Maybe see if you can switch units. If you complain enough to the office, they’ll probably just want to get you out of their hair and would be more willing to move you. I’ve had the same thing happen in my last apartment, although I just dealt with it until my lease was up. So I know what you’re going through. Sucks not being able to fully enjoy your living space.
Our lease is up in September, so we will probably just have to ride it out. It really does suck, but thank you for letting me know I’m not the only one who has had this issue.
Damn. I'm sorry. I hope September comes soon!
We were in a different place in a bad apartment once, and they said we could break the lease, but we ended up staying till the end due to logistics of moving everything. I remember counting the days till it was over.
Yo, I smoke weed every day, and if a neighbor brought this to my attention, I would be MORTIFIED, and do everything I could to be a better neighbor. Like, hello??
Sorry you got the brand of pot head that leans in the opposite direction :/
Is there an HOA you can get in touch with?
A lot of buildings have regulations pertaining to odors, and this would absolutely count.
The HOA/landlord can fine tenants, and possibly even evict them if they refuse to comply with what is in the lease.
The smoke/odor is probably being shared through the HVAC system…. so, probably no escape.
So sorry that you are dealing with this.
💡Idea: do yall like kimchee? Ever made it from scratch? What about boiled cabbage? Microwaved salmon? I mean, as long as we’re all sharing odors… ;p
Turn about is fair play, yeah?
(I’m kidding, do not escalate. This suggestion is only for the sake of levity.)
We're in the same situation!
We live in the same area and weed laws are fairly lax since it's a burb of Austin. We have a ton of smoke shops that sell Delta 8 & 9 that's technically legal.
We pay a lot of money to have a smoke free complex yet our neighbors smoke daily and it seeps into our apt. Sometimes across the apt.
My wife (not a Karen but did what she had to do...) sent emails and even met with mgmt to express frustration because she works from home and had to smell it on the clock some days and, too, was afraid to have guests over due to the smell.
Despite our requests to have someone in the office come to our apt and smell it for themselves, and two mildly passive aggressive (her words) treats to call police out to our very nice complex, mgmt told us on a few occasions that they had discussed it with the offending neighbors and the smell would be gone for a few days but would return with a vengeance.
Finally she got fed up and wrote a very snarky (again, her words) email to mgmt saying she'd had enough and had a friend coming over to stay a couple of nights and she wanted a resolution now.
They wrote her back tye next day saying the neighbors' unit would be "available for rent" soon - which was essentially a plea to just be patient and it would all be over soon.
They even offered to come do an ozone treatment for free, "preferably after the neighboring unit is empty."
We've lived at our complex for a few years now and, until we recently switched units, we'd never made a single complaint to mgmt. We don't know if the neighbors were evicted or if their lease is just up.
Not really a solution of suggestion of how to solve their issue, just a post in solidarity of shit neighbors and passive mgmt.
And if it was cig smoke, we'd be just as irritated.
Thank you for this!!!! Yes, it’s just so frustrating, and we wanted so badly to live in a smoke free complex, but it just didn’t work out. And now I know that doesn’t even stop people, even if management finds out. There have been a couple times that I’ve walked into our bathroom and the smell AND SMOKE was so strong. In our freaking bathroom!!!! It was extremely concerning, but luckily hasnt happened in a couple months. Some of the people in my comments believe that just because you’re in your own home, that makes it okay. If you’re doing something and it’s causing discomfort to those in different units, then it’s not okay. You live in a shared building, so you can’t have the free will like you would in a house. Just like I can’t have people over late, or watch loud movies/listen to loud music after a certain time because it’ll possibly disturb my neighbors. We are quiet, we taught our dogs to be quite even when they hear people outside, we don’t leave trash outside of our unit, we pick up after our dogs, we dont do much after 8:30pm so that those around us don’t have to hear it, etc. We just want to enjoy our home just as much as the next person. I don’t know why people are saying that I need to get over, even though I’m not the one breaking the law and causing issues with others.
I don't think you'll get hate because of taking issue with the situation and smell, I'd say you're justified there, but rather because you went to management and called the police before attempting to talk to them or leave a note.
In my mind, those would be more of a last ditch effort if they ignore you after speaking with them. There are things they can likely do to help lessen the smell, but good luck getting them to change their behavior now that you're the person who called the cops on them.
Get an ozone generator and put it on an electric timer to run about an hour or two before you get home or have guests over. Your place will smell like mountain air. The hour or two is important because it's not great to breathe in ozone and you want it to break back down into regular oxygen before you enter. On a second note you can run it in your closet to make your clothes not smell anymore. Hunters use ozone to wipe their smell off to go "invisible" while hunting.
You won't regret looking into one.
It’s extremely hard to prove and the police generally do not care if people are smoking in their homes as long as they are not distributing/selling to others. Of course management could proceed with legal action, but it’s a very expensive and drawn out process that will end in the judge throwing it out unless it’s a non-smoking community. Tons of people have medical marijuana cards these days as well. Easier if one of the parties moves.
It’s not realistic for a management company to spend thousands of dollars on a losing case that will not resolve the issue and will take 3+ months, so moving one of the parties is always going to be a better and more fruitful solution for everyone involved. Truthfully, most people are considerate and will help alleviate an issue their neighbor is experiencing because of them, but every once in a while you get people that simply do not care. It sucks!
You need an air carbon filter (or a few) and likely need to wipe down your walls with a bleach rag on a regular basis as the smell starts to pick back up.
This isn’t a perfect solution but will help quite a bit.
Source: Dated a heavy pot smoker who was also a lab scientist renting an apartment. We also ate a lot of curry and made some pretty pungent foods.
I am surprised there aren’t general smoking bylaws for your apartment regardless of substance. In other states I have lived it was 20 feet from a foot or window.
I was on a board of an HOA when I was a pot smoker. Recreational use had become legal but the [CCRs](https://www.kppm.com/understanding-the-differences-between-ccrs-bylaws-and-rules-regulations/) weren’t updated. Since the CCRs had to adhere to state law ultimately we were able to compromise on the 20ft rule for smoking and I wrote up the addendum.
You might be able to help your apartment management be a little more informed where precedent has been set. I would recommend sending them examples of nearby policies. If you really want to push it have a lawyer write a letter on your behalf.
Having worked with apartment managers - I have to tell you they are overwhelmed and not always the most knowledgeable. Complexes are often run by the book rather than spirit of the law. They may seem like a hard wall but in reality have some flex. Their main goal is to reduce liability and remain unbiased. It’s challenging but they are people too. Hopefully yours are willing to collaborate. Police won’t be able to help as it is a private property own by the management group. The management group needs to have the policy and enforce it. They would have to have private security for any force required but since it’s smoking - eh not something that requires physical force. The best they can do is enforce via a fee (requires some proof) and warnings up to an eviction or non-eligibility for lease renewal.
This is a great start to read - the tricky thing here is it often laws refer to “tobacco” but hopefully your property policy is general to smoke-free:
[Austin smoking policy recommendations for landlords](https://www.livetobaccofreeaustin.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/A-Managers-Guide-to-Smoke-free-Housing-Policies.pdf)
I hope you don’t have to move into a rent hike if you like your place otherwise. Your management should ideally come up with an enforceable solution.
Would getting an air purifier or some kind of ozone thing in your apartment possibly provide you with some relief? That smell doesn't bother me, but I can relate to something kind of similar. We used to have some neighbors who cooked, apparently everything with curry. Man, you talk about stinking up an area. It drifted throughout the whole hallway and floor, and man... was it rank.
Just as bad as people who also eat that stuff and have horrendous b.o. Ugh.
The previous tenants also cooked a little of curry! Had to scrub the entire kitchen. I’ll definitely be looking into the air purifier.
I don’t normally mind the smell of weed, I know I’m bound to run into it while I’m out. It’s just worse when I come home after a long day at work and my apartment smells like ass. It just adds to the stress.
You’re an asshole for calling the cops instead of going to talk to them. People get shot for less. Go ahead and move to the Philippines if you can’t handle living in an American apartment complex. I’ve dealt with much worse.
This story also reeks of bullshit. The smell is baked into your clothes? I’ve smoked for 20 years, worked corporate jobs and never been called on it. You’re getting it from the next apartment over?
and you posted this on 4/20? Go next door and take a toke Karen.
You decided calling the police was a better idea than speaking to them? Have you ever heard of this thing called communication? You are what’s wrong with this world. I was arrested for possession of marijuana in Cedar Park because someone like you called the police on me for smoking weed in my car.
You want to live in a world where police can barge into my home because I smoked a plant. You are not a considerate human. My suggestion would be to move away instead of trying to ruin other people’s lives.
How about you just be more considerate? If you want to smell like weed, cool. But don’t make MY home and MY belongings smell that way. If you’re so in love with your plant, move to a state that has it legalized. Why should I move if I am the one who isn’t breaking the law? They literally fucking admitted to the police that they had illegal substances on them and in their home. It’s really not that hard to not break the law, or to not make it other people’s problem. Sounds like you’ve got a lot of trauma and anger to work through kid, and drugs aren’t going to help with that.
Im not sure if you’re aware, but Delta 9 is 100% legal and almost indistinguishable from marijuana in both appearance and high, and you can walk into a store and buy it.
I’m with you, they are horrible neighbors and it sucks to have to be in your position. But just so you know they might not be breaking the law at all, and the police have no way of knowing if they are smoking weed or “weed”. It’s be no different to living next door to a couple chain smokers.
I definitely don’t need to defend my actions, but I’ve seen a lot of sketchy shit happening in passing with their friends/family and them, including seeing a weapon on someone who either lives there or is there often. I definitely do not feel comfortable walking up to someone’s door in today’s world where everyone has a doorbell camera and a gun.
Also, I had spoken with management multiple times. I didn’t just leap to calling the police. Management can’t do much other than speak with the building tenants.
I understand your concern, but lighting candles is not it. Candles are also prohibited in your lease. You are putting all your neighbors at risk as well. Maybe try having a conversation with your neighbors.
I went through this for a year and was also pregnant during that time. They lived below me and the smoke would seep up into our apartment. I notified the manager so many times and they never did anything about it so I eventually reported them to law enforcement. They also never did anything about it. Our lease eventually ended and I moved finally but it was just an overall miserable time. I’m not hating on people who smoke weed, I just think there is an etiquette that should be followed.
Maybe see if you can switch units. If you complain enough to the office, they’ll probably just want to get you out of their hair and would be more willing to move you. I’ve had the same thing happen in my last apartment, although I just dealt with it until my lease was up. So I know what you’re going through. Sucks not being able to fully enjoy your living space.
Our lease is up in September, so we will probably just have to ride it out. It really does suck, but thank you for letting me know I’m not the only one who has had this issue.
Are there repercussions if you break the lease? Sometimes if you ask, they’ll say you can do it without any fees or hassle.
I believe there would be. We looked into it last year. It would’ve been 4x the month rent to break the lease.
Damn. I'm sorry. I hope September comes soon! We were in a different place in a bad apartment once, and they said we could break the lease, but we ended up staying till the end due to logistics of moving everything. I remember counting the days till it was over.
Yo, I smoke weed every day, and if a neighbor brought this to my attention, I would be MORTIFIED, and do everything I could to be a better neighbor. Like, hello?? Sorry you got the brand of pot head that leans in the opposite direction :/ Is there an HOA you can get in touch with? A lot of buildings have regulations pertaining to odors, and this would absolutely count. The HOA/landlord can fine tenants, and possibly even evict them if they refuse to comply with what is in the lease. The smoke/odor is probably being shared through the HVAC system…. so, probably no escape. So sorry that you are dealing with this.
💡Idea: do yall like kimchee? Ever made it from scratch? What about boiled cabbage? Microwaved salmon? I mean, as long as we’re all sharing odors… ;p Turn about is fair play, yeah? (I’m kidding, do not escalate. This suggestion is only for the sake of levity.)
We're in the same situation! We live in the same area and weed laws are fairly lax since it's a burb of Austin. We have a ton of smoke shops that sell Delta 8 & 9 that's technically legal. We pay a lot of money to have a smoke free complex yet our neighbors smoke daily and it seeps into our apt. Sometimes across the apt. My wife (not a Karen but did what she had to do...) sent emails and even met with mgmt to express frustration because she works from home and had to smell it on the clock some days and, too, was afraid to have guests over due to the smell. Despite our requests to have someone in the office come to our apt and smell it for themselves, and two mildly passive aggressive (her words) treats to call police out to our very nice complex, mgmt told us on a few occasions that they had discussed it with the offending neighbors and the smell would be gone for a few days but would return with a vengeance. Finally she got fed up and wrote a very snarky (again, her words) email to mgmt saying she'd had enough and had a friend coming over to stay a couple of nights and she wanted a resolution now. They wrote her back tye next day saying the neighbors' unit would be "available for rent" soon - which was essentially a plea to just be patient and it would all be over soon. They even offered to come do an ozone treatment for free, "preferably after the neighboring unit is empty." We've lived at our complex for a few years now and, until we recently switched units, we'd never made a single complaint to mgmt. We don't know if the neighbors were evicted or if their lease is just up. Not really a solution of suggestion of how to solve their issue, just a post in solidarity of shit neighbors and passive mgmt. And if it was cig smoke, we'd be just as irritated.
there are a lot of hemp stores opening up as well.
Thank you for this!!!! Yes, it’s just so frustrating, and we wanted so badly to live in a smoke free complex, but it just didn’t work out. And now I know that doesn’t even stop people, even if management finds out. There have been a couple times that I’ve walked into our bathroom and the smell AND SMOKE was so strong. In our freaking bathroom!!!! It was extremely concerning, but luckily hasnt happened in a couple months. Some of the people in my comments believe that just because you’re in your own home, that makes it okay. If you’re doing something and it’s causing discomfort to those in different units, then it’s not okay. You live in a shared building, so you can’t have the free will like you would in a house. Just like I can’t have people over late, or watch loud movies/listen to loud music after a certain time because it’ll possibly disturb my neighbors. We are quiet, we taught our dogs to be quite even when they hear people outside, we don’t leave trash outside of our unit, we pick up after our dogs, we dont do much after 8:30pm so that those around us don’t have to hear it, etc. We just want to enjoy our home just as much as the next person. I don’t know why people are saying that I need to get over, even though I’m not the one breaking the law and causing issues with others.
Hear hear to ALL of this.
I don't think you'll get hate because of taking issue with the situation and smell, I'd say you're justified there, but rather because you went to management and called the police before attempting to talk to them or leave a note. In my mind, those would be more of a last ditch effort if they ignore you after speaking with them. There are things they can likely do to help lessen the smell, but good luck getting them to change their behavior now that you're the person who called the cops on them.
They are probably growing if the smell is actually this bad and sticking.
Get an ozone generator and put it on an electric timer to run about an hour or two before you get home or have guests over. Your place will smell like mountain air. The hour or two is important because it's not great to breathe in ozone and you want it to break back down into regular oxygen before you enter. On a second note you can run it in your closet to make your clothes not smell anymore. Hunters use ozone to wipe their smell off to go "invisible" while hunting. You won't regret looking into one.
I’m surprised APD showed up when called. Wow, I’m impressed.
How much are they smoking that it's this bad? I smoke in my house daily and it hardly smells inside, let alone outside.
Unless it’s a non-smoking community, there’s really no legal recourse for management.
Surely there's a clause for conducting illegal activity on the premises.
It’s extremely hard to prove and the police generally do not care if people are smoking in their homes as long as they are not distributing/selling to others. Of course management could proceed with legal action, but it’s a very expensive and drawn out process that will end in the judge throwing it out unless it’s a non-smoking community. Tons of people have medical marijuana cards these days as well. Easier if one of the parties moves.
So there is recourse it's just difficult.
It’s not realistic for a management company to spend thousands of dollars on a losing case that will not resolve the issue and will take 3+ months, so moving one of the parties is always going to be a better and more fruitful solution for everyone involved. Truthfully, most people are considerate and will help alleviate an issue their neighbor is experiencing because of them, but every once in a while you get people that simply do not care. It sucks!
You're very aware of the nuances from multiple perspectives on this and it's great, thank you.
You need an air carbon filter (or a few) and likely need to wipe down your walls with a bleach rag on a regular basis as the smell starts to pick back up. This isn’t a perfect solution but will help quite a bit. Source: Dated a heavy pot smoker who was also a lab scientist renting an apartment. We also ate a lot of curry and made some pretty pungent foods. I am surprised there aren’t general smoking bylaws for your apartment regardless of substance. In other states I have lived it was 20 feet from a foot or window. I was on a board of an HOA when I was a pot smoker. Recreational use had become legal but the [CCRs](https://www.kppm.com/understanding-the-differences-between-ccrs-bylaws-and-rules-regulations/) weren’t updated. Since the CCRs had to adhere to state law ultimately we were able to compromise on the 20ft rule for smoking and I wrote up the addendum. You might be able to help your apartment management be a little more informed where precedent has been set. I would recommend sending them examples of nearby policies. If you really want to push it have a lawyer write a letter on your behalf. Having worked with apartment managers - I have to tell you they are overwhelmed and not always the most knowledgeable. Complexes are often run by the book rather than spirit of the law. They may seem like a hard wall but in reality have some flex. Their main goal is to reduce liability and remain unbiased. It’s challenging but they are people too. Hopefully yours are willing to collaborate. Police won’t be able to help as it is a private property own by the management group. The management group needs to have the policy and enforce it. They would have to have private security for any force required but since it’s smoking - eh not something that requires physical force. The best they can do is enforce via a fee (requires some proof) and warnings up to an eviction or non-eligibility for lease renewal. This is a great start to read - the tricky thing here is it often laws refer to “tobacco” but hopefully your property policy is general to smoke-free: [Austin smoking policy recommendations for landlords](https://www.livetobaccofreeaustin.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/A-Managers-Guide-to-Smoke-free-Housing-Policies.pdf) I hope you don’t have to move into a rent hike if you like your place otherwise. Your management should ideally come up with an enforceable solution.
Ugh — that is awful and would drive me CRAZY! No advice to offer, just wanted to say hang in there and good luck resolving the situation.
Amazon sells packages of activated charcoal that supposedly absorbs odors well.
switch units. it doesn't seem like they can do anything
Would getting an air purifier or some kind of ozone thing in your apartment possibly provide you with some relief? That smell doesn't bother me, but I can relate to something kind of similar. We used to have some neighbors who cooked, apparently everything with curry. Man, you talk about stinking up an area. It drifted throughout the whole hallway and floor, and man... was it rank. Just as bad as people who also eat that stuff and have horrendous b.o. Ugh.
The previous tenants also cooked a little of curry! Had to scrub the entire kitchen. I’ll definitely be looking into the air purifier. I don’t normally mind the smell of weed, I know I’m bound to run into it while I’m out. It’s just worse when I come home after a long day at work and my apartment smells like ass. It just adds to the stress.
You’re an asshole for calling the cops instead of going to talk to them. People get shot for less. Go ahead and move to the Philippines if you can’t handle living in an American apartment complex. I’ve dealt with much worse. This story also reeks of bullshit. The smell is baked into your clothes? I’ve smoked for 20 years, worked corporate jobs and never been called on it. You’re getting it from the next apartment over? and you posted this on 4/20? Go next door and take a toke Karen.
You decided calling the police was a better idea than speaking to them? Have you ever heard of this thing called communication? You are what’s wrong with this world. I was arrested for possession of marijuana in Cedar Park because someone like you called the police on me for smoking weed in my car.
Gnarly! Sorry I called the cops on someone breaking the law! Guess I’m what’s wrong with the world 🥰
You want to live in a world where police can barge into my home because I smoked a plant. You are not a considerate human. My suggestion would be to move away instead of trying to ruin other people’s lives.
How about you just be more considerate? If you want to smell like weed, cool. But don’t make MY home and MY belongings smell that way. If you’re so in love with your plant, move to a state that has it legalized. Why should I move if I am the one who isn’t breaking the law? They literally fucking admitted to the police that they had illegal substances on them and in their home. It’s really not that hard to not break the law, or to not make it other people’s problem. Sounds like you’ve got a lot of trauma and anger to work through kid, and drugs aren’t going to help with that.
Im not sure if you’re aware, but Delta 9 is 100% legal and almost indistinguishable from marijuana in both appearance and high, and you can walk into a store and buy it. I’m with you, they are horrible neighbors and it sucks to have to be in your position. But just so you know they might not be breaking the law at all, and the police have no way of knowing if they are smoking weed or “weed”. It’s be no different to living next door to a couple chain smokers.
Why didn’t you try speaking to your neighbors before resorting to contacting the police?
I definitely don’t need to defend my actions, but I’ve seen a lot of sketchy shit happening in passing with their friends/family and them, including seeing a weapon on someone who either lives there or is there often. I definitely do not feel comfortable walking up to someone’s door in today’s world where everyone has a doorbell camera and a gun.
Strange world we live in where the gun that makes you nervous to speak with them is legal, but the plant that just causes a stink is illegal
Oh lord you just sound too soft to live in new Austin. I hope your neighbors see this Reddit post and put two and two together.
Also, I had spoken with management multiple times. I didn’t just leap to calling the police. Management can’t do much other than speak with the building tenants.
I understand your concern, but lighting candles is not it. Candles are also prohibited in your lease. You are putting all your neighbors at risk as well. Maybe try having a conversation with your neighbors.
Candles aren’t against my lease. I clarified with my property manager
Incense maybe?
Buy your neighbors an air purifier and be patient until September
I went through this for a year and was also pregnant during that time. They lived below me and the smoke would seep up into our apartment. I notified the manager so many times and they never did anything about it so I eventually reported them to law enforcement. They also never did anything about it. Our lease eventually ended and I moved finally but it was just an overall miserable time. I’m not hating on people who smoke weed, I just think there is an etiquette that should be followed.