Buying a Semi-detached House

chunkey_monkey

Hi,

First time poster on here looking for some advice.

I'm starting to look into buying my first home. Presently I'm looking at the S.E. Belfast area from Ormeau out to Four Winds.

My question is in relation to house types. Most semi detached houses have the living areas for each property backing on to the neighbouring house with the front doors near to the gable side of the front.

There are a smaller amount of houses which have the front doors in the centre of the property meaning that the living areas are separated from each property.

My question is quite simple, what is the noise insulation like between the properties which have the living areas backing on to each other?

I really don't want to splurge out on home and then discover that my neighbours music/crying baby/arguements are distracting me.

I have normally lived in terraced houses closer to the city centre in student your prof areas - which are by nature of the tenants noisier. Hence, I don't know if I'm worred about something that will not be a problem???

Any help or advice appreciated.

A.L.D.A

Depends on the construction.

If it is a newer house with a cavity wall between houses then it is fair enough.
If it has a 225mm solid wall, you could probably live with it.
If it is an old property with 100mm party walls it is an utter disaster.

With sound transmission it is all only as good as the weakest point. A few things to watch for;

1 Walls not properly built up dividing the houses in the roof space. Apart from being a fire risk noise transmission is increased from bedroom to bedroom.
2 Socket outlets and wall lights on the party wall. All the tracking etc can do wonders to the wall.
3 Floor joists spanning into the party wall.

Basically anything that will compromise the integrity of the party wall. Any opening or hole in it, even poorly mortared in bricks can make a significant difference.

If your neighbour likes to play Wagner with the windows open, or indulge in DIY nothing will spare you.

From a sound transmission point of view I prefer the entrance doors, halls and bathrooms in the middle and the living accommodation on the outside.

You can improve the acoustic properties of a wall, but it is difficult to do effectively and requires attention to detail.

Sorry bit rushed.

leftieM

It depends on the neighbours. Don't buy next to a rented house as you will have a range of people through and so a range of issues.
Otherwise you just take pot luck! A relative bought a house that has a single brick wall between her and the neighbours on both sides. The bedrooms are all linked this way. You can hear what the neighbours are saying through the wall. It's more of an issue at night.
Her solution? Ear plugs.

RTNI

As a current owner of a semi, I would strongly urge you to consider a detached house if your budget allows it (or hold off until you can afford it).

As others have mentioned, you may have great neighbours who you never hear a peep from, but it might be the opposite! My attached neighbour likes his DIY and we actually had to go round and ask him to stop at 9pm for us to go to sleep. He still closes the back door to the house loudly at like 11pm though..... Don't get me wrong, he is a lovely guy but people can be so inconsiderate when it comes to noise and not realise how easy it travels especially at night when you are sleeping.

Hope that's of some use to you.

chunkey_monkey

Thanks for the replies guys.

Yes, my concern is the type of neighbour. Lefie - I'm currently wearing earplugs and it is not a long term solution for me.

ALDA - I prefer that type of layout too - my problem is that it is hard to get this type of house in the area I like - inside the outer ring in S.E. Belfast. Does any one know of this type of construction inside the ring?

RTNI - I am a single person buying. So, from a cost effective point of view I can't really justify the outlay and running costs of a detached house. (I don't think!).

Keep the replies coming - thanks!

Irish_Stew_2

I would agree entirely with A.L.D.A. above, present Building Regulations cover for this eventuality, but in the past this was not the case.

chunkey_monkey

What age approx would the house have to be in order to have the cavity wall between the two properties?

I've lived in Sharman Rd. in Belfast (Stranmillis, near Cutter's Wharf) for a while and whilst I could hear things like plug switches, etc the noise was not overly loud. However, in my current rental (terrace in Ormeau) I can hear everything next door - computer games, arguments, foot steps on wooden floors etc.

This is a big investment for me so I don't want to end up in misery somewhere because of my neighbours habits.

Is there any way to tell during the viewing what is the make up of the partitioning wall?

Thanks for all the advice so far.

savageHK

While I'm not in Northern Ireland, we've just bought a semi detached house in England - constructed c. 1930. We have now discovered we can hear the neighbour talking through the wall in the lounge! Thankfully she's going to be a quiet neighbour as she is quite elderly, but it does make me worry we'll disturb her!

D.A.

RTNI wrote: »

As a current owner of a semi

Family forum!!!!! :rotfl::rotfl:

RTNI

D.A. wrote: »

Family forum!!!!! :rotfl::rotfl:

Oh for goodness sake! Trust you to drag this into the gutter!! Almost as bad as NAR and Caz on here!!

miss_hh

I live in an old Belfast house. I can hear my neighbors cough, blow their nose and just about everything they do. Though I live in a terrace house.