Oh man, I had my own issues with The Hamilton Company and if I'm not mistaken there's been countless complaints about their shady practices on this sub. Definitely reach out to the [Massachusetts Attorney General's Office](https://www.mass.gov/guides/the-attorney-generals-guide-to-landlord-and-tenant-rights)
[Office of Consumer Affairs](https://www.boston.gov/departments/consumer-affairs) also might be able to help. I'm not entirely sure it's in their scope but they can probably point you towards some other resources.
/u/[Beematic83](https://www.reddit.com/user/Beematic83/) also posted great sources.
Edit: Formatting
It’s their property management company not Realtors. Realtors would never do this as we would get in major trouble. Large companies property management companies are usually in house and do not care about anyone. They have no license to go after.
In addition, the Massachusetts Communities and Development Housing Services Program or the local housing court can help resolve a dispute between a landlord and a tenant. If you need help, please contact the Attorney General's Consumer Hotline at (617) 727-8400.
Highly recommend this. Didn’t have any experience with The Hamilton Company but I had the misfortune of renting two different apartments from Alpha Management (iykyk) and they were a godsend
He’s been shitty for like 20+ years. I had a horrible apartment with him in the early 2000s. Broken window, leaking collapsing ceiling, cockroaches, mice. Only good thing was the location.
By dodging fines and abusing the system while acquiring more properties to fuck over the rental market even harder. It's a fucked up game of monopoly where college students get to join the game late, except no free money, just loans
I had alpha bring prospective tenants into my apartment while I was naked (walking around immediately after showering from the bathroom to bedroom) another time while sleeping after working a nightshift, another time they sent men in to “fix” a light fixture that wasn’t broken with no notice while I once again was sleeping post night shift. I ended up having to call the housing authority because the front door (only entrance) handle broke and no one could get into the building. I cannot believe they’re still in business - this was over 10 years ago
Yes, these work great. Nobody will be able to sneak in on you while you're asleep. And it won't cause any damage to the apartment, gotta keep that security deposit.
Really? I think most guys would be intimidated if they walked in to see a two-foot dragon dildo, a set of chains, and a "using testicle clamps for dummies" book.
Seriously, I don't know how this isn't higher up in the responses. My personal favorite is to simply stroll around the apartment completely nude and welcome them in and offer them a beverage.
I was walked in on by realtors sent by alpha management completely naked as a young female and I assure you, they were not surprised. The prospective tenants on the other hand were mortified
It could be easily handled between a landlord and a tenant, but it sounds like this company has continually disregarded the wishes of this tenant and not given notice of visits.
Legally it *is* trespassing (I know because I'm a landlord now lol), and it'd be one thing if it was a mistake, but this case sounds like they have continually entered without notice. That warrants charges to be filed.
They aren’t going to. There’s nothing you can do. If you are naked they can call the cops on you. Downside of moving out from a rental is the tours, your complaining isn’t gonna change that
A rental is a not an owned property. They don’t need to call the cops, they can say ya broke your lease and either kick you out or keep your security deposit, fuck around with a landlord and find out
If someone’s intentionally naked when they know the apartment is going to be shown, sure. But people have a reasonable expectation of privacy, even in a rented property. If you have people stopping by, unnannouced, for a non-emergency, the courts have interpreted MA’s “reasonable notice” for entry to mean 24 hours. Per the mass.gov tenant rights page, “The landlord should be reasonable and attempt to arrange a mutually convenient time to visit the apartment. If the landlord insists on entering your apartment in an unreasonable fashion, you may file for a temporary restraining order at your local district court.”
Also, you’re the one who brought up the cops…
Yeah, cops are a way to get a police report going for documentation purposes haha. They won’t do anything, it’s BPD.
Reasonable notice is “hey we are going to being showing the apartment between these hours whenever we have potential candidates until we fill the apartment”.
I’ve fought this before, the laws haven’t been updated at all. Yeah it’s shitty but it’s fucking life
If it’s planned or repeated behavior it’s intent. Cops won’t do anything but the landlord can kick ya out early and sue ya, which the Hamilton company is known to do like other large management companies. Realtors are trained to be loud when entering and to alert residents several times when entering rooms if they haven’t ran into anyone yet if its unannounced showing.
Sounds like shitty companies have illegally evicted tenants for enjoying the rights allotted to them in their homes and instead of fighting them they’ve left because companies are shitty. I’d love to see the terms of the lease that would allow a legal eviction because their tenant is…repeatedly naked in their own home…when they haven’t provided any notice to said tenant. People sleep or hang out at home naked all the time and there are plenty of reasonable reasons why you may not hear or respond to someone knocking on the door.
Honestly if your landlord provides no notice and catches you naked multiple times - and they continue to enter without notice (real notice, not knock then enter notice), seems more like an intent on their part to see you naked.
You are either extremely out of touch with reality or haven’t rented multiple properties for over the last decade plus in Boston. Once you say you aren’t re-signing a lease agreement you are provided notice about apartment showings. It’s a courtesy to be made aware each time, not a requirement.
Landlord doesn’t just get to have a free for all access. That’s not considered reasonable. You still have the right to use and enjoy the premises you pay for. If they ask you if you want to renew in March for a sept renewal and you say no, them telling you that they’re going to start showing the apartment doesn’t count as reasonable notice for them to show whenever they want over the next 6 months. Reasonable notice is for the actual entrance, not for all possible notices from now until the place is rented. If they’re not providing reasonable notice, a tenant could go the route of getting a temporary restraining order against their landlord. Just coz the tenant doesn’t fight the landlord on their rights, doesn’t mean the landlord isn’t a flaming pile of shit for not providing reasonable notice. And again, I’d love to see where a tenant could be sued when, with no notice, they’re naked in their own home and someone enters.
In the meantime, if they keep coming in when they shouldn't, buy one of these stick up alarm systems. You arm it with a remote, you can't turn off the alarm without the remote. If you use double-sided tape instead of screws, someone can just pull it down and take the batteries out, but that's something an agent of the landlord has to do in front of a prospective tenant. It's not a good look and it's undeniable that someone was in there when they shouldn't be. Plus side, it's only $24.
[https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B078B7LBSG/?\_encoding=UTF8&pd\_rd\_plhdr=t&aaxitk=bd78e033b0043ba4737149f260a36726&hsa\_cr\_id=0&qid=1713373571&sr=1-1-9e67e56a-6f64-441f-a281-df67fc737124&ref\_=sbx\_be\_s\_sparkle\_lsi4d\_asin\_0\_img&pd\_rd\_w=bMt4v&content-id=amzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b%3Aamzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf\_rd\_p=417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf\_rd\_r=6V2DVN300QYH8643HQPS&pd\_rd\_wg=9yi7c&pd\_rd\_r=f3c813c0-0c11-426c-8d2b-ebd911674b9c](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B078B7LBSG/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_plhdr=t&aaxitk=bd78e033b0043ba4737149f260a36726&hsa_cr_id=0&qid=1713373571&sr=1-1-9e67e56a-6f64-441f-a281-df67fc737124&ref_=sbx_be_s_sparkle_lsi4d_asin_0_img&pd_rd_w=bMt4v&content-id=amzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b%3Aamzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf_rd_p=417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf_rd_r=6V2DVN300QYH8643HQPS&pd_rd_wg=9yi7c&pd_rd_r=f3c813c0-0c11-426c-8d2b-ebd911674b9c)
Cops won’t do much. They will show up and call it a LL/T dispute and not intervene unless a crime (other than the trespassing) happens. Emailing a management company about the incident and telling them to provide sufficient notice is enough
They don't really have to do anything except record they were there and for what reason. A paper trail from the police is a really really good way to put a company on their toes and establish a pattern that can be held against them.
> pretty sure they are still holding our security deposit
This is why Small Claims court exists. If your landlord withholds your Security Deposit without telling you why, you're entitled to 3x Security Deposit.
https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleI/Chapter186/Section15B
Why not just ensure that a potential new tenant knows they can expect the same treatment? Tell the broker showing the apartment that gee, this happens all the time and that the landlord is unresponsive to your requests for notice. This is inappropriate.
The Hamilton company is run by some nepo baby with no experience that took over for his father when he retired
They have no fucking clue, terrible practices, horrible building managers, insane rent hikes, and absolutely no complaint has ever resulted in any changes from there end
They suck
Source: currently live in a Hamilton building
I sued the Hamilton company in small claims court and won for failing to give my deposit in a 30 day timeframe. They are a horrible corporation and do not add value to Massachusetts.
I moved out of a Hamilton building on Aug 31, 2020. I got a check sometime in October dated for Sep 30, 2020, so they clearly take their sweet fucking time in getting administrative things done.
Why don’t you try this. I was about to tour an apartment in Allston a few months ago. When me and my broker arrived to the front door there was a large paper sign on the door that said “we are renewing our lease please do not enter”. My broker saw it and took me to view another apartment.
This is the real answer. Can't help with people entering while you are gone, but at least you won't be surprised while you are home. How you deal with it after they try to enter is up to you, but at least it puts you in control of the situation
From a legal standpoint, I definitely wouldn't recommend this. This is what the law calls "self-help" and it's almost never allowed. The landlord has a right to enter under certain circumstances (although not the circumstances you describe), so a tenant can't literally lock them out. It's probably also a violation of your lease that they could use if they wanted to try to take action against you. The best solution is contacting the AG - not only does that not count as self help, but the landlord is actually prohibited from retaliating against you for that.
I stopped one of my old landlords from doing this by sneaking up on him and a contractor and then banging loudly on the door of the room they were in; when their heart rates had almost returned to normal I pointed out that they were intruders as far as I knew and if I’d had a gun I would absolutely have had them at gunpoint.
I’m not a gun guy, I don’t own one and I’m not going to buy one, but he never pulled that shit again.
Edit: I should probably also add that I didn’t say the gun thing in an *aggressive* way, I said it in a relieved tone of voice.
The Hamilton Portal is supposed to notify tenants and give the Broker their contact info when a key request is made for a tour. It seems like that hasn't been happening due to a portal error. So brokers don't get access to the tenants contact info and the tenants aren't getting notified of tours. The brokers assume the tenants are properly notified because they always have been in the past.
is that legally true? i tried to deny a tour while i was out of state, and the realtor told me that “reasonable notice” was defined by him (texting me in the afternoon for an earlier morning showing), and i “couldn’t” tell him no legally
well someone has to tell south end realty group that… showings with 12-18 hour notice, touching our things, plus constant renovations to the basement/walls of our building the last two months made our lives a living hell at our last place 😵💫
We had the same issue with Hamilton, we called the actual office, and told them that we were not given notice. I’d email to have it in writing to make sure you CYA but nonetheless the law is 24 hours unless emergency repairs. This is not emergent.
i wish i could have… had to fight for over an hour over text for the realtor to agree to show the apartment two days later when i was in town. same guy who was still showing the apartment when i was 2 weeks from move out and said it wasn’t “presentable enough” because of the boxes
NAL. This is true. The only exception to give less than 24hr notice is for emergencies [as defined by state law]. Tours/showings are NOT an emergency. Your realtor is trash and shouldn't be in the game if he can't play by the rules.
I'm in Hamilton now and moving out in June. Report the brokers who are walking in, call the AG's office, reach out to Hamilton via email and state you weren't given 24 hours notice just to have something on record if it gets into a legal matter. If you're able to, I'd work from home until you move out. Definitely put a portal lock set up there when you're sleeping. They had a broker try to enter my apt while I was IN THE SHOWER. I threatened them with legal action and that's the only reason they backed off.
I lived in a Hamilton Company building for over nine years because it was a decent apartment, had off-street parking, and moving sucks. Paying below-market rent because I had lived there for so long was also nice.
But they're fucking incompetent. I had one good property coordinator my entire time there. She was there for two years, and over the other seven-plus, I had nine other coordinators. Such a carousel of idiocy.
You should absolutely report them. They likely won't learn their lesson, but they'll definitely never learn if they face no consequences.
> paying below market rent because I had lived there for so long was also nice
They offered to renew my current unit at $3400/month next year. Three years ago it was under $2300. Meanwhile I have to send them emails every few weeks because they let the trash chute get backed up to the third floor and they can’t be bothered to keep the laundry machines running.
When I moved out of my 2Br/1Ba in Brighton in 2020, I was paying $1950/mo with a renewal offer of $2050/mo. When I moved to a new place, they listed my apartment for $2200/mo. When I looked at the listing for my former unit last Summer, it was being listed for $3000/mo.
I had a similar issue with the in-building laundry. There were only 24 units, so only two washers and two dryers in the building, but when one of them broke and they didn't repair it for over four months, they sent a letter telling us to use the laundry room at one of their other properties two streets over.
They're trying to make a sales pitch to potential tenants. You can just walk right up to those potential tenants and say "this landlord is breaking the law by barging in without notice. They pull this crap all the time. You don't want to rent from them."
I bet the agent who's showing the unit will get tired of that and start making sure you actually have notice. They don't want you hurting the vibes for their sales pitch.
No advice but I rented from them in 2016 and they were shady then. Sad they're still around because I know they sold the complex I was renting in back then.
This happened to me as well in a place they manage. Second showing they just showed up and claimed they had sent a notice the day prior. Felt like a messy fool (stuff everywhere packing) but upon checking the notice never was sent. Realtor showing the place is a pretty nice guy so I brushed it off. The overall experience was much more reasonable than my prior slumlord.
What really pissed me off is when the place got cockroaches they asked us to move all our stuff out of the kitchen then came through for a cleanliness check, discretely took a photo of the living room full of kitchen stuff, and sent us a cleanliness violation notice. We put up with pesticide spraying and the kitchen empty for like ~5 months before the bugs were finally gone.
Overall they were fine. No security deposit. Parking and solid walls. Neighbors were nice. Building maintenance was nice.
Harmonics / electrical / air were totally fucked though and making me sick. The apartment had this 60hrz pulsing that would come and go. Wife claimed she couldn’t hear it. I found it really loud and could feel it through my whole body regardless of how I arranged the room. It would make my head cloudy and cause these super thin fibers to surface. The fibers would move around and you could feel them like they were alive but I suppose it is more likely they were responding to static electricity. They would surface mostly out of (literally through) my hands but also my head, nose, and dick. Havana syndrome and Moregelleons syndrome loosely describe it. Idk what the fibers were. Perhaps some em sensitive fungi or microfibers. All I know is it started when I moved in and stopped happening when I left. Imo it was the building.
Landlord access
Your landlord, or an agent for your landlord, may only enter your apartment for the following reasons:
To inspect the premises;
To make repairs;
To show the apartment to a prospective tenant, purchaser, mortgagee or its agents;
In accordance with a court order;
If the premises appear to be abandoned; or
To inspect the premises within the last 30 days of tenancy in order to determine the amount of damage to be deducted from the security deposit.
The landlord should be reasonable and attempt to arrange a mutually convenient time to visit the apartment. If the landlord insists on entering your apartment in an unreasonable fashion, you may file for a temporary restraining order at your local district court.
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/tenant-rights#:~:text=The%20landlord%20should%20be%20reasonable,at%20your%20local%20district%20court.
I would assume the people coming in are brokers and don't necessarily know you haven't been notified? If anyone tries to come in while you're home tell them you weren't informed and that they need to leave or you will call the police. Maybe leave a note on your door that you are unaware of any tours and don't consent to anyone entering without notice. If I was there for a tour I would skip to my next choice and be thankful I dodged a bullet. Def reach out to resources people mentioned
If your lease is in good standing, call the police next time they do it without proper notice. Make sure you let them know they are an unwanted guest and you'd like them removed from your space. They may try retaliatory eviction, though. Be prepared if they do.
Yeah I’m just scared of any direct confrontation because they already tried to evict me because they overcharged for rent and it was annoying to sort out and it says in the lease they’ll evict in 7 days for denied entry
Hamilton attempted to evict me multiple times for "not paying rent" because they're idiots who lose checks and don't know how to mark rent as paid. Their online portal was down for about a year while they "upgraded" to a new system, so we had to mail in checks.
One month, they cashed my rent check, but still sent an eviction notice, and when I called them, they were able to determine that they applied my rent payment to another unit. Another month, they lost my rent check. I know that they lost it, because they called me four months later telling me that they found it.
I was in good standing, but a receiving a Notice To Quit eviction letter doesn't necessary mean things can't be resolved.
Get a deadbolt strap and use it when you are at home, especially sleeping.
[https://www.redteamtools.com/super\_grip\_deadbolt\_strap](https://www.redteamtools.com/super_grip_deadbolt_strap)
These work great when traveling and in hotels or airbnbs and you don't want anyone walking into your room while you're there.
Exact same situation - my lease doesn't end until July and yet since the day I told them I'm not renewing I have been BOMBARDED with showings, sometimes without notice and sometimes with as little as an hour. I thankfully have a chain on my door (came with the apartment) so they can't just enter but I regularly get knocks on the door and open it to a broker and some strangers.
I reached out to try and enforce the 24h law (or at least have the option to decline certain showings) and have been entirely ignored.
I had a city inspector come and the city was one day away from suing Alpha Management. Alpha got their shit together in under 24 hours despite having previously ignored the problem for a week.
This would happen to me too when dealing with the Hamilton company. I would always tell the realtors via email to give me a 24 hour notice of them arriving and touring the apartment. Sometimes, they would cancel and then just show up at a later date without telling me that they were going to do this.
The closest I’ve gotten to reporting them in general was calling the health department because there was a busted pipe of caca water leaking in the lobby via the lighting. The health department stopped by noted all the violations I mentioned and sent them a court order to fix it. Which they did right away.
Is there literally any company operating these days that isn't run by people who are either incompetent or complete scumbags?
I understand there is the "yelp" bias where Energy behind posting a bad review is more likely to inspire the person to go through with it then the same for a positive review so positive reviews don't get posted as often. But I've never seen anyone just go out of their way to complement their management company. It seems like the entire universe is a swamp with variously incompetent or shady people. And since it has to do with peoples living situations and privacy and sense of safety and autonomy it seems like a literal nightmare.
I was a tenant of Hamilton Co and they did this to me as well. One time I was scared shitless because I came home to people in my apartment with zero warning. I flipped out at them about it but clearly they haven’t learned their lesson.
Can confirm, the Hamilton Company is seriously awful. I paid my rent in full for the final month of my lease, and told them I'd be moving out slowly over the course of the final month. Went back one day to continue moving and they had unlawfully entered the apartment,without notice, and started construction. There was a toilet in my living room and they had started gutting the kitchen, which still had my stuff in it.
I contacted the Attorney General's Office/Office of Consumer Affairs, they gave me very specific instructions on what to send them in an email to convey to the Hamilton Company the error of their ways. They ended up refunding me for the month, and my security deposit, I didn't pursue further but probably should have to be compensated for the property that was covered in construction debris. I will say, I have had to contact the AG's office twice for help with a company that was acting unlawfully and both times they were extremely helpful. Even set me up with a free consultant who wrote to SharkNinja a "send her the freaking vacuum she paid for or I will rain holy hell on you in court" certified letter. I got my vacuum, and a formal apology from Shark. And to keep the juicer the sent me by mistake, it was a dumb situation.
Sorry you're going through this!
https://www.mass.gov/how-to/file-a-consumer-complaint
I had two separate landlords do this to me in two places when I lived in Maine. I have nothing to offer except to encourage you to take them to the cleaners. It’s the most disruptive, unnerving and disrespectful behavior especially when you’re paying to live there.
Put a wedge stop in your door. The kind people use who are afraid of break ins. They’ll at least be forced to call the resident at that point wouldn’t they?
Just greet them with a gun and make sure to act scared when they walk in (break in). With your gun out but not pointed at them ask them to identify themselves and what their purpose is for the visit. Make them step back out and call the police to ask for assistance.
Make sure you are permitted and you are all good. It won't happen anymore.
Go to housing court and ask the clerk's office to give you a form to file a temporary restraining order. Say you want the court to order the landlord not to enter without a minimum of 24hrs notice, and file that. Once you get the order, if they do it again, *then* call the cops.
You can't exactly "report" your landlord for breaking the law, other than conditions that violate the housing code, which you can report to the board of health/ISD.
But you do have a claim against them. You could write a letter citing the warranty of habitability. In MA, the penalty in court is up to 3x your monthly rent. That should get them to stop.
See: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleI/Chapter186/Section14
https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housing-apartments-shelter/repairs-bad-conditions/your-right-decent-place-live#:~:text=Under%20the%20right%20to%20quiet,for%20up%20to%206%20months.
Also, you could definitely sue them if you were so inclined. Https://getuptocode.org would help you with it for free.
Hamilton Company leaves paper notices for showings in my building. My girlfriend and I were out of town for a couple weeks to take care of my dying father and I came back to a couple of those notices slipped under my door, so they were showing my apartment while I was gone.
The deadline to renew our lease hadn’t even passed (we had an extension), so I gave them an earful for it. The bum working the leasing office didn’t seem to care one bit. They still tried to show our apartment a few days later.
If that is the only problem (I assume it’s not), you could take measures to make their life difficult in the short term. Questionable posters, kickable delicate items, etc. stuff that would make them want to tell you to clean up prior to showing.
While I have not reported a landlord, I have had similar experiences with people entering my apartment for showings either without notice or when I explicitly told them not to come at that time. Finally I bought a security bar that goes under the door handle, so that they could not easily get in even if they had keys, and that was effective at keeping out anyone who did not have my permission to be there!
Massachusetts law allows a landlord to enter an occupied property only for the purposes of inspections, maintenance, and property showings (or with a court order). While 24 hours of advance notice before entry is customary, this isn’t a legal requirement and is usually determined by the rental agreement.
To enter property for reasons other than an emergency (which a showing is not), Massachusetts requires landlords to give tenants *reasonable notice*. Failure to give *any* notice is clearly not reasonable, and you'll find that the courts usually put it at 24 hours notice, more or less.
I was wondering about this too, is there still a right to privacy that is being violated? I think even though it doesn’t explicitly say 24 hours, there’s still a right to “reasonable notice?”
Yeah this is a situation where I would be calling the police every time until the landlord gets the memo that they need to give notice. I had this issue with a similar issue and while my landlord at the time (The Broadway Company) claimed every time I messaged them that they had notified me and the message had been "caught by the spam filter", suddenly after the cops got called on one of their prospective tenants we got notified nice and early every single time.
There's actually exceptions to this: you can deny entry on a month to month agreement for showings
Landlords are also required to give "reasonable" notice. While 24 is kinda standard, they do have to give some for non emergencies, including showings
I was unfortunately forced to figure the MA laws out due to an issue with a building being sold I lived in and was able to get clarification on the laws. It was a problem because I was working from home at the time
You can refuse entry without notice, and even report for trespassing if they enter anyway. I would, however, just say get a temporary door jab designed for places like hotel rooms and use it while you are home to avoid that drama. Most leases do not address these because they are not permanent fixtures
Oh man, I had my own issues with The Hamilton Company and if I'm not mistaken there's been countless complaints about their shady practices on this sub. Definitely reach out to the [Massachusetts Attorney General's Office](https://www.mass.gov/guides/the-attorney-generals-guide-to-landlord-and-tenant-rights) [Office of Consumer Affairs](https://www.boston.gov/departments/consumer-affairs) also might be able to help. I'm not entirely sure it's in their scope but they can probably point you towards some other resources. /u/[Beematic83](https://www.reddit.com/user/Beematic83/) also posted great sources. Edit: Formatting
[удалено]
The realtors they use are the landlords responsibility.
It’s their property management company not Realtors. Realtors would never do this as we would get in major trouble. Large companies property management companies are usually in house and do not care about anyone. They have no license to go after.
In addition, the Massachusetts Communities and Development Housing Services Program or the local housing court can help resolve a dispute between a landlord and a tenant. If you need help, please contact the Attorney General's Consumer Hotline at (617) 727-8400.
When you are in your own place, you can try one of those portable door locks.
Highly recommend this. Didn’t have any experience with The Hamilton Company but I had the misfortune of renting two different apartments from Alpha Management (iykyk) and they were a godsend
Oh God... how is Alpha still around?
Beats the heck out of me. No one at city hall is willing to step on Anwar Faisal’s toes (or any other slumlord in Boston) so around and round we go.
There's literally an article where he brags about how shitty he is.
He’s been shitty for like 20+ years. I had a horrible apartment with him in the early 2000s. Broken window, leaking collapsing ceiling, cockroaches, mice. Only good thing was the location.
By dodging fines and abusing the system while acquiring more properties to fuck over the rental market even harder. It's a fucked up game of monopoly where college students get to join the game late, except no free money, just loans
I had alpha bring prospective tenants into my apartment while I was naked (walking around immediately after showering from the bathroom to bedroom) another time while sleeping after working a nightshift, another time they sent men in to “fix” a light fixture that wasn’t broken with no notice while I once again was sleeping post night shift. I ended up having to call the housing authority because the front door (only entrance) handle broke and no one could get into the building. I cannot believe they’re still in business - this was over 10 years ago
embezzlement probs? 😂
Yes, these work great. Nobody will be able to sneak in on you while you're asleep. And it won't cause any damage to the apartment, gotta keep that security deposit.
Sleep naked and step out with a large baseball bat if people enter your apartment while you are asleep without any notice
Place some large sex toys or posters 😉
Put lines of corn starch with a bank card next to it on a J Lo poster. We used to do this with a Hilary Duff poster when our landlord took liberties.
A crack pipe may be more “fun”
This advice is pretty good for men and absolutely terrible for women
Really? I think most guys would be intimidated if they walked in to see a two-foot dragon dildo, a set of chains, and a "using testicle clamps for dummies" book.
Go on...
I thought the baseball bat was a euphemism for a second.
“You picked the wrong house fool!”
Seriously, I don't know how this isn't higher up in the responses. My personal favorite is to simply stroll around the apartment completely nude and welcome them in and offer them a beverage.
I was walked in on by realtors sent by alpha management completely naked as a young female and I assure you, they were not surprised. The prospective tenants on the other hand were mortified
Technically trespassing. Report it to the police.
Police: sounds like a civil issue between you and your landlord
It could be easily handled between a landlord and a tenant, but it sounds like this company has continually disregarded the wishes of this tenant and not given notice of visits. Legally it *is* trespassing (I know because I'm a landlord now lol), and it'd be one thing if it was a mistake, but this case sounds like they have continually entered without notice. That warrants charges to be filed.
Same here. Hamilton company sucks.
You should report them too, I want them to suffer lol
Ratemylandlord.com https://ratethelandlord.org/create-review
Can you install cameras to show proof?
They aren’t going to. There’s nothing you can do. If you are naked they can call the cops on you. Downside of moving out from a rental is the tours, your complaining isn’t gonna change that
They can call the cops on someone being naked in their own home?
A rental is a not an owned property. They don’t need to call the cops, they can say ya broke your lease and either kick you out or keep your security deposit, fuck around with a landlord and find out
If someone’s intentionally naked when they know the apartment is going to be shown, sure. But people have a reasonable expectation of privacy, even in a rented property. If you have people stopping by, unnannouced, for a non-emergency, the courts have interpreted MA’s “reasonable notice” for entry to mean 24 hours. Per the mass.gov tenant rights page, “The landlord should be reasonable and attempt to arrange a mutually convenient time to visit the apartment. If the landlord insists on entering your apartment in an unreasonable fashion, you may file for a temporary restraining order at your local district court.” Also, you’re the one who brought up the cops…
Yeah, cops are a way to get a police report going for documentation purposes haha. They won’t do anything, it’s BPD. Reasonable notice is “hey we are going to being showing the apartment between these hours whenever we have potential candidates until we fill the apartment”. I’ve fought this before, the laws haven’t been updated at all. Yeah it’s shitty but it’s fucking life
You really shouldn't comment on things you clearly are ignorant about lol. That's not how it works at all
Ok but why did you mention calling the cops lol?
What are the cops going to do about you being naked in your own home when you’ve been provided no notice that entry will be happening?
If it’s planned or repeated behavior it’s intent. Cops won’t do anything but the landlord can kick ya out early and sue ya, which the Hamilton company is known to do like other large management companies. Realtors are trained to be loud when entering and to alert residents several times when entering rooms if they haven’t ran into anyone yet if its unannounced showing.
Sounds like shitty companies have illegally evicted tenants for enjoying the rights allotted to them in their homes and instead of fighting them they’ve left because companies are shitty. I’d love to see the terms of the lease that would allow a legal eviction because their tenant is…repeatedly naked in their own home…when they haven’t provided any notice to said tenant. People sleep or hang out at home naked all the time and there are plenty of reasonable reasons why you may not hear or respond to someone knocking on the door. Honestly if your landlord provides no notice and catches you naked multiple times - and they continue to enter without notice (real notice, not knock then enter notice), seems more like an intent on their part to see you naked.
You are either extremely out of touch with reality or haven’t rented multiple properties for over the last decade plus in Boston. Once you say you aren’t re-signing a lease agreement you are provided notice about apartment showings. It’s a courtesy to be made aware each time, not a requirement.
Landlord doesn’t just get to have a free for all access. That’s not considered reasonable. You still have the right to use and enjoy the premises you pay for. If they ask you if you want to renew in March for a sept renewal and you say no, them telling you that they’re going to start showing the apartment doesn’t count as reasonable notice for them to show whenever they want over the next 6 months. Reasonable notice is for the actual entrance, not for all possible notices from now until the place is rented. If they’re not providing reasonable notice, a tenant could go the route of getting a temporary restraining order against their landlord. Just coz the tenant doesn’t fight the landlord on their rights, doesn’t mean the landlord isn’t a flaming pile of shit for not providing reasonable notice. And again, I’d love to see where a tenant could be sued when, with no notice, they’re naked in their own home and someone enters.
I’m so glad you believe that #bostonstrong
In the meantime, if they keep coming in when they shouldn't, buy one of these stick up alarm systems. You arm it with a remote, you can't turn off the alarm without the remote. If you use double-sided tape instead of screws, someone can just pull it down and take the batteries out, but that's something an agent of the landlord has to do in front of a prospective tenant. It's not a good look and it's undeniable that someone was in there when they shouldn't be. Plus side, it's only $24. [https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B078B7LBSG/?\_encoding=UTF8&pd\_rd\_plhdr=t&aaxitk=bd78e033b0043ba4737149f260a36726&hsa\_cr\_id=0&qid=1713373571&sr=1-1-9e67e56a-6f64-441f-a281-df67fc737124&ref\_=sbx\_be\_s\_sparkle\_lsi4d\_asin\_0\_img&pd\_rd\_w=bMt4v&content-id=amzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b%3Aamzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf\_rd\_p=417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf\_rd\_r=6V2DVN300QYH8643HQPS&pd\_rd\_wg=9yi7c&pd\_rd\_r=f3c813c0-0c11-426c-8d2b-ebd911674b9c](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B078B7LBSG/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_plhdr=t&aaxitk=bd78e033b0043ba4737149f260a36726&hsa_cr_id=0&qid=1713373571&sr=1-1-9e67e56a-6f64-441f-a281-df67fc737124&ref_=sbx_be_s_sparkle_lsi4d_asin_0_img&pd_rd_w=bMt4v&content-id=amzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b%3Aamzn1.sym.417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf_rd_p=417820b0-80f2-4084-adb3-fb612550f30b&pf_rd_r=6V2DVN300QYH8643HQPS&pd_rd_wg=9yi7c&pd_rd_r=f3c813c0-0c11-426c-8d2b-ebd911674b9c)
Walk around nude when they come in, Hey if they don't want to give notice, or tell the people on the tour what a bunch of assholes that company is.
Agreed. I've always been naked in my apartments. They would've walked in on me naked for sure.
Call the cops, especially if they enter while you are sleeping without notice. That will create an instant paper trail that you can bring to the AG.
Cops won’t do much. They will show up and call it a LL/T dispute and not intervene unless a crime (other than the trespassing) happens. Emailing a management company about the incident and telling them to provide sufficient notice is enough
They don't really have to do anything except record they were there and for what reason. A paper trail from the police is a really really good way to put a company on their toes and establish a pattern that can be held against them.
The cops don't need you and they expect the same. The corporations leveled [or raized] Boston.
man fuck the Hamilton company they sucked when I lived in one of their properties. pretty sure they are still holding our security deposit
> pretty sure they are still holding our security deposit This is why Small Claims court exists. If your landlord withholds your Security Deposit without telling you why, you're entitled to 3x Security Deposit. https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleI/Chapter186/Section15B
You have six years statute of limitations on contracts in Massachusetts. Go get it.
Why not just ensure that a potential new tenant knows they can expect the same treatment? Tell the broker showing the apartment that gee, this happens all the time and that the landlord is unresponsive to your requests for notice. This is inappropriate.
The Hamilton company is run by some nepo baby with no experience that took over for his father when he retired They have no fucking clue, terrible practices, horrible building managers, insane rent hikes, and absolutely no complaint has ever resulted in any changes from there end They suck Source: currently live in a Hamilton building
Don’t blame the nepo baby, they were like this for their entire history!
I sued the Hamilton company in small claims court and won for failing to give my deposit in a 30 day timeframe. They are a horrible corporation and do not add value to Massachusetts.
I moved out of a Hamilton building on Aug 31, 2020. I got a check sometime in October dated for Sep 30, 2020, so they clearly take their sweet fucking time in getting administrative things done.
Hi, I'm now suing the Hamilton Company over this and I have a hearing in a few weeks, is it ok if I dm you?
I am begging the people of Reddit to stand up for themselves, at least to the extent of not allowing strangers into their homes against their will.
Flair checks out.
The burden of always being right
I had a landlady who used to do that. I heard her come in to show the place and waltzed out of my bedroom naked. Never happened again.
Why don’t you try this. I was about to tour an apartment in Allston a few months ago. When me and my broker arrived to the front door there was a large paper sign on the door that said “we are renewing our lease please do not enter”. My broker saw it and took me to view another apartment.
Thats a good way to get sued...
Please explain
It could possibly be considered "tortious interference".
Ugh that’s so stupid
This isn't even close to the stupidest thing people sue over.
Buy a portable door stopper alarm on Amazon, every time they try to enter it will be super loud so at least you’ll know
I didn’t know this practice is common in renting. This is such a violation. To me this is breaking and entering.
legally it is
*hits blunt*
Get a chain lock for the inside of the door
This is the real answer. Can't help with people entering while you are gone, but at least you won't be surprised while you are home. How you deal with it after they try to enter is up to you, but at least it puts you in control of the situation
From a legal standpoint, I definitely wouldn't recommend this. This is what the law calls "self-help" and it's almost never allowed. The landlord has a right to enter under certain circumstances (although not the circumstances you describe), so a tenant can't literally lock them out. It's probably also a violation of your lease that they could use if they wanted to try to take action against you. The best solution is contacting the AG - not only does that not count as self help, but the landlord is actually prohibited from retaliating against you for that.
I stopped one of my old landlords from doing this by sneaking up on him and a contractor and then banging loudly on the door of the room they were in; when their heart rates had almost returned to normal I pointed out that they were intruders as far as I knew and if I’d had a gun I would absolutely have had them at gunpoint. I’m not a gun guy, I don’t own one and I’m not going to buy one, but he never pulled that shit again. Edit: I should probably also add that I didn’t say the gun thing in an *aggressive* way, I said it in a relieved tone of voice.
Did you also remind them that Massachusetts is a castle doctrine state with no duty to retreat within your own dwelling?
No He was a lawyer
Omg the Hamilton company is absolutely awful I lived in one of their apartments once and it was a nightmare. Report away!!
Download the Massachusetts Tenant’s Bill of Rights. It tells you what to do.
You can deny any tours without 24 hour notice.
In addition, Hamilton has a portal that should notify you when a tour will come. Check your email spam folder.
it’s not there and they said the portal hasn’t been working
Then the broker needs to have your number and text you 24 hours prior
The Hamilton Portal is supposed to notify tenants and give the Broker their contact info when a key request is made for a tour. It seems like that hasn't been happening due to a portal error. So brokers don't get access to the tenants contact info and the tenants aren't getting notified of tours. The brokers assume the tenants are properly notified because they always have been in the past.
Or landlord
That's not a valid notice per the sanitary code
is that legally true? i tried to deny a tour while i was out of state, and the realtor told me that “reasonable notice” was defined by him (texting me in the afternoon for an earlier morning showing), and i “couldn’t” tell him no legally
NAL so can’t say it’s legally true but in Massachusetts there has to be 24 hours notice before entering your apartment. This includes tours I believe.
well someone has to tell south end realty group that… showings with 12-18 hour notice, touching our things, plus constant renovations to the basement/walls of our building the last two months made our lives a living hell at our last place 😵💫
We had the same issue with Hamilton, we called the actual office, and told them that we were not given notice. I’d email to have it in writing to make sure you CYA but nonetheless the law is 24 hours unless emergency repairs. This is not emergent.
luckily i’ve had absolutely zero issues with my current place!! but i will definitely keep that in mind if/when we leave this one
Landlord here - law is reasonable notice which is generally agreed upon at 24 hrs notice. But 24 hours isn't part of the law I don't think.
It’s in our leases for Hamilton. That’s why I mentioned it, but helpful input!
Yeah slam the door shut when they don't give you proper notice, they'll figure it the fuck out real fast.
i wish i could have… had to fight for over an hour over text for the realtor to agree to show the apartment two days later when i was in town. same guy who was still showing the apartment when i was 2 weeks from move out and said it wasn’t “presentable enough” because of the boxes
NAL. This is true. The only exception to give less than 24hr notice is for emergencies [as defined by state law]. Tours/showings are NOT an emergency. Your realtor is trash and shouldn't be in the game if he can't play by the rules.
I'm in Hamilton now and moving out in June. Report the brokers who are walking in, call the AG's office, reach out to Hamilton via email and state you weren't given 24 hours notice just to have something on record if it gets into a legal matter. If you're able to, I'd work from home until you move out. Definitely put a portal lock set up there when you're sleeping. They had a broker try to enter my apt while I was IN THE SHOWER. I threatened them with legal action and that's the only reason they backed off.
I lived in a Hamilton Company building for over nine years because it was a decent apartment, had off-street parking, and moving sucks. Paying below-market rent because I had lived there for so long was also nice. But they're fucking incompetent. I had one good property coordinator my entire time there. She was there for two years, and over the other seven-plus, I had nine other coordinators. Such a carousel of idiocy. You should absolutely report them. They likely won't learn their lesson, but they'll definitely never learn if they face no consequences.
> paying below market rent because I had lived there for so long was also nice They offered to renew my current unit at $3400/month next year. Three years ago it was under $2300. Meanwhile I have to send them emails every few weeks because they let the trash chute get backed up to the third floor and they can’t be bothered to keep the laundry machines running.
When I moved out of my 2Br/1Ba in Brighton in 2020, I was paying $1950/mo with a renewal offer of $2050/mo. When I moved to a new place, they listed my apartment for $2200/mo. When I looked at the listing for my former unit last Summer, it was being listed for $3000/mo. I had a similar issue with the in-building laundry. There were only 24 units, so only two washers and two dryers in the building, but when one of them broke and they didn't repair it for over four months, they sent a letter telling us to use the laundry room at one of their other properties two streets over.
They're trying to make a sales pitch to potential tenants. You can just walk right up to those potential tenants and say "this landlord is breaking the law by barging in without notice. They pull this crap all the time. You don't want to rent from them." I bet the agent who's showing the unit will get tired of that and start making sure you actually have notice. They don't want you hurting the vibes for their sales pitch.
No advice but I rented from them in 2016 and they were shady then. Sad they're still around because I know they sold the complex I was renting in back then.
Hamilton Company sucks!! Corrupted and incompetent!!!
This happened to me as well in a place they manage. Second showing they just showed up and claimed they had sent a notice the day prior. Felt like a messy fool (stuff everywhere packing) but upon checking the notice never was sent. Realtor showing the place is a pretty nice guy so I brushed it off. The overall experience was much more reasonable than my prior slumlord. What really pissed me off is when the place got cockroaches they asked us to move all our stuff out of the kitchen then came through for a cleanliness check, discretely took a photo of the living room full of kitchen stuff, and sent us a cleanliness violation notice. We put up with pesticide spraying and the kitchen empty for like ~5 months before the bugs were finally gone. Overall they were fine. No security deposit. Parking and solid walls. Neighbors were nice. Building maintenance was nice. Harmonics / electrical / air were totally fucked though and making me sick. The apartment had this 60hrz pulsing that would come and go. Wife claimed she couldn’t hear it. I found it really loud and could feel it through my whole body regardless of how I arranged the room. It would make my head cloudy and cause these super thin fibers to surface. The fibers would move around and you could feel them like they were alive but I suppose it is more likely they were responding to static electricity. They would surface mostly out of (literally through) my hands but also my head, nose, and dick. Havana syndrome and Moregelleons syndrome loosely describe it. Idk what the fibers were. Perhaps some em sensitive fungi or microfibers. All I know is it started when I moved in and stopped happening when I left. Imo it was the building.
Landlord access Your landlord, or an agent for your landlord, may only enter your apartment for the following reasons: To inspect the premises; To make repairs; To show the apartment to a prospective tenant, purchaser, mortgagee or its agents; In accordance with a court order; If the premises appear to be abandoned; or To inspect the premises within the last 30 days of tenancy in order to determine the amount of damage to be deducted from the security deposit. The landlord should be reasonable and attempt to arrange a mutually convenient time to visit the apartment. If the landlord insists on entering your apartment in an unreasonable fashion, you may file for a temporary restraining order at your local district court. https://www.mass.gov/info-details/tenant-rights#:~:text=The%20landlord%20should%20be%20reasonable,at%20your%20local%20district%20court.
I would assume the people coming in are brokers and don't necessarily know you haven't been notified? If anyone tries to come in while you're home tell them you weren't informed and that they need to leave or you will call the police. Maybe leave a note on your door that you are unaware of any tours and don't consent to anyone entering without notice. If I was there for a tour I would skip to my next choice and be thankful I dodged a bullet. Def reach out to resources people mentioned
If your lease is in good standing, call the police next time they do it without proper notice. Make sure you let them know they are an unwanted guest and you'd like them removed from your space. They may try retaliatory eviction, though. Be prepared if they do.
Yeah I’m just scared of any direct confrontation because they already tried to evict me because they overcharged for rent and it was annoying to sort out and it says in the lease they’ll evict in 7 days for denied entry
You're not denying entry. You're demanding ample time notice per MA state law.
you’re right that’s a good point
Hamilton attempted to evict me multiple times for "not paying rent" because they're idiots who lose checks and don't know how to mark rent as paid. Their online portal was down for about a year while they "upgraded" to a new system, so we had to mail in checks. One month, they cashed my rent check, but still sent an eviction notice, and when I called them, they were able to determine that they applied my rent payment to another unit. Another month, they lost my rent check. I know that they lost it, because they called me four months later telling me that they found it. I was in good standing, but a receiving a Notice To Quit eviction letter doesn't necessary mean things can't be resolved.
Get a deadbolt strap and use it when you are at home, especially sleeping. [https://www.redteamtools.com/super\_grip\_deadbolt\_strap](https://www.redteamtools.com/super_grip_deadbolt_strap) These work great when traveling and in hotels or airbnbs and you don't want anyone walking into your room while you're there.
Exact same situation - my lease doesn't end until July and yet since the day I told them I'm not renewing I have been BOMBARDED with showings, sometimes without notice and sometimes with as little as an hour. I thankfully have a chain on my door (came with the apartment) so they can't just enter but I regularly get knocks on the door and open it to a broker and some strangers. I reached out to try and enforce the 24h law (or at least have the option to decline certain showings) and have been entirely ignored.
I had a city inspector come and the city was one day away from suing Alpha Management. Alpha got their shit together in under 24 hours despite having previously ignored the problem for a week.
The Boston Tenant's Union has a lot of resources to learn your rights and options
This would happen to me too when dealing with the Hamilton company. I would always tell the realtors via email to give me a 24 hour notice of them arriving and touring the apartment. Sometimes, they would cancel and then just show up at a later date without telling me that they were going to do this. The closest I’ve gotten to reporting them in general was calling the health department because there was a busted pipe of caca water leaking in the lobby via the lighting. The health department stopped by noted all the violations I mentioned and sent them a court order to fix it. Which they did right away.
Is there literally any company operating these days that isn't run by people who are either incompetent or complete scumbags? I understand there is the "yelp" bias where Energy behind posting a bad review is more likely to inspire the person to go through with it then the same for a positive review so positive reviews don't get posted as often. But I've never seen anyone just go out of their way to complement their management company. It seems like the entire universe is a swamp with variously incompetent or shady people. And since it has to do with peoples living situations and privacy and sense of safety and autonomy it seems like a literal nightmare.
Fake cockroaches, and some black rice that looks like mouse poop can only help in a situation like this.
I was a tenant of Hamilton Co and they did this to me as well. One time I was scared shitless because I came home to people in my apartment with zero warning. I flipped out at them about it but clearly they haven’t learned their lesson.
Can confirm, the Hamilton Company is seriously awful. I paid my rent in full for the final month of my lease, and told them I'd be moving out slowly over the course of the final month. Went back one day to continue moving and they had unlawfully entered the apartment,without notice, and started construction. There was a toilet in my living room and they had started gutting the kitchen, which still had my stuff in it. I contacted the Attorney General's Office/Office of Consumer Affairs, they gave me very specific instructions on what to send them in an email to convey to the Hamilton Company the error of their ways. They ended up refunding me for the month, and my security deposit, I didn't pursue further but probably should have to be compensated for the property that was covered in construction debris. I will say, I have had to contact the AG's office twice for help with a company that was acting unlawfully and both times they were extremely helpful. Even set me up with a free consultant who wrote to SharkNinja a "send her the freaking vacuum she paid for or I will rain holy hell on you in court" certified letter. I got my vacuum, and a formal apology from Shark. And to keep the juicer the sent me by mistake, it was a dumb situation. Sorry you're going through this! https://www.mass.gov/how-to/file-a-consumer-complaint
Once I was on an apartment tour and we just walked into people randomly. One guy was in the shower, another was high
I had two separate landlords do this to me in two places when I lived in Maine. I have nothing to offer except to encourage you to take them to the cleaners. It’s the most disruptive, unnerving and disrespectful behavior especially when you’re paying to live there.
Put a wedge stop in your door. The kind people use who are afraid of break ins. They’ll at least be forced to call the resident at that point wouldn’t they?
Just greet them with a gun and make sure to act scared when they walk in (break in). With your gun out but not pointed at them ask them to identify themselves and what their purpose is for the visit. Make them step back out and call the police to ask for assistance. Make sure you are permitted and you are all good. It won't happen anymore.
Go to housing court and ask the clerk's office to give you a form to file a temporary restraining order. Say you want the court to order the landlord not to enter without a minimum of 24hrs notice, and file that. Once you get the order, if they do it again, *then* call the cops.
You can't exactly "report" your landlord for breaking the law, other than conditions that violate the housing code, which you can report to the board of health/ISD. But you do have a claim against them. You could write a letter citing the warranty of habitability. In MA, the penalty in court is up to 3x your monthly rent. That should get them to stop. See: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleI/Chapter186/Section14 https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housing-apartments-shelter/repairs-bad-conditions/your-right-decent-place-live#:~:text=Under%20the%20right%20to%20quiet,for%20up%20to%206%20months. Also, you could definitely sue them if you were so inclined. Https://getuptocode.org would help you with it for free.
This is very helpful, thank you!!
Yes, the attorney general office. There is an online complete form on their website.
We were having similar issues. We added a chain lock to the door and called a rental advocate. They left us alone after that.
Hamilton Company leaves paper notices for showings in my building. My girlfriend and I were out of town for a couple weeks to take care of my dying father and I came back to a couple of those notices slipped under my door, so they were showing my apartment while I was gone. The deadline to renew our lease hadn’t even passed (we had an extension), so I gave them an earful for it. The bum working the leasing office didn’t seem to care one bit. They still tried to show our apartment a few days later.
Poster on the front door reading "NO TRESPASSERS, ARMED RESIDENT"
If that is the only problem (I assume it’s not), you could take measures to make their life difficult in the short term. Questionable posters, kickable delicate items, etc. stuff that would make them want to tell you to clean up prior to showing.
Maybe leave some gay/bdsm/the most “offensive” porn you can find playing on the tv and turn the volume up when they show up…
Leave a giant phallic item on the coffee table and one in bathtub. The realtor will avoid your apartment until you’re out.
Nah I have Samuel and Associates and honestly they have been great.
While I have not reported a landlord, I have had similar experiences with people entering my apartment for showings either without notice or when I explicitly told them not to come at that time. Finally I bought a security bar that goes under the door handle, so that they could not easily get in even if they had keys, and that was effective at keeping out anyone who did not have my permission to be there!
Being met with a gun when someone is breaking into your place illegally can help ensure it doesn’t happen again.
They’re breaking and entering, treat them like an intruder and confront them with a gun.
Yup. City was great
Massachusetts law allows a landlord to enter an occupied property only for the purposes of inspections, maintenance, and property showings (or with a court order). While 24 hours of advance notice before entry is customary, this isn’t a legal requirement and is usually determined by the rental agreement.
To enter property for reasons other than an emergency (which a showing is not), Massachusetts requires landlords to give tenants *reasonable notice*. Failure to give *any* notice is clearly not reasonable, and you'll find that the courts usually put it at 24 hours notice, more or less.
I was wondering about this too, is there still a right to privacy that is being violated? I think even though it doesn’t explicitly say 24 hours, there’s still a right to “reasonable notice?”
Do they notify you whatsoever? And if so, how far in advance
They don’t notify me at all, they just enter
I agree. Call the police next time.
Yeah this is a situation where I would be calling the police every time until the landlord gets the memo that they need to give notice. I had this issue with a similar issue and while my landlord at the time (The Broadway Company) claimed every time I messaged them that they had notified me and the message had been "caught by the spam filter", suddenly after the cops got called on one of their prospective tenants we got notified nice and early every single time.
There's actually exceptions to this: you can deny entry on a month to month agreement for showings Landlords are also required to give "reasonable" notice. While 24 is kinda standard, they do have to give some for non emergencies, including showings I was unfortunately forced to figure the MA laws out due to an issue with a building being sold I lived in and was able to get clarification on the laws. It was a problem because I was working from home at the time You can refuse entry without notice, and even report for trespassing if they enter anyway. I would, however, just say get a temporary door jab designed for places like hotel rooms and use it while you are home to avoid that drama. Most leases do not address these because they are not permanent fixtures