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Will felony in his past be a rental roadblock?

Q: Do you have any advice for me? I look like a clean-cut, well-mannered young man, but I have a felony from 1998 and don't want to get turned down by landlords because of this. I'm now living in a studio apartment in downtown Seattle and have paid my rent on time for more than a year. I'd like to move into a house or duplex in the city so I can live with my girlfriend. My budget is $500 to $1,000 a month.

A: Sherry Zane, of Phillips Real Estate Services in Seattle, says your felony isn't an automatic deal-breaker. "I'd probably never make a decision on one fact alone when there can be other things that override it," she says. However, the nature of the crime is certainly something she'd want to investigate, because the term "felony" covers a wide range of bad behavior. For example, murder is a Class A felony, while a vehicle prowl is a Class C offense.

What could override — or at least soften — the impact of your criminal record is your behavior since then. If you've stayed out of trouble and kept your credit clean, "that will speak well," Zane says. "If you've left a string of collection agencies on your tail, the felony probably wouldn't matter because they (landlords) would tell you 'no' based on something else." (And don't think you can fib your way past your past; almost all landlords do background screenings, so yours, too, will be uncovered.)

Your track record with your current landlord is very important. "Being a good tenant is more than paying rent on time," Zane stresses. Being a good neighbor to other tenants and taking care of your apartment are also a big part of it. "A good reference from your landlord will help a lot" in selling yourself to another one.

Zane thinks it's unlikely you'll find a house or duplex anywhere in Seattle for $500. But for $1,000 you may have some options, particularly in less expensive areas, such as Beacon Hill or Lake City. One last thing to know: Landlords have no legal requirement to screen prospective tenants the same way, so there's no iron-clad standard for renting — beyond the fact that they can't discriminate based on race, gender, marital status, etc. If one landlord turns you down because of your felony, don't assume the rest will, too.

Q: My neighbor, who uses the undeveloped, dead-end Seattle alley behind our houses to store his truck, keeps cutting my hedge bordering the alley. He then dumps the clippings on top of the new plants in my yard. This has damaged them. I've tried to talk to him, but he refuses to talk, saying he's lived there for 30-plus years and I've only been here for four and he can do what he wants. What should I do?

A: This one is more complicated than it looks, says Bellevue attorney Greg Home. The issue is the status of the alley. There are various ways alleys are created, and the legal status of yours may affect the answer. For example, if the alley actually does belong to the city and your neighbor isn't stepping onto your property to trim your hedge, you don't have as much clout as if he were.

However, it's possible that the alley is actually an easement created years ago out of the neighboring properties. If so, that could give you a stronger position, particularly if half the alley has actually reverted to your ownership. Or it could give you a weaker position if your neighbor has somehow gained the entire alley through adverse possession. Home says a thorough researching of the alley is needed before he could fine-tune an answer to you.

In lieu of that, he suggests you talk to other neighbors bordering the alley. Do they have any insight into your neighbor's current behavior, or perhaps past behavior with the prior owners of your house? Can they offer any advice?

The bottom line is that your neighbor cannot cut your hedge and throw the clippings on your side because he has seniority over you. Home says that rationale doesn't work. He says you can take this guy to small-claims court if he damages your plants — providing you have proof, like photos. But that court doesn't have the power to order him to stop. To get that, you'd have to file in a higher court.

Another option would be to hire an attorney to research the alley issue and write your neighbor a firm letter advising him to stop chopping and tossing — or else.

Q: Is there an office or organization I can call to get information on condo swimming pools?

A: That depends on what kind of information you're seeking. If it's health-related, your county health department may be able to help you. Otherwise, one source of information may be the Community Associations Institute. It's a national nonprofit education and resource organization helping those who live in condos, co-ops or neighborhoods with homeowners associations.

On its Web site, www.caionline.org, you'll find all sorts of useful information — everything from how to select a property manager or attorney to how to navigate parking and pet policies.

There's also an online bookstore; it has a book about swimming pools. If you don't find what you want there, check the site for the locations of the 55 chapters nationwide (there's one in Seattle). Calling the one nearest you may help.