Arizona | Nuisance Odor

ChrisB31, I am so sorry you are experiencing this. I expect if I lived in your unit, I would be as unhappy as you about the filth and odors. Here's what my experience says:

-- It is incredibly common for Condo Association managers to deny there is a problem. They just want to get out of doing any work, AFAIC.

-- Read your covenants carefully and identify any sections that speak to "nuisance." Submit a formal complaint to the Association, using the procedures it provides for doing so. Send the complaint registered mail, return receipt requested.

-- Submit formal complaints to your COA of all the other violations.

-- Meanwhile start studying the recourse you have in Arizona using state agencies. Here's a decent starting point: https://azre.gov/consumers/hoa

-- Through all this please understand that nationwide, the courts have recognized certain situations to reflect bona fide, unlawful "nuisances." No strict definition of "nuisance" exists. Instead, it's more in the category of "I (a judge) know it when I see it."

-- You may have to pay an attorney to get some real action.

-- Landlords do not like tenants who cause problems. I tend to think the fact that the nuisance is due to tenants will work in your favor.

-- I expect others with experience with these situations will post here. Do stay tuned.

You went to the property manager, but did you ever discuss any of this with the tenants? Some people don't realize how stinky their food can be, and perhaps a suggestion that they shut the window and turn on the exhaust in their kitchen when serving up whatever can keep it under control. Next, I'd talk to the homeowner/landlord. As Augustin said, these are HIS/HER tenants and continued violation of community rules may cost him/her because the owner is ultimately responsible for their behavior.

The drying laundry on the patio walls - apparently these people haven't heard of clotheslines or drying racks they can install outside to dry the laundry and not plaster it on the walls. You may want to check if your area has a ban against clotheslines or a right to dry outside (in 2013, there were 19 states with such laws, but that may have changed since many people now do this to save energy.). I don't know who would enforce this (check with the city or county), but I suspect this type of law would warrant a private lawsuit against the tenants and their owners.

Our community had a clothesline ban, but today, they're allowed as long as the line is on the patio behind a fence or barrier where it can't bee seen and the laundry has to be taken down at the end of the day. We also ban mechanical work on cars outside of jumping a battery or fixing a flat tire, because oil changes can destroy concrete - that's something you should stress to your homeowner's association board.

You said the property manager said your reporting "borders on harassment" - I don't know how often you're complaining, but that could be a factor. Are there other people doing similar things, but you choose to zero in on these people? If so, what's your bigger issue - that they're tenants or something else? Yes, I know you know what I'm talking about - I'm not saying you're biased against some people for dumb stuff like race or gender preference, but I also know there's something called implicit bias that causes you to make unfair assumptions about people. Google it if you've never heard of it. Then again, read this and do some thinking: https://diversity.nih.gov/sociocultural-factors/implicit-bias#:~:text=Implicit%20bias%20is%20a%20form,retaining%20a%20diverse%20scientific%20workforce.

If these people are simply behaving badly because they don't have any home training,k Augustin gave you some great tips, and I hope you've been keeping records of the time and dates you notice this stuff (time and date-stamped photos are great). The common area issue is something that the board will ultimately have to address, so stay on them

A quick check via google indicates that Arizona statutes prohibit a clothesline ban. It's worth getting the details to see if any of this covenant at your HOA is legally enforceable at this point.

When state statutes conflict with a COA's covenants, the state statutes control. Particularly given what is happening in Arizona with its water crisis and in turn, energy crisis. It ain't for nothing, in my opinion.

Who gets to decide what constitutes a food odor and how do you define it?

The management/Landlord are people and we all have our definition of what smells good or bad. If this situation had happened to me while I was on the Board I would have personally steered clear of the issue if at all possible. This is a neighbor to neighbor dispute based on their smelling preferences.

I'm thinking along Susan's lines, too.

A good quality HEPA filter is a life saver if you're sensitive to odors. I have a nose like a bloodhound - if there's one molecule of something in the air, I'll smell it - and my HEPA filters have saved my nose and my sanity.

The bottom line is that is may not be physically possible to guarantee that your home is free from air pollutants since even with the best insulation and air filtering, you still can't change the basic construction of your building. No amount of legal action will change this, and you'll make yourself and everyone around you miserable while you fail to achieve a satisfactory outcome (a friend of mine used to refer to this as "dying in full possession of the right of way").

As with noise sensitivities, you're going to have to be honest with yourself about whether or not attached housing is suitable for you. And if the answer is going to be "no", it's better to figure that out before spending a bunch of money on solutions that won't give you what you want.