Q&A

This week Q&A looks at noisy overhead neighbours and registering rental properties

The apartment above . . .

The apartment above mine has hard marble-type floors. I am driven mad by scraping furniture, objects falling and hard shoes. I have written to the tenants and owner - neither are concerned. The management company has also written to the tenants and since then they occasionally make an effort, but I feel like I'm at their mercy. Is there a way to adjust the balance of power and put an end to this misery or will I have to sell up and move?

Sound transference is one of the top five complaints this column receives. In most situations there is nothing that can be done - or if it can it's a big job involving disruption and expense. Even then, according to one architect specialising in acoustic sound proofing, the results can be disappointing. Complaints from apartment dwellers is a regular problem, mainly due to poor building standards and a bias towards renters in some schemes. The leases in some apartment blocks prohibit wood or marble flooring to arrest sound transference but that can't be the case in your block or else the management company would have told you, or you could have seen it in your lease. Writing to your neighbours and the landlord is the correct way to go. Has the situation become so acrimonious that there can be no negotiation between you and your neighbours? Could a diplomatic friend talk to the noisemakers? Even get them down to your apartment to hear the noise - they may think you are a crank when, in fact, you have a legitimate concern. Could you write again to the landlord and point out that a rug or two would solve the problem? Is there a residents association for your block? If not, start one now. A residents association can give you greater clout when negotiating issues, including expressing your concerns to a landlord. Landlords tend not to like hassle, and complaints from all sides about their apartment may prompt them to do something. Ultimately, you are relying on your neighbours' neighbourliness. If any reader has successfully solved a similar problem to this we could be very interested to hear about it.

My landlord has . . .

My landlord will not be registering, as much (he said) to protect my privacy as his. He told me that the registration process gives information, including my name and how much rent I pay, and that this then goes on public record. I do not want this to be available to all comers. However I do want my landlord to register. Can I insist on blanking out some information?

According to Threshold any properties for rent are required by law to be registered with the local authority so your landlord's conversation is fairly pointless. To check if your landlord is registered, ring your local authority and ask for the register of private rented dwellings. Landlords who fail to register are liable to prosecution. According to Threshold, the register is kept by the local authority and facilitates inspection by the environmental health officers to detect breaches of minimum standards and rent book regulations. The information the landlord must supply is: the address of the rented property; your name and address (and your agent if applicable); name of tenants; amount of rent, description of property. All that's open to the public is the address, property description and registration application date.

Send your queries to Property Questions, The Irish Times, 10-16 D'Olier Street, Dublin 2 or e-mail propertyquestions@irish-times.ie.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to respond to all questions. The above is a representative sample of queries received. This column is a readers' service and is not intended to replace professional advice. No individual correspondence will be entered into.