Tenants cannot stop neighbor smells from entering their unit
30 posts across 7 communities in the last 30 days; 50% from r/Apartmentliving.
“Hello y'all I just moved to a different state and I wasn't able to view the apartment before I moved in so I have an interesting issue. My apartment stinks and I genuinely cant figure out for the life of me what it is. It's a little musty but also kind of rank? I've never…”
“I’ve recently moved into a new apartment and the first two days or so that I moved in this was a non issue, but recently I’ve been having this problem where I feel like there’s like this stale or dirty smell. It’s not BO or not outwardly stinky, but just kind of off? Just a…”
“I think I’ve read every post about this topic and have yet to solve my problem. Any ideas are greatly appreciated! My inability to explain the smell is probably the biggest challenge right now. - Southern California small apartment complex, it’s been very hot - I have lived here…”
Residents are experiencing unsettling and concerning situations in their apartments, including the discovery of a deceased neighbor's body and unusual smells. This creates anxiety and raises concerns about building management and safety.
SOURCES (60)
“Hello everyone! I recently just rented a place with an elder couple and their son, they’re all very nice and all but there’s been this weird odor thats been bothering me. I don’t know if its from the elderly couple (nonenal smell) or from some…”
“Hi guys, I just moved into a one bedroom apartment 2 months ago and every time we open the balcony door this funky shoe smell comes up throughout the living room which is very strong. I feel like I noticed this after some guys came to pick up a bedframe I wanted to return, they were wearing shoes on our carpeted living room floor. Can we just deep clean vacuum the carpet for it to go away? I just don’t know why I smell it specifically only when we open the balcony door tho! submitted by &#”
“Hello y'all I just moved to a different state and I wasn't able to view the apartment before I moved in so I have an interesting issue. My apartment stinks and I genuinely cant figure out for the life of me what it is. It's a little musty but also kind of rank? I've never smelled this smell and I cant even describe it. I've tried every product under the sun to get rid of it, including and ozone generator, which didn't even touch the stank. I also leave the windows open up”
“Hi everyone. I recently moved into a houseshare, and my room is right above the kitchen. Unfortunately this means anytime someone cooks, my room is filled with the smell. Further unfortunately, my housemates tend to cook grease/fish heavy, super aromatic meals. I have a small HEPA filter in my room but it's just a pure HEPA, meaning it won't do much for cooking smells at all. I don't want to have to keep dousing my room in air fresheners or burning candles all the time. Any tips on w”
“Hello! I recently moved into a rental home. The house had a sour smell to it when we toured it (but the owners themselves clearly had some BO), so we didn’t worry about it. We finally move in months later and the smell is strong. We got a black light and saw the horrors everywhere. Lots of animal streaks glow in nearly every room. Sour smell throughout. we got a gallon of natures miracle and have sprayed continuously, wiping, leaving, using plastic wrap to keep it from evaporating, etc. It seems”
“Just got a fabric couch with no stains or anything, but it smells very strongly of 2-nonenal. I already tried spraying it thoroughly with white vinegar, and when that is dry, sprinkling baking soda overnight. I think it has helped a little, but the smell is still quite strong. Any tips for removing the smell? TIA! submitted by /u/mango_c4t [link] [comments]”
“hi everyone i'm looking for some advice on how to manage or cover up a smell that originates outside of the apartment. i live in a first-floor apartment and overall my living situation is genuinely great. the building is clean and well maintained, is in excellent shape, etc. the downside is that the trash chute is only about 20 feet from my front door. i've never had any issues with it, no pests, the area is always clean. unfortunately the room where the trash actually collects is direct”
“For the past 3 days, at 8am on the dot, I’ve noticed an extremely strong cigarette smell coming from a vent in my bathroom and a vent in my dining room. The smell doesn’t come through any of the other vents. I’ve complained about this yesterday and today to management and yesterday they sent maintenance to check it out. Never got a follow up, but my mom stopped by that day to drop some stuff off and saw a man leaving my apartment with a shop vac? The cigarette smell continues to linger and I’m b”
“My husband and I have lived in our upper floor apartment for a few years now. The apartment below us was used as an airbnb for awhile. We had people going in and out all the time, some long term or it would be empty for a week or two at a time. In February this year some people moved in permanently. As soon as they did, we started noticing smells in our living room and soon realized that our fireplace, that has a ledge sticking out on the bottom, there is a tunnel right underneath the fireplace,”
“Looking for some help here — a developer built out several commercial kitchen spaces in the building next door to our house, and since the tenants have moved in, one exhaust system in particular seems to be billowing smoke constantly. It's almost black in color, where the others are all silver or gray. We've complained to the landlord and the air quality management utility, who said they are compliant. We've seen them clean the ouputs, but it turns black again within a week. Is this”
“Thanks for sharing! The building was built in 2022, so everything is still pretty new. I honestly don’t know what’s causing the smell, but it was awful whenever we used the washer and dryer. Since we stopped using them, the smell has gone away. I’m just hoping they actually check the ventilation instead of assuming it’s only the washer. [re: Could my washer being hooked up backwards explain my crazy hot water bills and the musty smell in my laundry room?]”
“Downstairs neighbors like to hotbox their room and the stink rises into my place. When I say it stinks I mean it reaaaaally does. Its an old building with little to no insulation. Air purifier on max all even with new filters and it still doesn't fully clear out. Neighbor stated that they refuse to stop because they "need" to smoke. Landlord said they talked to the tenants and they are claiming they dont smoke inside the apartment (which is against the lease). Landlord stated they”
“Hellooo! I am seeking advice for how to best deep clean what I refer to as "the big stink" (stinky smell) from my apartment. My (now former) downstairs neighbors were heavy smokers and just generally smelly people (body odor, sweat, feet, vomit smells). Their apartment must've been real gross because I can smell it in mine and they moved out in July... It still smells months later. I'm planning to do a deep clean to see if I can FINALLY defeat the big stink after numerous attem”
“I’ve recently moved into a new apartment and the first two days or so that I moved in this was a non issue, but recently I’ve been having this problem where I feel like there’s like this stale or dirty smell. It’s not BO or not outwardly stinky, but just kind of off? Just a smell of dirty sink or something. I’ve genuinely used Lysol and soap everywhere and put out bowls of baking soda and nothing has helped. My friends units don’t have this problem, and I don’t know what to do it’s so helpless.”
“The apartment I’m about to move into has a bit of a smell to it; what are some products I can use to remove the smell? Also what household cleaning chemicals would be the best the keep on hand? submitted by /u/MasterDelivery2824 [link] [comments]”
“I think I’ve read every post about this topic and have yet to solve my problem. Any ideas are greatly appreciated! My inability to explain the smell is probably the biggest challenge right now. - Southern California small apartment complex, it’s been very hot - I have lived here for 6 years with no previous odors - smell started in the kitchen about 3 weeks ago, it changes in intensity but doesn’t go away unless the windows are open and an air purifier is blasting - it does NOT smell like rotten”
“So I live in an apartment on the first floor. It’s been raining for the past few days. Yesterday at 5pm I decided to go to my parents house and stayed the night. I made sure all food was put away and all trash was thrown out prior to leaving. I left my AC at 75°F. Today I got home at 9:30pm and I opened the door to a foul odor. It smells like I left out trash and food for literal days or even weeks. It’s so strong in every room including the walk in closet which doesn’t even have a vent in there”
“https://www.reddit.com/r/HomeMaintenance/s/tBuouYC28l submitted by /u/BFMGO13 [link] [comments]”
“So they will likely need to fix the pipe in the basement or the upstairs? Sorry, I don’t know much about it and learning first time as a homeowner”
“So I’ve recently moved in to my high rise apartment where you’re not supposed to smoke and yeah as far as I’ve seen, there’s literally no one smoking on their balcony. So I didn’t wanna put myself in the situation by smoking a joint in the balcony and get reported by my neighbours. To smoke a bong indoors i got this smoke trap plus recently and it’s been working extremely good. I wanted to ask if any of yall have this and how’s the life of this product. As this is quite expensive i would also ap”
“I've lived in my apartment for a few months with no issue; third floor, central air. ~1 week ago the place started smelling of weed, and it's become constant and oppressive. I'm certain it is my downstairs neighbor; not sure if they just moved in or if they have been there longer but are taking advantage of the nice weather to smoke on their balcony more (right by the exterior HVAC units . . .). They're not allowed to, and I've reported it to the management, so maybe that wil”
“Hello. Looking for ideas I may not have thought of yet. I live in a building that has 60 some units, I’m in an upper. The layout of all the units are identical so my downstairs neighbor kitchen mirrors mine. This means his stove is also directly below mine. He’s a chain smoker and he leaves his stove fan on when he smokes and because his stove is below mine his ventilation is connected to my stove ventilation. All day long his cigarette smoke is getting dragged out through my range. I have talke”
“Hi all! I post to this sub for the first time out of desperation. I moved into an apartment a month and a half ago now, and over the past month I’ve been smelling this distinct…. Smell. Can’t quite describe it, but it smells rotten or like garbage. It wakes me up in the morning before my alarm does. It is really quite pungent. I assumed it was a drain or garbage disposal issue at first. It was only after a couple of weeks of pouring baking soda and vinegar down my drains every day, scrubbing the”
“In an apartment, worried this could be causing breathing issues. or Is this normal and i’m just tripping? submitted by /u/Odd-Ad-2673 [link] [comments]”
“i have been reading about worm bins for six months and I am still stuck on the fear that my landlord will smell something weird. my apartment is 600 square feet. no basement, no garage, just a closet and a balcony that freezes solid. the worms would live in the kitchen or the bathroom and I need to know if that is actually doable or if I am romanticizing it. i generate enough scraps. coffee grounds, veg trimmings, the usual. I want the castings for my containers come spring. but I also show apar”
“Strange odors coming from other apartments frequently ugh. submitted by /u/Aquarius3312 [link] [comments]”
“Hi! I work late (I often come home from work at midnight) and without fail, my apartment always smells like weed around the time I come home. I am not sure what to do. I am fairly new to the area and don’t know my neighbors (there are 3 other tenants in the building). It’s been happening every single night since I moved in and I don’t know what to do. Recently, there was a list of warnings from my landlord of things that we shouldn’t do: “don’t put grease in the sink and don’t smoke marijuana in”
“I live in a 5 unit multi-family house. Every Sunday someone meal preps or spends the day cooking this spicy pork dish and while the smell isn't necessarily a bad one, when it's not something you're cooking yourself, it is noticeable, heavy, and it lingers. It ends up getting into my apartment and it's strong enough that I even smell it when I wake up on the opposite end of my apartment. This has been happening since I moved in here in the summer of 2025. I've noticed that the”
“Multi-day houseguest insisted on using this gross "Stinky Bowl Spray -Lavender Vanilla" (like PooPouri) and now that she's gone, I can't get the smell out of my small apartment, especially bathroom. Please help me clear the air of this toxic odor. submitted by /u/OodaliOoo [link] [comments]”
“So we reached out to our apartment management because our balcony reeks of dog piss. it comes and goes and after about a month of figuring it out where its coming from we realized its from the upstairs neighbors letting the dog piss on their balcony. At first we couldn’t believe it because they have patio furniture and all there. but its them. Its absent when their patio door is closed and boom dog piss when it is open. We reached out to management and management said they’d look into it but nee”
“Just moved into a new apartment and have been dealing with a mysterious, sharp smell that I only seem to notice when I first walk through the door. The mechanical closet is directly to the right of the entrance. Maintenance came by and said that the opening in the floor leads to the sewer line. He also mentioned that the cap to the left used to be on, but it was causing overflow issues, so I guess it was removed. I’m worried that vapors could potentially be coming up through the opening and gett”
“I think you're right in you're comparison. For this application. Of odor removable. However a strong acid like vinegar does break down and D nature protein. And in certain situations it's a better option for removing bio films”
“Hey everyone, I just rented a fairly new build basement apartment which has its own AC unit and LifeBreath system. Before this week, never heard about LB before. I’ve looked up how this works on YouTube so I kind of understand what it does - kind of. I’m in Ontario Canada. It’s the end of summer right now, creeping into fall. When do I use this thing ? Should I be using it now? I had to get a dehumidifier because it gets a little damp through the night. I’m keeping it under 60%. submitted”
“My neighbour gave me her sofas. She did not tell me she smoked. I have an uplift due in 3 weeks so anything that could help the smell so I don't hate my home and have a breakdown, all would be appreciated. The worst of the smell is from within the cushions, so it's like every time I sit on it, it's like a smell cloud of her smoking. She had it "professionally cleaned" so I believe this covered the issue when I took it from her and I only realised it was bad over the last mo”
“I’m really hoping that someone knows what I’m talking about and can help lol. My apartment has a smell that I’ve smelled occasionally in old apartments and house my whole life. It smells…like an old apartment. Kind of sour wood and dust? Maybe slightly like wood chips? Very lived in. Stale. It’s not good. It’s a pre-war Brooklyn apartment. It’s not about it being dirty, I keep it clean. And I notice it more when I’ve been gone and come back. Does anyone know the smell I’m talking about? lol And”
So my landlord lets me rent a room in his house and he’s a 80 y.o man and he likes to keep things past expiration date until it’s like no longer deemed…
“How about the HVAC? Maybe the smell isn't actually coming from where you think it is.”
“Service manager here: Rip up the floor, use enzyme, let it dry out and apply kilz for heavy odor, install floor again. DO NOT waste your money on ozone machine.”
“Recently moved into an apartment with my partner, they’ve already been living here. It’s a non-smoking complex, and we live on the 2nd floor of a 3 floor building. We’re finally starting to see cooler days here, so I’ve wanted to have the windows open and save money, but I literally can’t. The people above AND below us smoke cigarettes constantly. The people downstairs are a unit with multiple smoking adults, and the people upstairs are suspect smokers since our balcony is constantly covered in”
“Hi all, Had a roommate move in about a month ago, and it's been good BUT the room smells of B.O. due to her belongings/habits. She got a new mattress, but her room is still pretty smelly. Here's what I'm thinking of recommending she do: - See whether getting old smells out of clothes (w/ oxyclean or an enzyme cleaner - or laundry stripping) and linens works. See if pillows/mattress cover are an issue. - Clean all surfaces/plastics in her room which may have absorbed the smell. Using”
“I live in a place with a swamp cooler, meaning outside air is brought in, humidified, and pumped into my apartment. I leave the windows open for stale air to flow out. Recently two new neighbors moved in and since then, once or 9a week a strong wood smoke smell floods my apartment for hours. I've looked around and my best guess is one of them is using their fireplace and the chimney is right next to the swamp cooler intake. I emailed my apartment, they said they can't do anything if its”
“Hello! I’m wondering if anybody in here could give their opinion on my situation. I have recently moved into a newly converted ground floor apartment, it used to be an office building, we are the first tenants. Many of the bedroom walls are external, but still hollow. There is a sour, rotten vegetable type smell, that my partner describes similar to compost? We realised that the smell gets much worse when the bedroom window is open. When it is open, drafts of air push through the bottom of the b”
“I just moved into a bachelor apartment. I’m noticing the kitchen has a strong smell, I can’t place it exactly but I believe it may be cooking/food smells that have settled in over time from the past tenant? I’ve had all windows open since I moved in, I had a professional cleaner come and clean the entire place, the smell will not go away!! I don’t know what to do :( submitted by /u/AphroditesAbundance [link] [comments]”
“I’m not sure what it is but I just feel really gross and sticky. I have all the fans on, open windows, but nothing is working. Any advice? submitted by /u/Fine-Zombie6782 [link] [comments]”
“Moved into a smaller new-build apartment in April, first floor, not sharing walls with neighbors. The building was finished around January. The off-gassing was intense for several weeks, but got better except for one bedroom. It was manageable at first, only appearing when very hot or humid. It’s been colder and humid for a few days now and the drywall smell is so strong it’s making me nauseated. We’ve also been dealing with a strong rotten egg smell coming from the water heater or the drain in”
“Hi all, quite an urgent situation. I would really appreciate your advice and if anyone has been in any similar situations! Sorry the post is so long, I want to include as much nuance as possible to diagnose this correctly. I have been living ALONE in my family‘s apartment since May. Since living there I have noticed very concerning things and very concerning physical and mental symptoms presumably because of something external in the air or ventilation. I brushed it off as me being paranoid or h”
“We just moved this last month and the weather has been nice so our windows have been open everyday. Today we had to close up so they could power wash the patios, and right by my in-home office desk, I kept smelling a powerful urine smell. We know the place is pet friendly (we have a cat) but I think this was a spot of constant accidents. Just sitting near it is giving me a headache. Should I just keep spraying it with nature's miracle? Is there a better way to remove the smell like vinegar?”
“Hi all, We have a forced air system in our condo with multiple vents throughout. Occasionally, a strong musty / mildew odour comes out of all vents at once. We haven’t lived here too long, but I think it’s only emitting this odour when the AC is on - but it’ll happen in random spades. Humidity in the unit itself as well is generally pretty low despite living in a wet city which is a bit bizarre. We’ve tried cleaning the coils but to no avail. Is this likely a condo issue that we’re dealing with?”
“Hello! I have just moved in to a one bedroom 750 sq ft apartment and it mildly smells like smoke. I need help with deciding the next best steps for how to reduce the smell and (hopefully) eliminate it. I have a steam cleaner which I am planning to use on all the walls, ceiling fans, and floors, but if that doesn’t work, I am considering an ozone generator. From what I read online, there are mixed reviews. Some people say not to use it at all, and others said it worked for them. For this small sp”
“Just moved into a new apartment and I smell that earthy mildew-y smell. Thought it might be the apartment's AC, but I stood in front of it as it was running and it was surprisingly fine. Thought it could be my clothes since it's been sitting in public storage for a while, so I sniffed each one and ran any that smelled strange through a wash. Still smell it every time I come back in, but get used to it so fast that I can't reliably go around sniffing to see where it's actually com”
“Hi all. I'm very new as a property manager and I have been encountering an issue with smells on one of the floors. A new tenant has been complaining about cooking smells on their floor seeping into their apartment. I have sent out a memo regarding respecting your neighbors with your in home practices. Two days after the memo was given out the same tenant emailed me again saying that the smell is persisting. Does anybody have any advice on what I am actually able to do in this scenario? Thank”
“About 2 weeks ago I moved into the unit right above a bagel shop. It has been totally fine the past two weeks, smelling fresh every morning, but the past two days I have been waking up at 3/4am to the smell of bagels. I completely understand that this is probably when the shop is making their bagels, what I don’t understand is why it’s suddenly appearing now. We didn’t have this issue AT ALL for two weeks. Could something be wrong with the ventilation? I did report to maintenance but I worry it”
“We were part of a power outage that lasted over 24 hours and in our haste to be somewhere safe, some things were forgotten at the apartment that have led to an awful stench that's lingering. It smells like pet odor dialed up to eleven, trash, and the stagnant water stench from our breezeway that flooded has seeped in a bit. Is there something we could do to help make it more tolerable in the short term so I can start cleaning for long term? Im pregnant right now and insanely sensitive to sme”
“Hello, I am in a very desperate situation. For nearly two years there has been a bothersome stale smell in my apartment. I smell it as soon as I walk in , in the bedroom, bathroom, everywhere. Admittedly I have a very keen sense of smell and I am seemingly the only person who notices the smell. Regardless, I am in a state of constant distress. I so badly want to have a home I enjoy and not worry that in public I carry this scent with me. Here is the list of things we have tried, sorry for the lo”
“I am a sahm of a 2.5 year old in KSA. I shifted into a new apartment a month ago and the wall where our living room couch is placed is shared with our neighbour who is a single arab guy who smokes all day and night and I'm pretty sure the wall leaks the smoke from somewhere. Initially the two apartments were one big apartment but the landlord put a wall in the middle and made two apartments. At first i thought I'm imagining the smell because my nose is very very sensitive to smells and t”
“I have a friend coming over in an hour, and work went longer than I was hoping. I want to get my apartment cleaned up as best I can before they get here to at least have the place look put together. It’s not a pig sty, there’s no garbage or random things around, but I just want it to feel super clean. Thank you!! submitted by /u/Reasonable-Poetry-55 [link] [comments]”
“Hi y’all! We recently moved into a new place and the smell is killing me. I clean houses for a living, I’ve never had this issue before where I literally cannot get rid of this smell. The walls were painted recently so I don’t think cleaning the walls will do much , I’ve cleaned floor boards, cabinets and scrubbed the floor. There’s no carpet or I would’ve cleaned them. I’ve cleaned every nook and cranny in this house. We can’t leave windows open to ventilate because I have a one month old and 2”