Tenants often disagree about what is an appropriate amount of noise, but most of them agree that certain noises are particularly disconcerting — if not alarming.
Sex-related noises often cause tension between tenants who live in close proximity to one another or in older buildings where the walls aren't soundproof. But hearing a couple in the throes of passionate lovemaking is decidedly different than hearing someone who is alone...and loud.
According to B.C.'s Residential Tenancy Act (RTA), landlords are responsible for providing quiet enjoyment to all tenants. Upon getting a disturbance complaint from a tenant, the landlord must take steps to fix the problem. For example, a landlord may need to speak to a tenant about noise if it bothers neighbouring tenants.
Tenants must make sure they, their guests and their pets don’t unreasonably disturb other occupants.
If there are disturbances like unreasonable noise, excessive second-hand smoke or harassment from a neighbouring tenant of the same landlord, the tenant should speak to the landlord about the issue.
Loud masturbation noise
Several people complained of "very loud sex noises" by the tenant in one particular B.C. dispute; in this case, the tenant was represented by an advocate. The landlord stated that a person living next door to the tenant complained of very loud music as well as "sounds of the tenant masturbating — including moaning and the sound of the tenant's release." At the time, the landlord tried to get the building manager to corroborate the sounds, but the incidents occurred outside of their shift.
The neighbour actually made a log of the "masturbatory noises" over several months but eventually became frustrated and left the building. Following this, the new neighbour stated that they "heard their neighbour loudly masturbating and finishing by the wall. This got louder and louder as time progressed until one day it sounded three-dimensional, so disgusting."
The new neighbour moved in on Oct. 1 and stated that she heard loud, masturbatory sounds between 4:30 and 5:30 a.m. daily until Nov. 16 — "100 [per cent] of the a.m.'s since she's moved in." She added that the neighbour "groans at the end."
Under the details of the cause to end the tenancy, the landlord writes that the tenant is a "self-confessed sex addict" who has a "long history of disturbing the quiet enjoyment of his neighbours due to excessively loud masturbation, loud sex acts, and playing of loud pornography."
The tenant tried to say that the two neighbours lacked credibility since they were the only ones in the building who brought the issue up, but the RTB said the fact that they did it independently one of another was conclusive evidence.
Here are just a handful of the multiple decisions involving sex-related issues in past years.
