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Should you care about that garage band down the street that practices loudly into the night? Or do you just turn up your own stereo in self-defense? According to a recent Court of Appeal decision, California's strict home sales disclosure law means you may want to solve that problem now. Otherwise, you'll probably have to reveal the nuisance to prospective buyers later.
In Shapiro v. Sutherland (1998), the court concludes that a couple who failed to disclose a neighborhood noise nuisance could be sued for fraud by the subsequent buyer. It didn’t matter that the Sutherlands actually sold their home to a relocation firm, which in turn sold the house to the new owners. Under the "indirect deception doctrine," the Sutherlands could be sued by the ultimate buyers for hiding a problem they had repeatedly complained about to police.
Both the common law and California Civil Code section 1102 hold home sellers liable for damages due to misrepresentations on real estate transfer disclosure forms. Sellers must provide the form disclosures to buyers in most residential sales, and one question asks whether sellers are aware of any neighborhood noise problems or other nuisances.
What this means if you have noise problems in your neighborhood is the value of your home may be damaged if a nuisance goes unabated. The threat of problems can scare off potential buyers and depress property values accordingly. In Alexander v. McKnight (1992), the San Diego division of the Court of Appeal concludes that nearby homeowners would likely suffer a diminution in the value of their homes, because of their obligation to disclose a neighbor's tree-trimming business and late-night baseball games. "Reputation and history clearly have a significant effect on the value of a piece of property," the court observed.
Indeed, as early as 1698, philosopher John Locke proposed that one purpose of government is to secure the people’s "Peace and Quiet." And in 1726, an English court ordered a subject to answer to the King for making "great noises with a speaking trumpet" at night. More recently, technology has heightened noise levels to the point that medical experts believe the roar is causing deafness, aggression and despair. The effect of noise on humans is so well-known that military and police use it as a weapon in sieges. In the Cardozo Law Review, Jason Lief proposes a new legal remedy for the din: a "product-nuisance tort" that would hold manufacturers liable for noisy products.
Noise etiquette today is about as evolved as smoking etiquette in the 1950s. Even so, there are remedies. Some police departments now seize cars and portable radios for blaring illegally loud music. And in San Diego, a citizen can file a written noise complaint without waiting for a police officer to verify the offending decibel level.
The city of San Diego’s Neighborhood Code Compliance Department takes complaints over the phone or will provide a confidential noise complaint form by mail. Upon receiving a complaint, Code Compliance sends a notice of alleged violation to accused noisemakers, alerting them to the risk of fines for failure to abate the nuisance. In many cases, an initial written warning from the city solves the problem. If not, other tools are available, including administrative citations, mediation services or even referral to the San Diego City Attorney. The Neighborhood Code Compliance Department can be reached at (619) 236-5500. Complaint forms are also available at public libraries and the city's Community Service Centers.
Pamela Lawton Wilson was a legal affairs reporter in San Diego from 1989 to 1993. She is now an associate at the civil firm of Sullivan Wertz McDade and Wallace.
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