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whether it is firsthand, secondhand or thirdhand, not only causes complaints among neighbors and health risks to renters and guests, but it also causes increased maintenance and turnover costs when units that contained smokers become vacant. In fact, long after a smoker vacates a unit, the effects of thirdhand smoke are still present...and, for those of you not familiar with the concept of third-hand smoke, which I only recently learned about, it is the residual nicotine and other chemical residue caused by smoking left over on indoor surfaces by tobacco, marijuana, or E-cig smoke. Kind of disgusting when you think about it.
Thirdhand smoke can often remain in a rental unit for years after a smoker has moved on and can be extremely difficult to clean. Another problem with third-hand smoke is it is not always easily detected, and thirdhand smoke that remains can often cause adverse health impacts to the next resident (and the one after that, and so on) that moves into your vacant unit...particularly for rental units that had many years of exposure to smoking.
Now let me tell you a bit about a study our Association assisted the University of California, at Los Angeles (UCLA) with. We participated in a 2019-2020 study of renters and property owners that was conducted by UCLA on behalf of the City of Los Angeles. This was the first of three smoke-free studies we have participated in, the last two being with a private research company and another with UCLA’s cross-town rival, the University of Southern California, both of which were conducting their surveys on behalf of the County of Los Angeles’ Department of health. The results of these later USC studies are still pending. But you can be sure, the County of Los Angeles is very interested in smoking within multifamily housing, and I am willing to bet you there will soon be smoking bans imposed in all of the unincorporated areas of the County if not incorporated ones too. Now, camping illegally and
doing illegal narcotics on our streets, sidewalks, and parks will still be permitted somehow, but no smoking regulations are coming our way – and that’s a good thing despite my sarcasm about a homelessness crisis we cannot seem to get ahead of.
Under the UCLA study, they (they as in the “Bruins”) found that nearly 50% of renters had been exposed to unwanted secondhand smoke at one time or another at their homes. That’s a huge number... UCLA surveyed more than 5,000 renters and about 200 rental property owners (we tried to get more, but many of you were too reluctant to respond – it was difficult to convince you to take the $50 gift cards being offered...missed your chance, sorry).
Sadly, as we non-smokers know, most smokers do not believe they are hurting anyone or they chose to ignore the adverse health impacts of secondhand smoke drifting into other units through open windows and vents. The UCLA study also found that:
• 55% of tenants who live with someone with a chronic disease reported they had been exposed to secondhand smoke in their homes in the past year.
• 54% of tenants with children reported exposure to secondhand smoke.
• Of those tenants reporting smoke drifting into their homes, 39% came from tobacco, 36% came from marijuana, and 9% from E-cigs. The balance came from barbeques or fires, or some other unknown source.
• Also, 74% of renters had reported smoke came from outdoors, 64% reported it came from another unit, and 41% reported that smoke drifted in from both outdoors and another unit.
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74 JANUARY 2022 - APARTMENT MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE AMM1/6