Ground floor flat or 2nd floor - which one?

Pixie5740

I'm buying a 2nd floor flat after years of living in ground floor flats. I've had it with noisy neighbours living about me. The neighbour upstairs had a party on Tuesday night. The git.

However, the people I'm buying the flat from are selling because they have a baby and lugging a baby + pram + shopping up two flights of stairs was getting a bit much.

Horses for courses really.

bouicca21

I have a ground floor flat. No problem with noise. Love being able to walk out into the garden.

Tbh I think you could get noise anywhere - you need to look at the quality of the building, some just have terrible noise insulation. And maybe just wander round at times that are likely to be noisy to see just what the neighbours are like.

seven-day-weekend

My son, who is in his 30s, lives in a second (top) floor flat and prefers to be on the top because of the privacy.

His friend, also in his 30s, lives below him on the first floor and prefers that because of the insulative properties of the flats above and below him.

My friend lives on the ground floor of the same development, she and her husband are in their 70s and love the ease of access of a ground floor flat, also they have a back door to the communal gardens.

As someone else has said, horses for courses.

Norman_Castle

I'm in a penthouse flat (:D). I would love the garden access of a ground floor flat but wouldn't sacrifice the security and lack of noise from above for 1.5 meter square patio.

GwylimT

Ground floor, I would never live in a property without a garden, do people on here who say you can't open windows on the ground floor never open the windows one the ground floor of a house?

davidmcn

Are there stats about the security aspect? I've heard it said that top floor flats have a greater risk of entry via the door (because of the lower likelihood of being disturbed while trying to force entry).

seven-day-weekend

GwylimT wrote: »

Ground floor, I would never live in a property without a garden, do people on here who say you can't open windows on the ground floor never open the windows one the ground floor of a house?

I was wondering that. We are hoping to move into our bungalow within the month. Am I never to open any windows?

melanzana

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

I was wondering that. We are hoping to move into our bungalow within the month. Am I never to open any windows?

I take it you have a front and back garden with the bungalow?

Lots of ground floor flats do not have that kind of private space, at the front anyway, so cue, easy access for yobbos intent on messing around, and a stream of foot traffic all day, although depends on whether it is security gated I suppose. Not too many are though!

I would never buy or rent a ground floor flat. 1st and upper floors for me!

sebadee

One random tip for anyone buying a flat.

Go knock on your neighbors doors and drive there and park up and walk up and down the street outside a couple of times. We bought a flat with a total bunch of a-holes who lived downstairs. Real nightmare.

melanzana

sebadee wrote: »

One random tip for anyone buying a flat.

Go knock on your neighbors doors and drive there and park up and walk up and down the street outside a couple of times. We bought a flat with a total bunch of a-holes who lived downstairs. Real nightmare.

Good advice for any property purchase that you intend to live in. And bring a compass, nothing worse than a North or East facing back garden either! Kitchen (normally at the back) is dark and dreary, (North), and in the evenings when you get in from work both North and East facing gardens have no sun at all close to the house anyway.