Flat dwellers: how much neighbour noise do you suffer from?

scorpio_princess

dmg24 wrote:

My apartment was only completed this year, but is amazingly quiet, I don't even know when the neighbours are home.

I moved here from a converted block of flats, where the noise was so bad it made me ill. As well as the noise from the other residents, the landlord let the shop below to a music store, where people tested out drum kits all day. Nightmare x

:eek: That would be my idea of hell! However did you survive it?!

I live in a purpose built ground floor flat, and it's mostly really, really quiet. I have to say it was such a relief when I moved in - I thought the whole block would turn out to be heavy metal fans with loud voices and clompy boots, but thankfully this was just me being paranoid! I just can't deal with incessant noise (just ask my sister - I threw her stereo at her once whe she refused to turn it down!) Also, i'm a part time student, so as well as working full time and needing a bit of peace and quiet when I get home, I also need absolute silence in order to study.
Apart from the odd sound from the livingroom above (sounds like they're moving furniture), and how she likes to wear high heels in her bedroom (which I assume is wood floor) early in the morning (very annoying), its all good here. Someone a few blocks down was playing Pink Floyd at midnight last night at full blast - thankfully it did go off eventually!

JBeau

Anyone having a a bad time with neighbours can find support and information on https://www.nfh.org.uk/index.php

Bargain_Rzl

I'm also in a p/b 2005 new-build, first floor, though the design of the building means there aren't any flats beneath me.

I get no noise at all from upstairs; next door (part of a different section of the block so I have no idea who lives there) I can only hear when they're hammering something. There is one flat adjoining mine in my block (their second bedroom adjoins my only bedroom) but it's not occupied as yet. My neighbours all say they don't get any noise from the next-door flat.

In fact the only neighbour noise I get is when people who live on my floor are coming through the communal hallway, talking, unlocking their doors etc - understandable when you consider that front doors are a lot less soundproof than walls!

LouieB

I am living in a rented flat at the moment, built in early 90s, and its just as lynpower mentioned, the internal walls are terrible, we too have to turn the living room telly up if washing machine is on in kitchen!

We have 2 neighbours, one to our left, who apart for the odd cuboard door closing, we dont hear, but the guy downstairs is a pain, he lives alone, but talks so loud on his phone , you can hear every word he is saying, he has his music on loud - in fact I have had to ask him to turn it down before now- ( he has, but then a few days later its back up again) and I feel know his daily routine as I can hear his alarm clock go off / toilet flush etc! Im not kidding!

We will be moving out shortly, and to be honest this has has pushed us into saving more, so we can get out a lot quicker.

Curley

I've recently moved into a 1991 block of flats and i'm lucky that i've hardly heard a thing. It's in a court yard setting and my flat is the 'bridging flat', over the archway that leads to the rear carpark. We've all got private enterances which also keeps noises down.

Nothing below me, nothing above me and the only sound I hear is next door neighbour occasionaly closing her door.

She's probably be complaining about me soon though as i've just got a very vocal cockatiel.

kberry_78

The day to day noise in the flat below us is ok. We can hear when Eastenders is starting etc. The noise at night after they have had a few drinks is embarassing. They fight, these gentlemen can standup for themselves as well, so it's like a baroom brawl. This happens around 12-4 am about once per month. banging of doors, breaking of windows shouting and swearing.

So I'd say day noise is ok night noise frightening

Kaminari_2

The last flat we lived in we could hear everything. Conversations, doors opening and closing, TV, Radio, people walking about, private adult type stuff. It was a new converstion of an old victorian building. It was right on a main street too.

Our new flat is a 60's purpose build concrete thing. And we can't hear a thing from anyone else, Bliss!

olly300

Currently live in a purpose built 1930's flat on top floor. Mostly can't hear a thing and there are no children in the block. Sometimes hear tv/music from downstairs but only when it is very loud and that's normally the neighbours young vistors'.

Have lived in a purpose built 1980's flat on top floor. The only children where on the ground floor flats and while you could hear them singing they mostly were quiet and friendly. The most annoying thing was the building use to shake when large lorries drove down the road.

Lived in a converted Victorian house and that was a nightmare. There was no insulation and everyone could hear everyone else through the floors and ceilings. The walls where thick though.

Generali

I used to live in the Barbican and it was lovely and quiet - the walls are about a foot thick and the estate rules ban you from benig heard by the neighbuors after 4.30pm! The only problem flats are the 7th floor ones that have the lift workings right next to them.

Alleycat

I can second the conversion flats being a nightmare. My parents live in a victorian conversion and it is scarily flimsy. The window frames rattle when you walk across the living room and we can hear loads from upstairs. The HA won't put new frames in because they have to be sash windows and apparently they are too expensive.

We live in a victorian through terrace and can hear our neighbours on both sides. Mainly door slamming, kids screaming at each other and shouting in the bath. Its incredibly annoying as the ones on one side have about 15 kids who all sleep in the front bedroom next to us and never go to bed before 11pm. The other side have two small boys who aren't too bad, but are also up until 10ish most nights. They do wake our dd up weekly as Tuesday seems to be bath night. We can hear them shouting at each other, splashing around in the bath.