Who pays to rid townhome of rats?

[David M]

We live in a townhome and share a wall with our neighbor, who has an untreated rat infestation.

The neighbor does not live there but has been aware of the problem for well over three months.

We can't sleep because of the noise and movement inside the shared wall.

What can we do to get this resolved?

[home improvement guy]

Don't assume the unit owner is aware of this. Write a registered letter explaining the problem and asking for him or her to fix it immediately. You need to give the owner a reasonable time to address the problem, though the law doesn't cover exactly how much time that is.

Let your homeowner's association board know about this, too, because the space between units is usually the responsibility of the association, as is the general condition of the community. You might also see whether your city government can provide assistance.

If you don't hear anything in, say, a week, you should strongly consider spending your own money to remove the rats. You can file a lawsuit later to be reimbursed if the owner doesn't repay you.

If you aren't in a community association, there most likely is a contract called a "party wall agreement" recorded in the public records. This agreement should contain information regarding how to fix this and other problems involving a shared wall.