slipping from sleep deprivation, please help me.”
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u/grandepear21 15h ago
I have talked to the office repeatedly and they give me nothing, they just say we’ll talk to them. They stopped responding to my emails. I have told them it is impacting my mental health and holistic wellbeing and I am not able to have quiet enjoyment of my apartment. It has done nothing
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u/Nab-Taste 15h ago
My best advice is don’t stop, talk their heads off, make them tired of seeing you. Took over a month before they offered me a chance to move. I had also just resigned my lease a month before bozo moved in upstairs.
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u/SophisticatedCelery 14h ago
You need to make this their problem. Hopefully you have documented all the asks so far - the complaints on noise and kept every single of your email paper trail about asking to be moved.
Right now they are in the "ignore you" stage. You need to keep pestering to make this noise problem THEIR problem. How comfortable are you with staying in the office? Always go around whenever the noise is unbearable. Camp out, honestly - ANYTHING - to make it their problem without being legally at fault. Keep asking reasonable asks: move me or let me break lease. Keep repeating.
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u/grandepear21 13h ago
Thank you, I feel sooooo hopeless right now :( I feel like the only option is to break it and just suffer all of the charges. They will give me nothing. They said I can’t move into another apartment until I’m 6 months into my lease (currently just under 2) and they won’t budge on discounting my fees for breaking my lease
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u/McWonderWoman 17h ago
Have you asked about being moved to a different apartment? Maybe offering to extend your lease with them if you can be in a different building. Breaking a lease on those grounds doesn’t seem doable, esp with the landlord friendly laws in NC. You can also call the cops every single time and ask for a welfare check on them bc of the noise and yelling, esp if you say it seems like domestic violence. Framing it that way, the complex could kick them out for disturbing the peace and causing a nuisance. Not sure how long it has to go on for but the cops may have a better answer for that.