Bought a flat from hell. What now?

[LeonieLondon]

I changed name and posting here to get more advice. Sorry long post
I recently bought what I thought was my dream flat in Kensington. For the past 14 years i have worked hard and saved most of my money. finally got on a property ladder with my dp (soon to be dh). We were renting a very similar type of place for the past 3 years (a flat in a mansion block) and had a very good experience- no noise from neighbours, no disasters in the flat, no leaks, generally no problems.
Turns out my new dream flat in a ‘sought after and prestigious mansion block’ has got zero sound insulation, there are not only every day neighbour noises (tv, chatter, laughing) coming from right, left and below (we are top floor, i insisted on a top floor flat because i thought i wouldn’t hear the neighbours…)

• I can hear my neighbours boilers from every direction, imagine constant very loud amplified humming in your ear
• below neighbours are fans what seems to be drum and bass and i hear bass noise coming from their place every day
• said neighbours make my floor and walls shake when they walk- is this a structural fault? I can be sitting in my bed or on a sofa and it literally shakes
• i am pretty sure they can also hear us stomp even though we are quiet

-there is a gas meter in a cupboard of one of the bedrooms which makes a very loud ticking/clicking sound every 2 seconds, again so loud and amplified. It would be impossible to sleep there or work while heating is on or someone turns hot water on (never even noticed this when viewing, but having lived in a bedroom with a boiler cupboard in it i wouldn’t even suspect that would be a problem) I am not even THAT sensitive to noise but i feel i am spiralling into paranoia.

• the fucking helicopters?!?! There is a heliport in battersea over the other side of the river…

We are meant to be putting new floor with sound proofing but given that neighbours play drum and bass i think the sound will travel through walls and chimneys anyway?
I don’t want to be here, it’s a complete disaster. I am now paranoid about every sound and movement
Any advice please? Move? Wait? Do i even bother changing the floors, spending £15k+ on new floors only to discover no noise change?
I feel like this mansion block compared with the one i lived is so flimsy.
I feel no joy from buying anything new for the house- it shouldn’t be like this :(

@3luckystars

I saw this programme before and Fran Lebowitz was saying she was at a dinner party and was sitting next to a physiatrist, and she said to him ‘I cannot imagine a worse job’ and he said ‘I trained for 7 years to do this job and New York, every single patient just gives out about the noise’

My first reaction was to SELL UP, but I think maybe the more experienced people on this thread are correct, give it 6 months. There is a lot of anxiety with moving, buying a property and your senses are probably on high alert right now. Give it a few months to settle, you don’t have to decide anything today. All the very best to you.

That’s quite funny. But honestly - noise can be such a huge cause of stress. I think it’s more of an issue now than ever before as people have louder speakers and sound bars for TVs etc. Just this morning a neighbour was playing music in her car right outside my bedroom and the bass vibrations were actually making me feel physically ill.

Don't know the regs I London, but in Scotland, neighbours playing the drums can be stopped by the Council and told to make other arrangements for "practice".

That does sound rough, especially as it yours first place. I would speak to building acoustics experts, such as www.instacoustic.co.uk/ and find out exactly what your options are (and the costs) before contemplating your next 'move'.

I thought this is just what flats sound like 😂 but clearly I don’t know any better. I’ve been in a flat for 14 years and it’s been my only home since I left my parents. People walking downstairs shakes my floor and walls, they play rubbish drill music that also vibrates my flat, can hear their water, boilers, washing machines, etc all of it. Mine also makes loud humming noises when in use so I just don’t use the heating so that it only makes noise when hot water is running. We live about 200 yards from a train line so the building also shakes from that. I am also on the top floor. I just thought that’s what all flats were like.

You need to contact Pat Alexander on FB - Leasehold Campaign Campaign ( NLC ). She's an expert at such issues Indeed many folks are there to give you advice. Also try the other Leasehold groups there.

I work for a supplier and they will change the meter if the noise it’s making is impacting on your life. Just raise a query or complaint and attach a short video recording of the noise it makes, they’ll replace as faulty meter so free of charge

I have a lot of sympathy. Focussing on one bit though - Hear your "neighbours boilers coming from all directions". Presumably that's only with windows open?
If it's with all windows closed then I feel there is something very unusual and concerning going on.
Something else I'd like to check. This is a purpose built block of flats, yes? Erected roughly when?

I can’t believe some people suggest renting it out.
That’s a shitty thing to do to someone else if it’s really that bad. We were caught out like that by a private landlord who rented us her semi but neglected to tell us that the neighbour was a violent alcoholic who played loud music till 4am...... the same 3 album on repeat for 13 hours solid everyday. I was pregnant at the time and that was hell! We had to find somewhere else AND pay her the rent for the whole contract period.
I can’t imagine what sort of person would rent to someone and take their money knowing their are awful noise issues.

@SamSoSer

I can’t believe some people suggest renting it out. That’s a shitty thing to do to someone else if it’s really that bad. We were caught out like that by a private landlord who rented us her semi but neglected to tell us that the neighbour was a violent alcoholic who played loud music till 4am...... the same 3 album on repeat for 13 hours solid everyday. I was pregnant at the time and that was hell! We had to find somewhere else AND pay her the rent for the whole contract period. I can’t imagine what sort of person would rent to someone and take their money knowing their are awful noise issues.

You could say the same for if they sell it. Because then you could say, How could they sell it knowing there was noise?

They're going to sell it or rent it at some point aren't they? They can't be expected to keep living in it forever just because they shouldn't inflict the noise on someone else!

I'm wondering why the walls shake. May be worth getting someone in to look at the flat. It sounds flimsy and shouldn't be if it is pricy. You may want to look at the details of what was disclosed at the point of sale.

I am sorry for you OP noise can cause such a lot of stress. My first house was a mid terrace and I could hear every sound from both sides. When I sold it , I vowed never to live in a terraced or semi detached ever again, and I never have. I would advise you to move as you will never settle there.

@bruffin

We paid a fortune for it, stamp duty alone was £68k because although i am a first time buyer my dp wasn’t. First time buyer would not made any difference at that price

Yes it would. There is a lower standard duty rate for someone buying their only residence. Her DP already owns another property so they pay at the 2md property rate.

I’m sorry to hear it, but YABU about the helicopters - have you never been to central London?? It’s deafening and constant.

It’s in Kensington - it’ll sell. Just put it back on the market.

Meantime get a hearing engineer in to look at your boiler and get insulation in the wall cavities if there are any.

Get out and buy a house in a cheaper area

I used to live in a flat like this, it was a nightmare. Be careful with how you approach this because any issues like this do have to be declared when you sell up. If there are no records of you complaining etc, you’re fine. I’d plan your course of action.

Also, if you have paid additional stamp duty because your partner already owns another property, I believe he would be able to reclaim this if you sell within a certain time period.

My DH is absolutely certain that its conversions that are noisy! How many of you with noisy flats live in a conversion? it does make sense that flats built in 1909 would be noisier... I never thought of it that way. I always thought that mansion flats were the pinnacle of London flats! I live in a 1930s purpose built and it is very quiet.

is it a new build?

also where were you living before? of course theres helicopters theres tonnes in london and a heliport along the river a round batersea. I see tonnes including apatche gunships flying over head from RAF Northolt.

@onlychildhamster

My DH is absolutely certain that its conversions that are noisy! How many of you with noisy flats live in a conversion? it does make sense that flats built in 1909 would be noisier... I never thought of it that way. I always thought that mansion flats were the pinnacle of London flats! I live in a 1930s purpose built and it is very quiet.

I live in a 1930s flat thats grade 2 listed, I can hear the neighbour next door but nothing much else unless someone downstairs is playing loud music.

How many times did you view it? Did you not hear noise during the viewing times?

@LeonieLondon
You sound incredibly noise sensitive- as am I
Drum and bass would drive me up the absolute wall.
You were unlucky with your neighbours-
You could just have easily have had a nice, quiet divorced woman with grown up kids who was quiet!
Misophonia-
I’m sure we have this!
A friend is also bothered by heating pipe noise from his detached neighbours.

I know those Mansion blocks- you’d think they were better insulated!
I feel your pain.

I bought a house once against my better judgement. My husband loved it and poo poohed my concerns. The house itself was lovely, but I didn’t like it’s location. Turned out the neighbour was a trouble causing nut case and my feelings (and eventually my husband’s) on the location grew worse. My approach was not to extend the unhappiness and get it back on the market. We were in and out within 11 months!

I doubt you will ever be happy in this flat. Cut your losses and sell it. You might even get profit in this market to compensate for the cost of stamp duty.

Definitely move. Spend the money on the next place