Leatherdaddy's Not Giving it Up For the Son

San Francisco condo buyer wants out after S&M disclosure
San Francisco Business Times - by JK Dineen
Date: Monday, May 2, 2011, 5:30pm PDT - Last Modified: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 6:46am PDT

A San Francisco man who paid $621,000 for a condo to share with his 10-year old son is fighting to rescind the deal after learning the other unit in the two-unit building is home to a sadomasochism enthusiast who engages in loud “leather sex.”
Jack Hagerty closed April 25th on the 2-bedroom unit at 32-34 Natick St. in San Francisco’s quiet Glen Park village. Hagerty said he put down more than $300,000 — all his savings — in order to create a home for his son. Recently divorced, Hagerty has 50 percent custody of the boy.

Hagerty said that after closing on the unit he received a surprising email from Edward Gibbons, the owner of the other unit. In the email, which Hagerty made available to the Business Times, Gibbons explained that he is “a sexual enthusiast and enjoys leather sex.”
“If you don’t know what that means I have a brochure I can lend you so that you can learn about it,” the email stated. “I am currently not working so I don’t need to keep a regular schedule as a result week nights can be late for me. At times, it is possible and even likely that the sounds of leather sex will be coming from my bedrooms to your bedrooms without an effective sound barrier. While it is not my issue, you may find you need to explain things to your son as it could be confusing to him since it frequently doesn’t sound as pleasurable as it is.”

Hagerty said he has no problem with sadomasochism but he does not want to subject his 10-year-old to the screams of ecstasy and agony likely to emanate from the neighboring condo. He said the potential noise issues should have been disclosed during the sales process.

“I should make it clear I have no beef with Mr. Gibbons at all — Mr, Gibbons is welcome to his lifestyle,” said Hagerty. “We met in person and my son and I both said ‘what a nice guy.’”

Reached at home, Gibbons said the whole S&M issue only arose after Hagerty informed him that he planned on removing the extra thick padding and wall-to-wall carpeting that had been installed by the previous owner to limit sound between the two units. He said removing the carpeting will not only ensure that noise travels easily between the two units, but that it is a violation of the condo association's covenants, conditions and restrictions — called CC&Rs — that dictate how the homeowners association operates and what rules the owners must obey.

“What I do in my bedroom should not be your concern,” said Gibbons. “The previous owner did certain things to mitigate the noise. This hasn’t been an issue for the 12 years I have lived here.”

Gibbons said he has reached out to Hagerty multiple times by email and phone but that his new neighbor won’t have a conversation with him. Hagerty’s real estate agent, Pat Carapiet of Paragon, referred calls to an attorney who did not respond to an interview request. The seller’s agents, Ken Eggers and Rob Rogers of Zephyr, didn’t return a call seeking comment.

In the meantime, Hagerty said he has nowhere to go. He was planning on moving into the new condo on May 3, and his current sublet is over. He has decided to make his plight public, posting details of the situation on the real estate online publication Socketsite, where the situation was first reported, as well as Redfin. “I can’t in good conscious move into the unit,” said Hagerty. “It would be harmful to my child and dramatic and upsetting.”