Neighbor Harassment - Need Some Help, Please!!!

[MK14]

I took to working from my bed with my laptop by my side. My bed and box spring are on the floor. Soon after I started to work this way, I started feeling heat coming up from beneath my mattress.

Putting aside, that I'm not convinced that it is not a troll story, and/or just move, rather than banging on about cheapest rent in area, and/or complain and get them handled, if it is really them causing the issues.

Many laptops, blow out heat and heat up sections of a bed.  So a person can notice sudden feelings of being blown with hot air, and/or the bottom of laptops can get "red hot" (not really, but sort of), so if someone moves it and suddenly sit on or touch that bit, on a bed, it can feel very hot, for a limited period of time.
They can also cause vibrations (internal fans, spinning hard disk drives, in older laptops, as newer ones tend to have SSDs, which are vibration free).
I think, putting ones ear near a mattress, can even 'magnify' such sounds/vibrations, perhaps making it seem like there is a whirring machine, nearby.  Caused by a laptop, on that bed/mattress.
Also, beds/bedding tends to block the laptops air cooling vents, possibly over-heating it, filling it with dust and hence giving excessive wear and tear.  So it is not the best way of treating laptops.

[Siwastaja]

Have you tried having someone else stay overnight and see if they experience the same things?

This never works.

If it really is a high-tech deliberate harassment, the neighbor obviously sees someone's visiting and stops their actions.

Similarly, if it's a psychological issue of imagining things, getting an observer makes the problem disappear.

If the OP really wants to prove this, the floor "hotspots" can be trivially demonstrated by a $200 thermal camera, or $20 single spot IR thermometer. Make it a video, explain what happens. Put it on Youtube, link here.

This would get us somewhere.

[RJSV]

Siwastaga: Thanks, however please read on:
   I gotta doubt.  (Sorry English majors, I like to mis-spell stuff for emphasis, street talk and all that, should read 'Ive got to...')
Anyway, thanks for thought, of doing a bit of infrared /YouTube posting.  OP has now refreshed the scene with 'new' hater-talk, now I'm reading 'VICIOUS' neighbor doing, basically, illegal things unchecked.
Uhhh, no.  Not going to repeat the stuff OP wants us to know, (except newly 'VICIOUS', now).  What new stuff do we get treated to, next ?  The guy's daily schedule?
Maybe some 'dead puppies' found a couple miles
away , nearby ?
   I ready read, the guy refuses to open up his door.  Think about that (outraged OP).  Don't forget, I believe the guy already quoted as commenting "Other tenant never knocked on his door... Which kinda means "Dude, nobody else comes, demanding we talk.
   Once you (or I) start looking, at OP behavior, those details stand out, bold text...
   I think, we don't necessarily have to get into Mental Health issues; but just from a behavior / respect observation, obviously OP seems 'LOCKED', in that WAR mode.  Let's bet, (keeping it light), let's have a bet:
   I bet, one live Bison, the OP is posting at least one other place, one other WEB site.  'Vicious' is a pretty much word having troubling weight, to it.
But thanks, for suggestion, maybe OP can try YouTube, while waiting couple decades, for a transfer to vacant unit.  Lawyer time for OP, to sort THAT out.
   Not more new ideas, on how to spy on the guy.

[Mechatrommer]

Build faraday cage and sleep inside.. bring a friend to live together.. thermal imager to record proofs. Report to police and ask for larry's home 'spotcheck' warrant.

There are many technical and social ways for self or larry's assessment.. these are the things chicks never understand about nerds.. nerds think out of the box.. and some of them even the genX of spidermans or camouflaged snipers... we can sneak into people's house if needed, for the good cause..

counterAttack with the same weapon he used.. bla3x

[RJSV]

   Please understand; I'm no perfect saint, rather a (partially) reformed 'A-hole'...(But kinda cute, and never been arrested, lol).  Point is, I have some limited wisdom to convey, to those ready for that.
   When I was doing aggressive moves, such as OP demanding conversation, about this or that perception of 'offense', some friend started saying "chill out, better to not focus on neighbor...never goes well".
OP, you've so far, violated your neighbor's peace and quiet enjoyment, of his rental space.  I mean, FOUR times, you went downstairs, for a 'talk', feeling like he refused to open door.  That's literally getting into 'legal' and 'lawful' territory, in my layman's opinion.  Now, you want a bunch of Engineers, (and a few nerds), to start giving legal advice, plus methods how to SPY on folks, all the while claiming to be 'scared'...but not enough to stop OP from going to his door, like FOUR times after he expressed a preference for you NOT doing that.
He could start a legal case AGAINST YOU...maybe.
   In that case, your (supposedly) vicious downstairs neighbor would need a few 'monitors' on your victim ass.  Then, OP, you'd get to 'talk' as much as the judge can stand, and let him or her decide, if your neighbor has valid grounds, for a restraining order...on you.
Like I said, you might be totally in the right, but looking to me like you actually already violating HIS rights, to peaceful enjoyment of his space.
   Heck, do the floors creak a bit ? Even that can contribute, to this little, tiny, itty bitty maybe, you've got a clutch on.
   What other WEB posts do you have going, now ?

[LaserSteve]

Some times harassment is  real.  I have five neighbors with five houses who are related.  They very much want a sixth house for another sibling,  but they do not want to pay for it.   They are not the sharpest tools in the shed, and some of their schemes are very damaging to one's reputation.  Very, Very, Persistent.

 They control the narrative in the neighborhood, and my other neighbors are scarred by them.  Never violent, not quite dumb  enough to get caught.  An important clue was the husband and wife next to me argue like brother and sister, not husband and wife.

I was finally clued in from a neighbor from their section of rural West Virginia. It took a while for the Sheriff and I to work out what was going on.  Five different last names.  Once I knew, the personal similarities were obvious.

A good camera system shut down most of the crap, but cost a around 1000$ when done to really cover the house as it is built into a hill and has multiple porches.  I found I needed a UPS too. They waited till a power failure and broke  in, they went for the camera controller and nothing else.   I found the controller smashed on the floor.  Hence the UPS. 

OP,   Get your mental and physical health checked...  Sick building syndrome, Ergot Poisoning, Black Mold, Carbon Monoxide, and Stress are real.  Odds of a sinister hacker down stairs are low, but there are plenty of DIY Microwave Horn videos on Youtube.

Steve

[cdev]

Some times harassment is  real.  ... Millions of dollars. Not to mention your health without which you'll be homeless pretty quickly.

Make sure you have an extensive paper record. Get video of incidents, keep a dairy.

Are they trying to drive the other neighbors out? God that's just evil. Its like that in San Francisco too with some bad landlords, and tenants who if they have been there decades, often have cheap rent. A nice apartment can easily rent for $4500 a month. More if it has parking ,or a balcony. In 1995 it might have rented for $2500 or even less. You would not believe the crazy stuff they do to force the old rent stabilized tenants to move out so they can get the developer types who will pay $4500 to live near work in.  . There are professional building clearer's now, who rent out their services in driving other tenants out. You can find their ads in the local papers, (rarely online) Try your local apartment owners association. For an eye opening conversation pretend to have just bought an apartment building and be looking for a quick turnover of a vacant building. Tell them that there are retired people there who are planning to live there their entire lives. Oh and people with chronic illnesses, see what they say to you about what they propose to do. They will make the tenants lives impossible. Kind of what like what happened to Fran. What can people do? If they just rent, not much. These battles can go on for years and become very ugly. If you doubt my words, do a Google search for the story of Skyline Realty in SF. Also if you use web.archive.org look at old web pages on  citistop.org

Dealing with this stuff made me really ill. They used a bone-fide chemical and biological weapon on me. I have tons of official proof. But I still had to move. Once I complained they became determined to get us out. The more proof we got the worse they got.

This was from a local paper back then. No the firm described weren't my landlord, our landlord was even worse. Less responsible, more hostile. This kind of thing is happening on a very large scale to a great many people. Its like the Gold Rush right now. Grab as much as you can as fast as you can. Every news story in some cities is overshadowed by this conflict. .

"Attorneys said yesterday they’re filing the suit after hearing the same stories year after year from tenants who were victims of Skyline abuse. Most begin the same way: tenants were living in a quiet, peaceful building until Skyline moved in.

The suit alleges that soon after taking ownership of a building, Skyline begins employing a variety of tactics to get as many long-term tenants out as possible. They employ such tactics so they can then charge higher rents for the newly vacant units. Their tactics include:

• Sending large men wearing military fatigues and carrying concealed weapons barging into units and videotaping tenants

• Verbally harassing, threatening and abusing tenants

• Interrogation sessions that often involve an attempt to coerce tenants into signing an agreement to vacate their unit

• Illegal construction, often designed to cause tenants discomfort

• Changing locks and not providing tenants with new keys

• Interfering with caregivers who provide assistance to senior and disabled tenants

Alan Kaufman, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said he witnessed many of
these tactics first-hand after Skyline purchased his building.

“The whole place changed after they took over,” said Kaufman, who lives at 1126 Bush Street. “We had no problems at all, then suddenly we had these thugs – big guys in suits – lumbering around our halls, intimidating people. One of them showed up to my neighbors place in a combat outfit with a gun.”

The effect of these tactics, said Kaufman, was immediate.

“People left the building in droves,” he said.

Karen Hull, one of the attorneys filing the suit, said that the most disturbing aspect of these tactics is how they are often targeted at senior and disabled long-term tenants who can least afford to move out from their homes.

“They pick the most vulnerable, low-income people,” said Hull, who is representing Lisa Cleis, the sole caregiver of her disabled mother and another tenant harassed by Skyline. “Then they zero in on their worst fear, which someone of authority who wants to kick them out.”

Attorneys in the case hope the suit will prove to the court that these types of practices are not used during isolated events, but are systematic efforts by Skyline that ultimately constitute their usual business practices.

“For more than 20 years, my office has seen this pattern repeat itself over and over,” said tenant attorney J. Scott Weaver. “With this suit, we know we’ll have some impact. The question will be how much.”

The legal battle represents just one way Skyline will be impacted. This Saturday at noon, at the corner of Market and Church, tenants and housing activists will stage a picket of Skyline headquarters and ask the company to sign an agreement to stop their illegal practices.

For more information about the campaign, go to www.citistop.org."


Look up the phrase "rent control should not be a life sentence" to find the building clearers ads.. .  Even if you own your own home, you're not safe, because of eminent domain. Any developer with a get rich quick scheme can buy your neighborhood for their pet stadium or whatever. Especially after its been condemned it will likely be very cheap. if houses use the now "obsolete" natural gas heat they can argue that now. .

They write them off as "NIMBYS". And demonize them.

I lived in San Francisco during the last big period of redevelopment. It looked like Hiroshima or Nagasaki there, entire blocks were condemned, with red tape X's on the door. (they wanted to build a freeway right through the most affordable area, which was called the Western Addition and they almost did. But people came out and stood up for their homes.. They eventually tore parts of the freeway that had already been built down. Some houses which were valuable were sold for $1 and carted away on big trucks. .   What was left, a very few landmark buildings along Fillmore Street. Almost all of what was then Japan Town was replaced by really ugly looking housing developments. Very low quality construction. They left the library. The developers got all the land, cheap, after they decided not to build the freeway, after all. By the time they started building again all the warm and friendly old black people who they had promised could buy into the brand new homes had died before any aid was forthcoming to them (a very long time) . So all their obligation to compensate them died with them. Most of the people who had lived there who were still alive ended up in Sacramento (according to a survey) They were forced out of the Bay Area for good. If you want to buy a house around there, even in Hunters Point (which is beautiful, BTW) be prepared to spend several million dollars. Who can afford that? Not me.

[cdev]

NO, if you stoop down to their level, violence, you will always be wrong. When the poor people show signs of anger some are so vindictive they can and sometimes do shoot angry but totally innocent poor for any excuse they can make up at all. Even no excuse.

Build faraday cage and sleep inside.. bring a friend to live together.. thermal imager to record proofs. Report to police and ask for larry's home 'spotcheck' warrant.

There are many technical and social ways for self or larry's assessment.. these are the things chicks never understand about nerds.. nerds think out of the box.. and some of them even the genX of spidermans or camouflaged snipers... we can sneak into people's house if needed, for the good cause..

counterAttack with the same weapon he used.. bla3x

If you find that somebody is attempting to cook you in bed with microwaves, (highly unlikely) get proof, hire an industrial hygenicist to document it, a disinterested third party, and then sue them for harassment. If you document all this stuff there is a good chance (at least 15%) that you might get compensated by a court. But still expect to pay an average of $300/hour for the time you spend doing it. .

[james_s]

A good camera system shut down most of the crap, but cost a around 1000$ when done to really cover the house as it is built into a hill and has multiple porches.  I found I needed a UPS too. They waited till a power failure and broke  in, they went for the camera controller and nothing else.   I found the controller smashed on the floor.  Hence the UPS. 

Mine is locked in a cabinet, with a UPS, in an out of the way location. It seemed like the obvious thing to do since if someone steals my NVR I lose the footage from the cameras.

[cdev]

Alarms are the best way to deter a lot of hijinks. Make sure they have backup power and some alternative communications channel to the network. Thats very important. And this is not easy. Post a sign saying you have an alarm and giving (good) neighbors a phone number to call if your alarm trips when you are not home.

A good camera system shut down most of the crap, but cost a around 1000$ when done to really cover the house as it is built into a hill and has multiple porches.  I found I needed a UPS too. They waited till a power failure and broke  in, they went for the camera controller and nothing else.   I found the controller smashed on the floor.  Hence the UPS. 

Mine is locked in a cabinet, with a UPS, in an out of the way location. It seemed like the obvious thing to do since if someone steals my NVR I lose the footage from the cameras.

I have been fooling around with the microsoft kinect with the hopes of doing some interesting 3D stuff, but they also make the most kick-ass webcam Ive seen to date.  And they can be found really cheap online.

[Mechatrommer]

NO, if you stoop down to their level, violence, you will always be wrong.

an optimistic generalization. its justifiable if you have the proof of the threat, and the court/law enforcement is non-functioning in due time (read as self defense)... i agree with getting the proof first in case of OP because it is unclear. all better suggestions that come to my mind already mentioned earlier i'm not sure OP is willing to listen, so i just add a few more suggestions, faraday cage is one of it, others are to get EM wave detector, SA etc, and in one thread linked earlier, the wifi motion detector, but i'm not sure either if the OP is willing to embrace full scale nerdiness, faraday cage is the easiest one to build to make self-assessment (phobia or some disorder). the easiest and most legal and humanly sensible to do is to make a police report for an investigation, but its already mentioned and do you think the police can detect everything? ymmv.

[LaserSteve]

The six foot diameter coil of pulse induced stereo disruption is a fond memory from another blog. Needs close inductive coupling, ie stereo must be consumer grade, and must share a wall between apartments.  Avoid relays, as they make audible clicks. I would not bolt /tape  down to the wall, either.   When you result to that, it has gone too far.   

Avoid revenge, it looks bad for you before you even do it.

Start inviting friends over for cool parties.  I found that one of the things that is feared by the un-civil is the frequent mere presence of your friends.  Let your friends know that they need to make some noise, but not too much.   I quote my disruptive scheming neighbor.  "Oh No, He's having people over, we can't have that!"

"Larry" wants you to be alone..  It makes it easier for him/her/it/Hu to disturb you.

Steve

[cdev]

NO, if you stoop down to their level, violence, you will always be wrong.

an optimistic generalization. its justifiable if you have the proof of the threat, and the court/law enforcement is non-functioning in due time (read as self defense)... i agree with getting the proof first in case of OP because it is unclear. all better suggestions that come to my mind already mentioned earlier i'm not sure OP is willing to listen, so i just add a few more suggestions, faraday cage is one of it, others are to get EM wave detector, SA etc, and in one thread linked earlier, the wifi motion detector, but i'm not sure either if the OP is willing to embrace full scale nerdiness, faraday cage is the easiest one to build to make self-assessment (phobia or some disorder). the easiest and most legal and humanly sensible to do is to make a police report for an investigation, but its already mentioned and do you think the police can detect everything? ymmv.

There are certain things which seem likely to me to destroy any goodwill a person might otherwise receive. Suppose we assume the poor guy is being harased in some bizarre way, ans he/she decides to "retaliate' The very fact that they are doing that makes them look like they share the culpabiity to many people. I agree with the poster above who suggests you invite friends over. Make it clear you are a tenant too and deserve the right to still have fun in your home in a nice manner.

Throw backyard parties.

Some bad actors try, very hard to get their victims angry because they are well prepared to take advantage of that in any way they can. I think the best approach is just to be nice, stay in the loop and talk to people about your problems, amicably. Dont be silent. Just behave as amicably and normally as you can under the circumstances.

Don't get into the abused person state of mind. Many people who have been taken advantage of their entire lives slip into that mindset all too easily. Sure, law enforcement may be non-functional, many communities are strugging because there just are no or very few local jobs and no tax income. There really are few if any solutions for that. Its likely just going to get worse. You need to stay in the loop, and have people to help you regardless. Keep people talking, if you're reasonable you'll appear that way. Try to keep it civil and I would not call the police except in a real emergency, because things often turn out badly when police get involved. Unless they know the people. On the other hand, sometimes hiring off duty police is a really good way to promote safety at a party. If your party is large consider that. Patrol Specials they are called.

[Housedad]

Build faraday cage and sleep inside.. bring a friend to live together.. thermal imager to record proofs. Report to police and ask for larry's home 'spotcheck' warrant.

There are many technical and social ways for self or larry's assessment.. these are the things chicks never understand about nerds.. nerds think out of the box.. and some of them even the genX of spidermans or camouflaged snipers... we can sneak into people's house if needed, for the good cause..

counterAttack with the same weapon he used.. bla3x

Yep. Tthe old tinfoil hat and suit should do the trick. Keeps those alien beams from scrambling the brain...........

[Kjelt]

Not this severe effects,  but do you sleep in the same earth pole orientation as before ?
I found out that it can take a long time for humans to adapt to a magnetic earth pole change when sleeping.
Don't know the basis but I experience it when on holiday in hotels, apartments etc.
I thought it was the beds change but when I moved (same bed) I also experienced this finding out that instead of my head poiting to the north it was to the south east. I turned the bed and it was gone, slept as before. I don't understand this but birds can sense the northpole why woukd humans not have these sub conscious sensitivities?
When you have that experience you might also have issues when sleeping near electrical wires esp in the usa with wooden walls nothing blocks the electromagnetical influence.
Perhaps move your bed or switch rooms and see if that helps.
On the other hand you might have an awfull neighbour, call the person living there before you and ask for their experience.

[radiolistener]

Please, I really need some help from experts on this stuff. Can you suggest how he might be doing these things? If I could at least tell the cops what to look for that might be some form of proof. At least enough to get him investigated.

Such thing can be caused due to very high power microwave beam, for example microwave oven with opened door and hacked power switch on it's door to allow enable it with opened door. When you feel that heat, you can get your cell phone and put at that location, then check if it starts failure or lose network. If you see that effect on your phone, then this is a strong indication that you are affected with high-power microwave beam. If you see that, then leave the room as soon as possible.

Don't afraid, this is not so dangerous, if you get away for 5-10 meters, the beam power will be dramatically decreased and you cannot feel the heat. Just avoid to be affected with high power microwave beam for a long time.

But sometimes it's happens that some crazy neighbor can perform some physics experiments with x-ray tube or radioactive materials, it can be very dangerous for health. But it will be much more dangerous for your neighbor who doing that things. Anyway it's a good idea to check also radioactivity in your room to be sure that your room environment is healthy. If you found some sign of high radioactivity, call police immediately and leave room as soon as possible. Radioactivity is very dangerous.

[MK14]

WARNING: NECRO'd thread, by a possible spammer (called spencerde, in case they get deleted).  Which might be the original intention of the thread, in the first place.

Reported to moderators!

[ratatax]

Yup I would eliminate serious issues by getting a microwave leak detector, gaz detector, also check the humidity, open your windows to get fresh air and clean everything, ensure there is no moisture anywhere.

Otherwise it may be a psychologic issue. I remember having weird issues each time just after moving to a new place. I could feel weird pulsations, cannot sleep, I heared some low frequency hum that didn't exist, I even had hallucinations at some point, the air suddently had a strong gaz smell just before my heart starting pulsating very quickly and had difficulties breathing (or the illusion of)... I don't know if this is due to the body being disrupted by life changes. Maybe some internal chemical imbalances. The last move caused me some annoying stomach and neuromuscular issues, I had some medical tests that revealed nothing.
So I stopped caring about it, sometimes it's hard, but hey, it's life... It's also possible that you (and me) have some underlying medical issue. It's very hard to eliminate every possible problem, unless you pass tens of scans and MRIs, see many different doctors... that take years, and even that cannot rule out everything.

[Cozzyjame]

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[magic]

Does this thread serve any purpose besides attracting lunatics and spammers?

[Gyro]

No.

[soldar]

It's called Havana Syndrome and you are in good company.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana_syndrome