Condo Association Management Blog

Call an insulation contractor and see if he can foam the areas which ajoin your two units. 
 
I would also check with a lawyer if after the foam if she still complains. 
 
When a condo places a new rule in place such as no smoking in your unit I beleve that you should be grandfathered in as you were a smoker when you bought and should have every right to continue to smoke in your unit. Try the foam first.

The first one is right get a contractor to come in and check it out. It is possible that nothing is seeping into her home and she just smells old cigarette smoke still lingering in her home from smoking for years. Once you have the contractor check it out, get something in writing from them and submit it to the condo association. Also don't tell anyone you smoke in your place anymore (their are busy bodies who will report you even though you think they are your friends) Also check the bi-laws does it say anything about smoking yes or no? If not they have no leg to stand on unless a vote by all the unit owners is taken. They just can't fine you because of a complaint. First a rule must be broken. Check your bi-laws or if you are not sure you can email them to me I'd be more then happy to go through them for you. 

HEAVENS... ta betsy. please tell me you DO know the answer to that, inherently... i KNOW you do !!!! 
 
 
 
just for the heckie dern of it, i'll put it out there anyway. 
 
 
 
option #1: 
 
 
 
YOU ACQUIRE 8,982 MORE FRIENDS THAT SMOKE, INVITE THEM TO YOUR HOME DAILY AND TRIPLE Y'ALLS (your husband and yourself's) SMOKING BY FOUR (triple by four? yeah... that sounds good) and TEACH THE DOG TO SMOKE IF NEED BE AND THAT OSTENTATIOUS "IT'S ALL ABOUT ME" BITCH'LL BE DEAD LIKE ::el snap-o:: (with just'ah modicum of luck!!!!)  
 
 
 
option #2: 
 
 
 
make it a game ta see how long it takes that $100 fine doled out randomly to get to $3.4 mIl and ALL Y'ALL (friends, dog'n all) run around nekkid in yer 'common property' yellin' "ED McMAHON REALLY AIN'T DEAD !!!! WE ARE IN DEBT IN THE CONDO ASSOCIATION'S HOLIER THAN THOU PRETENSIOUS WORLD FOR $3.4 MIL !!!! and i NEVER thought we'd have that kinda money ta lose !!!!, LET'S SMOKE AND EAT BIPOLAR MEDS (in honor of the condo dudes/gals, of course) AND POP'AH FEW TOPS OFF $323.89 A BOTTLE OF TEQUILA.. AREBA REBA AND WE DON'T MEAN McINTYRE"... then run in YOUR condo when ya hear'ah siren or two and deny everything. 
 
 
 
i guaranteeeeee ya THAT ain't in tha bylaws (which NObody seems ta realize are only accountable for if they're on your mortgage docs) cuz i've been foreclosed on by my condo assn. 2 times and since they didn't abided by THEIR letter of each "bylaw" (vomit) my mortgage was null and void.... and guessie whattie? i'm livin' here FREE OF CHARGE and YES, i wanted a free ride, i put up with them idjuts (read your bylaws and demand a receipt or contract for every single itty bitty piece of crap they demand cuz nobody's gonna have read 'em but you anyway). FREE, i tell ya. NO shame'n my game... and guess who has tha deed. <sweet smile> 
 
 
 
then go write your own bylaws and give'em hell everytime they complain that you slashed their tires (cuz "no complaining" will be in your bylaws, naturally... and even have it notarized. it's more than probably did. 
 
 
 
AMEN ! 
 
 
 
(now i'm gonna smoke'ah cigarette and i don't even smoke !) 
 
 
 
live it up ! 
 
 
 
~belle 
 
 
 
p.s.) and when the exhaust goes crazy in the cold cold weather when they start their car, turn'm in for smokin'.

Seeping through outlets??? Gimme a break! Making you sell because you smoke???? I don't buy that either. My guess is that there's several others complaints against you (valid or otherwise) and that the smoking issue is simply a convenient club with which to beat you. 
 
 
 
By the way - smoking is stupid! Everybody knows that. Why don't you just quit? Not because anybody's making you, but because you'll feel smarter.

Menards stores sell small foam products to put around outlets in walls. I think they are primarily used for insulation purposes, but they might work for smoking seepage.

Smoking indoors is regulated by 386 of the Florida Statutes, some obscure federal law I cannot recall due to the time that this blog is being written, and under condominium law can be deemed a nuisance. There are several cases submitted for arbitration and/or civil cases related to smoking in units affecting others and several affected have one. You are most probably not in a winning situation. 
 
By not abating the "nuisance" the Board could be in violation of their obligation under the Condominium Documents, Florida law, other local applicable health codes and the Federal Fair Housing Act. 
 
The reality is, not everyone enjoys waking up to the lingering smell of bar filled cigarette smoke.  
 
You are forcing your neighbors to endure your second hand smoke and damage to their property the tar causes - even through walls which is actionable. 
 
If you want to smoke, I suggest you do try outdoors.

You are also directly affecting your neighbors health without their consent.

Believe it or not, in condominium situations, yes it seeps. 
 
As a condo manager, I have been involved in an instance where someone smoking next to a non-smoker caused "haze" in a unit everyday.  
 
The Board and owner sued and won. It happens. 
 
This is not just applicable to cigarette smoke but also for other types of smoke like crack and marijuana.

Hi,  
 
I’m glad I found this site and hope I can get help here and do appreciate any advice. 
 
 
 
I was reading many comments here about someone being fined if they smoked in their condo due to a neighbor being affected by the smoke seeping in to their condo unit. 
 
 
 
I have a Condo in Vero Beach Florida that my wife and I go to several times a year from New England. I have this neighbor right below me that’s a chain smoker. HE RENTS THIS PLACE. He never leaves is unit and constantly smokes causing the smoke odor to seep into my condo unit and saturates everything with the smell.  
 
 
 
This has been going on since I bought this place 4 years ago. We both are being effected health wise due to the smoke coming in. 
 
I noticed this the first day we moved in. Being that the place was newly rebuilt, I thought the smell was the paint on the walls etc. Then after awhile, I realized it was the smoke coming into my unit from the below unit. 
 
 
 
I tried to track the smell and caulked areas but didn’t help that much and smoke odor still spews in. 
 
I recently called the Condo Association and it seemed to me that they didn’t want to be bothered with my issue and gave me a quick fix and said to buy a (AIR PURIFIER). ????? 
 
 
 
What can I do? I don’t know the Florida laws but can I get a lawyer to help me out here? Or are there laws that I do have a right to resolve this issue 
 
I do want to resolve this issue ASAP. 
 
 
 
I’m hoping to get some good advice. 
 
Thank you, 
 
Jamie 
 
 
 
 
 

It's 3AM and I have been chocking since 11PM - even with a CPAC mask on! This has been happening day and night since I moved in 4 months ago. I have sealed everything, professionally cleaned the coils and ducts in a 1 year old A/C, installed an expensive air purifying system by Shakely, plug-ins etc. My neighbor swears he doesn't smoke. 
 
 
 
Tonight it was so bad I called the fire department (they couldn't help except to sympathise because they could smell how bad the problem was).  
 
 
 
I even woke the condo president, who was kind enough to come and witness the major problem. 
 
 
 
I simply cannot breathe in my unit, my eyes are red, irritated and watering. 
 
 
 
Finally, I stuck my nose in my neighbors door frame and sure enough it was him!!! I knocked his door down until he opened and nicely admitted that yes, he had been smoking for hours. He agreed to stop. This after I've spent over $1,000 trying to seal the condo to no avail. 
 
 
 
If anyone has any thoughts, I'd welcome them. 
 
 
 
I've read there is a clean-air act and that we non-smokers do have rights. I'm hoping the association will cooperate in turning this condo into a smoke-free building.  
 
 
 
Has anyone successfully accomplished that in their building?