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Nothing makes a home or dwelling less enjoyable than an invasion by rats, mice, cockroaches and other bugs, or other critters. This is true whether you’re living in a city apartment—feeling the grime and congestion of your cosmopolitan surroundings—or a suburban or rural home, surrounded by nature in all its forms. If you own your home, invasive pests can also severely lower its market value, create permanent damage, and make it difficult to sell. Even more annoying is when you suspect the pests crept in from neighboring apartments, homes, or properties.

If you believe that your neighbor is the source of these marauders, what should you do?

In This Article

Identify the Source of the Pests

Your first step should be to ensure that your property is not creating conditions that attract or provide sustenance to the pests. Walk around and look for signs of pest trails. Make sure you don’t have open food containers or crumbs that are attracting them. You wouldn't want to accuse a neighbor of having rodents or roaches if you are the true source.

If your own efforts don't help, or if you're dealing with something that stings or causes major health issues, immediately call an exterminator. Have them assess the situation, lay traps in your apartment or home, and mitigate the issue to the extent possible.

Contact Your Building Management or Neighborhood Association

If you live in a large apartment building, its management might provide extermination or fumigation services free of change. After all, it is in the building’s interest to maintain its reputation and avoid having a small problem turn into a big one. In urban real estate, word-of-mouth travels quickly, and news of an infestation would surely hurt rentals and sales. See if your building can approach your neighbor directly about entering the apartment, and at least begin to fumigate the hallways and common spaces.

If you live in a suburban neighborhood, particularly one that was built as part of a planned development, your homeowners' association (HOA) or neighborhood association (if any) might provide similar resources. Even if they won't take care of the situation, they might be able to recommend high-quality, toxicity-conscious exterminators who have helped the neighborhood during prior instances of infestation.

Contact Local Government Agencies

In your city or town, local ordinances have probably set at least minimal standards for property owners' or residents' compliance with good health and safety practices. The relevant local agency can orient you to these, or you might be able to research the information online. Such ordinances typically mandate that people maintain their premises in a condition that prevents infestations of rodents, roaches, and other pests. They might, for instance, set rules for disposal of garbage, storage of food, and more.

The right agency to contact might be a building, housing, or even animal control agency. The agency might call in local or state investigators. If your neighbor is found to have violated these ordinances, they might be ordered to clean things up and, if they fail to comply, penalized, most likely with monetary fines.

Approach Your Neighbor About the Pest Infestation Problem

In some situations, you might have little choice but to approach your neighbor directly. Be polite, not accusatory. Mention that you have noticed a large number of pests in recent weeks, and emphasize that you have a common goal in eliminating pests from your shared corner of the world.

See if the neighbor is willing to engage in a discussion about the cause of the problem, mention what you're already trying to do in order to reduce its scope or impact, and suggest that each of you contact an exterminator to visit your respective properties on a common date to deal with the problem holistically.

Consider Shouldering Some of the Extermination Costs

It’s possible that your neighbor hasn't dealt with the situation because cleanup efforts or exterminators are expensive or otherwise difficult for them to arrange. Perhaps the neighbor lacks the resources to buy rodent traps or hire teams of fumigators, or doesn't believe they themselves are the main source of the problem.

You might frame this as an issue in common, so that the neighbor can save face. Offer to pay a large share, or a fixed amount (if you know how much the services will cost), if the neighbor is willing to open the property to exterminators.

Sue the Neighbor Who's the Source of the Roaches, Rats, Etc.

As a last resort, if your neighbor won't adjust their behavior and the problem can't be dealt with from your end, you might decide to sue. The most low-cost, reasonable place to file a lawsuit is in small claims court, likely using a legal theory known as "private nuisance." To prevail, you would need to prove that:

  • you are the owner, renter, or lessor of the affected property
  • the actions of the person you're suing has interfered with your use or enjoyment of your property
  • any reasonable person would also perceive this type of interference as annoying or disturbing (which, practically speaking, means it should be severe and/or of a long duration), and
  • because of the neighbor's actions, you have experienced harm (for example, your valuable property or food were chewed up, your or your family members' health was affected, you experienced allergic reactions, or you developed anxiety issues or couldn't sleep, say, because of scuttling in the walls).

Be sure to start gathering evidence of the problem in advance, for use in making a compelling presentation before the small claims court judge. (There's no jury in this type of courtroom.) Persuasive evidence might include, for instance, photos or videos of your neighbor's overflowing garbage cans or other messy or irresponsible use of their property, a log you've kept of what you've observed and when, statements or affidavits from other affected neighbors or witnesses, a report and recommendation from an exterminator who visited, and so on.

To learn more about the small claims court process and your likely remedies, see Can I File a Nuisance Lawsuit in Small Claims Court?.