If you live in a flat

[Tappingthetopfloor]

Can I ask what floor you’re on and how much noise you hear?

Ground floor would be great but I’ve heard that it can be so noisy from several floors above you, so we’re now looking at a top floor flat but want to know if there’s something we may be missing and haven’t taken into consideration?

Neither of us have lived in a flat before but we are in a noisy terrace! So we have no idea how different noise wise it might be.

I've lived in lots of flats and I think the only noise you avoid by being on a not ground floor level is street noise. It's much more to do with how noisy your neighbours are. The advantage of top floor is maybe you don't get walking noise above (you may get birds and rats though if there is a loft!). But neighbours can still be very noisy through the wall and through the floor.

We live on the third floor (of 4) and aren't bothered by the noise. We sometimes hear the dcs upstairs as they are under 5s and run around often, but it isn't loud enough to bother us. We dont hear quiet noises, like TV or toilets flushing. Ours is a modern block, about 20 years old. Conversion flats tend to be worse for noise insulation.

Is it shared responsibility for the roof?

Top floor flats in conversions can get v hot in summer and cold in winter. They are also often less generously-proportioned than lower floors.

Is there a lift?

Is there a balcony or roof terrace? Or direct access to any outside space?

First floor Victorian conversation of ground, first and second floors. Hear upstairs go past the door going and returning from work. I'm really lucky with my neighbours, no noise beyond the occasional slammed front door.

Check the lease. It should ask that floors are carpeted to cut down noise overhead.

Third floor and we hear barely hear any noise. But we live in a very solidly built thirties block, we don't share any walls with other flats (a disused lift at one end and stairwell the other) and our upstairs neighbour is the much sought category of neighbour - single older lady with quiet habits.

Age and character of the building are everything.

Ground floor 30s purpose build and we hear very little apart from occasional baby cries. It must depend a lot on when the property was built - our walls, and I assume our ceiling are super-thick.

Thanks all - it’s not a conversion and 20 plus years old. It has a good solid concrete balcony 😄 but what appeals is that the apart from one back bedroom wall, no other walls are attached, much better than our current terrace.

First floor one under me no one above me.
I hear nothing.

Ground floor. Can hear the guy above occasionally but he is not that noisy. It will really depend on if you have considerate neighbours (and the building structure of course).

and our upstairs neighbour is the much sought category of neighbour - single older lady with quiet habits

That's me! (not your neighbour, but the description - well, apart from turning up the classical music when everyone else is out 😆)

And this will be me/ us too!

We never lived in a flat but we rent out one - its the top floor with a pitched roof - so you get roof storage etc ie a lot more space

via work I've visited many clients in flats

the older flats, concrete type built before the 70's transmit less sound IMO - but if you are living below a flat with a child or loud people you will hear them

the corridor doos can break of smells, food/smoking - as well as the clowns that stand on their balcony or open window and smoke travels to those above and sides

the new flats are built IMO out of cardboard and sound really travels

also avoid a flat next to fire/communal doors as even with soft clousers some doors bang hard

if you are worried - IMO its not for you
the best flat is the top floor so at least you get no noise from above and you get others peoples heat and safer than ground floor IMO as window left open on ground floor, takes a sneak thief moment to come in and get out

good luck

Cheating because I don’t currently live in a flat but I visit a relative who is on the ground floor of one regularly and the noise is ridiculous. They were only built last year. There are kids above her and they run around constantly. It sounds like a herd of elephants. When they put their washing machine on you’d think it was hers that was on as it’s so loud. Also the front door buzzer/entry system is constantly going. It’d drive me insane but I’m sure that others have better soundproofing.

I lived in a few tenement flats in Glasgow. Generally speaking, tenement blocks are 4 floors (inc. ground) with two flats on each storey. For me the top floor was bliss (aside from times where you were carrying lots of heavy stuff upstairs).

Noise wise though it was so peaceful. I always found the worst noise comes from above.

the new flats are built IMO out of cardboard and sound really travels

Agreed, I am surrounded where I live now by new build flats and they are so tiny with balconies that literally sit on top of one another. You must be able to hear word for word their conversations when people are sitting out there. Which is why we’ve gone for a less pretty, older style flat.

Noise wise though it was so peaceful. I always found the worst noise comes from above.

This makes me feel that we’ve made the right decision or on the right track.

Ground floor garden triplex, big Victorian double fronted villa converted into flats. We don't hear anything from upstairs, but we do hear the next door neighbours who also have loud kids. Ocasionally we hear the front door slamming, but it's not enough to wake the kids up or anything.

Ours is 140 years old. I don't know how it's soundproofed (or even if it is) but it's fabulously quiet. I would never consider a new build because of the flimsy construction.

I can live with and expect to hear noise from the stairwell, I’m not expecting total peace and quiet and actually compared to what we hear both sides in our current terrace it might well be a lot quieter!

You might end up BEING the noisy neighbour.
Even if you're quiet/think you're quiet, you can't discount the possibility of a downstairs neighbour who's very sensitive to noise, or just likes complaining, claiming that you're noisy and they can't concentrate, sleep etc. I've seen several threads on here where people's neighbours have complained when as far as they're concerned, they're just walking/talking/playing music or TV at normal volume but the neighbour says they sound like an elephant or a music festival.

Which is a long-winded way of saying I don't think you should overthink it because if someone feels like kicking off they will kick off whatever the actual evidence is!

You might end up BEING the noisy neighbour.

This has crossed my mind! I exercise every morning, hiit, circuit training with weights and realised that I would have to put something down on the floor to stop the noise travelling down below.

I've lived in a few different flats. The best was one of the older purpose built concrete blocks. I was on the ground floor of 3-storeys but never heard a peep out of the neighbours, the floors seemed totally soundproof. It was also absolutely massive, because they used to build things that were actually big enough for people to comfortably live in.

The house flat conversions I've lived in have been the noisiest, but it depends on the quality of the house as some were noisier than others. I've lived in a house flat below young children twice and both times it was awful.

I was in a purpose built house flat a few years ago and rarely heard our upstairs neighbour who was a single woman with few visitors. It seemed great until she got a man friend and then it did get a bit noisy IYKWIM!

I wouldn't say no to living in a flat again, but it would have to be the top floor.

Apart from a 6 month spell, I've lived in 3 top floor flats over the last 20 years and never had an issue with noise. Even when I had neighbours above and on all sides for those 6 months (it was an old Scottish tenement building) I never found it to be an issue.

Previously lived in numerous older (1890’s/1900’s) top floor tenement flats - never any noise issues. Currently in a modern (2000’s) flat between floors and find upstairs very noisy; that said, they took out the previous owner’s carpet for wooden floors...I hear their dog charging about, them walking about (especially in high heels!), moving furniture (chairs scraping back etc), a rowing machine and the washing machine always sounds like it will end up in my living room! You need a lot of luck with neighbours imho. I have more or less gotten used to it and they tend not to be noisy late at night, but if they were party people it would be hell