The Benefits of a Smoke Free Apartment

Smoke free apartment buildings are beginning to become a reality in Australia. Already, almost all apartments have the ability to (and typically do) ban smoking in common areas such as hallways, common living spaces and outdoor communal areas. As for private spaces, it varies throughout the country. In some states, strata committees have the ability to completely ban smoking in all areas of apartments by introducing smoke free by-laws.

There are a number of options that can be written into the by-laws:

• Unrestricted smoking – older strata by-laws might have this as the default, given that it’s only recently that second hand smoking has become a major health concern in Australia.
• Limited smoking – by-laws may prohibit smoking in common areas such as hallways, common living spaces and outdoor communal areas. This ‘middle ground’ allows people to smoke at home, but allows all residents to enjoy the common areas without risk of second hand smoke.
• Complete smoking ban – this allows strata committees to completely ban smoking in all areas of apartment blocks, including individual apartments and balconies. Only some states allow a complete ban.

Limited smoking

Even if smoking is banned in the common areas of your apartment building, if you have a neighbour that smokes in their apartment or on their balcony, their second hand smoke can still find a way into your apartment and create an uncomfortable living space for you.

However, with smoking becoming increasingly less tolerated in our society due to the major health risks associated, there may be other relevant legal and social challenges that arise. For example, in 2015 a woman successfully sued her landlord for over $11, 000 when the smoking of a neighbour drove her and her family out of their apartment. While smoking was allowed in the apartments by the strata corporation, there was a competing responsibility for the landlord to provide a premises fit for occupation.

With this precedent now set, power to fight against smoking in apartment buildings lies with the tenant. To put it another way; landlords, body corporates and strata managers now must consider very carefully what kind of smoking they allow on their premises.

Benefits of a complete ban

On the surface, it might sound like a complete ban on smoking would discourage potential buyers and tenants, and therefore be a poor business or investment decision. But a review of the statistics suggests otherwise. A glance of the statistics reveals that smoking is actually quite a niche activity. Only 16% of adults living in New South Wales smoke, and 93% do not permit smoking inside their home, meaning that the vast majority of Australians are unlikely to welcome second hand smoke into their home.

As a result, only a small number of prospective residents might feel discontent at a complete ban on smoking in an apartment and even then they might be willing to overlook this as a mere inconvenience to the value of the property overall. Meanwhile, most residents and prospective residents will appreciate the peace of mind that smoke won’t enter their apartment through open windows or ventilation shafts.

Apartment value

As well as protecting landlords and strata corporations from potential legal action, a complete smoking ban on the apartment building would help to maintain the value of the property over time. Cigarette smoke stains walls, curtains and other furniture, and has a habit of seeping into carpets and wallpapers to give the apartment a permanent stench. Even if you don’t smoke, or screen for tenants that don’t, if smoke gets into the apartment from outside sources, the damage can be much the same.

For this reason, it makes sense to carefully look through strata by-laws when buying an apartment, and give extra weighting to those apartments that have the uncommon complete ban on smoking. Even if you’re a smoker yourself, or if you lose the occasional tenant who wishes to smoke at home, the long term value of the property will be more easily maintained, and you reduce your risk of legal liability (or health complications from your neighbour’s smoke).

Insurance

One final benefit is that buying into a smoke free apartment building can give you greater negotiating power with insurers. Those buildings that are smoke free are at a lower risk of a variety of insurable problems, and by reducing that risk, insurers should be more willing to negotiate down.

In short, Australia is rapidly transitioning away from being a society that tolerates smoking in the mainstream. While the apartment by-laws have been slow to keep up with this cultural change, from a financial and safety point of view, it just makes good sense to insist on smoke free environments.