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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

If you live in a terraced house, how much do you hear your neighbours?

151 replies

Cheapcookies · 18/04/2023 07:02

I am fed up of living in a terraced house but can't afford to move to a detached.

We don't hear from one side at all.
The other side I can hear all day...from about 6am, screaming children (I know kids make noise, I have them too), crashing about, the dog barks all day, weekends can include a lot of banging...I don't know if I am becoming less tolerant of it or what but is this the norm for a terraced house? MIL lives in one and I can never hear her neighbours.

We had a house sitter in a while ago and they were shocked by the level of noise from that side (I did warn them so they could try and mask some of the noise so it does not unsettled our own dog, mainly the barking, as there is only so much the poor lad can take).

I know that with terraces come neighbour noise and they will be able to hear us sometimes as well (hopefully not 6am!) but what is the general experience?

Also not a new build house with thin walls. I will also clarify that the children are not babies crying, which of course I'd understand.

OP posts:
TrueScrumptious · 18/04/2023 07:06

Virtually never. One side has a young family. The other side are a group of young house sharers. I. Occasionally we hear a piano on one side and a violin on the other. The house sharers sometimes have a party, but that’s rare, and the music is turned off/down by midnight. We can’t hear voices at all unless they are in the garden.

Mortimercat · 18/04/2023 07:07

I live in an end terrace, I don’t hear anything at all from my neighbour.

coffeecupsandwaxmelts · 18/04/2023 07:08

Inside - nothing really, unless they're doing loud DIY or something.

Outside - voices carry but it's really not a problem.

lalaloopyhead · 18/04/2023 07:10

Hardly ever, previous neighbours apologised to us when they were having a particularly rough time with their baby crying in the night...we hadn't heard a thing.

Current neighbours have young kids that sometimes run up and down corridor upstairs but that is the only thing we hear.

Sockloon · 18/04/2023 07:10

All the time, cannot wait move out. Been here ages and I'm sick of hearing neighbours, they rent house nextdoor and have had loads of noisy families, as you can hear them talking loudly.

NEUserNamesNotTakenJeez · 18/04/2023 07:11

One side is an older couple who seem to have their GC over often, never hear them.
The other side is an older couple with a DD who is a young working adult, never hear anything but the DD has the attic bedroom so at worst, we can hear her on the stairs sometimes as she goes to bed. Rarely we hear them shouting goodnight to each other. That's kind of nice.

A few doors down... Are notoriously noisy. The whole road was silent before they moved in. All the neighbours have approached eachother at some point to have a vent. My neighbour has told me they can hear everything through the walls. I know atleast three of us have at some point wanted to move because of how noisy they are. You'd think moving to a Terraced house, you'd actively try to be respectful. It's like a constant torment having a noisy neighbour, I feel for you.

raspberrymeringue · 18/04/2023 07:12

DS1 and DIL have a new build terraced town house. The insulation is so good you can’t hear a peep from the neighbours either side.

Ilovemycatalot · 18/04/2023 07:12

Nothing either side. Not sure if it’s good neighbours or good soundproofing. Victorian terraced.

Jonei · 18/04/2023 07:12

I've lived in a few different Victorian terraces; generally could hear pretty much everything that the neighbours got up to. I hated it.

1potato · 18/04/2023 07:14

We live in a terraced house with terrible sound proofing. We can hear the conversations of neighbours even if not quite word for word. It doesn't bother too much as unfortunately we're the nosiy ones with two little kids, a dog and DIY. It's so stressful trying to keep everyone quiet. Probably time to move.

londonrach · 18/04/2023 07:15

Nothing. Only if they in the garden I can hear them in my kitchen. Do hear the front door slam if they go out as ours doors are close together. Love the community feel and everyone talks to each other as we so close together.

TrueScrumptious · 18/04/2023 07:15

TrueScrumptious · 18/04/2023 07:06

Virtually never. One side has a young family. The other side are a group of young house sharers. I. Occasionally we hear a piano on one side and a violin on the other. The house sharers sometimes have a party, but that’s rare, and the music is turned off/down by midnight. We can’t hear voices at all unless they are in the garden.

Meant to add, I’m in a Victorian terrace.

TheNoodlesIncident · 18/04/2023 07:15

One side, single chap, he had a beeping coming from his kitchen sometimes. The other side - there was actually a gunnel between our living rooms - used to do that ROAR when his football team scored.

Otherwise, not really. Neither side had a dog though and the football one's kids were late primary age and not given to screaming. So they weren't bad in that respect. 1930s terrace with front to back gunnel to the rear gardens.

edenhills · 18/04/2023 07:15

Always lived in terraces, never heard noise from next door, maybe we've been lucky? Currently in 1920s and only noisy when windows are open in the summer.

Guavafish1 · 18/04/2023 07:18

Daily... walking up and down the stairs; vaccuming; coughing; telephone ringing; laughing, music; tv, shouting and redoing the fire place daily twice/three a day.

Unicorntastic · 18/04/2023 07:19

I live in a terrace of 4 houses, I didn’t think about potential noise when we moved as we’d come from a flat and thankfully they are large terraces and we don’t hear much at all! It does help that the back of the house is separated though.

WordtoYoMumma · 18/04/2023 07:21

One side we hear the dog barking, kid doing piano practice and occasionally kids running up and down the stairs. Other side we hear nothing for weeks, then he has a flurry or watching TV loudly late at night, or putting music on super loud.
I'd love to live in a detached but that's not for folks on my income 😂

Busybody2022 · 18/04/2023 07:22

Only when our windows are open and the one side are horrifically loud. The sound proofing is great

Original poster
Cheapcookies · 18/04/2023 07:27

I'm so jealous of those of you saying you don't hear anything.

I know they've done some renovations over the last few years (we've all been here a while) and it has got significantly worse, so whatever they have done has really effected how much sound can be heard through the walls. Currently somebody has a recorder out. Fml

OP posts:
BeachHat · 18/04/2023 07:28

We live in a Victorian terrace. We never hear the neighbours to the left of us, on the other side, occasionally hear one of them running up the stairs, but that’s it, so virtually never.

IfDreamsWereWings · 18/04/2023 07:28

I think it depends on the neighbours circumstances. When both our neighbours had young DC and we didn’t have any the noise from both sides was horrendous and relentless - we heard when their DC woke up, running up and down the stairs, their conversations were louder because they were talking over their DC, their DC were very loud and often outside, and they seemed to be home most of the time so also endless DIY.
Now their DC are adults we only hear things if they shout or if they are doing a DIY project. So they are relatively quiet these days.

cocksstrideintheevening · 18/04/2023 07:31

Victorian terrace, hardly ever. We hear their kids playing the garden and no doubt vice versa but you'd hear that in a semi or in a detached unless you're in the middle of nowhere.

We are end terrace and attached stairs to stairs in the other side so our living spaces have a buffer.

Original poster
Cheapcookies · 18/04/2023 07:33

Virtually everyone on our street has children to everyone does have young families. Us included so I am sure we aren't perfect, but I do try to keep the noise down especially if it's early or late.

Our dog isn't silent (dogs bark) but I do redirect him if he is barking so that he isn't a bother. The other one barks endlessly. It's part of the reason I don't expect ours to be silent, half the time when he barks it is because of hearing another one all the time.

We do get on with the neighbours so it's just little things like hearing a dog barking for 2 hours solid, or the 6am wake ups through the wall that I kind of wish didn't happen every day for years...

OP posts:
user1492757084 · 18/04/2023 07:41

Invite one of them over to collect a pumpkin or whatever and have them hear the noise of their own house incidentally.

Are they renters? If so you could speak to the landlord about replacing the sound proofing that was removed in the renovation.

If it is their own home do mention that their house carries noise a lot more now that they have renovated. They might like to know and have the chance to improve insulation or stop shouting and loud radio noise etc early in the morning.

Buy their dog a battery controlled no bark collar for over night.

They remain blissfully ignorant until you inform them.

Blogswife · 18/04/2023 07:44

My neighbours have 5 kids under 7 who we can hear running & banging about and the baby cries ( no problem with that at all) but the majority of the screaming and shouting we hear is from the mother - if she stopped all would be well !
The kids make a noise in the garden but whose don’t . We bought the house expecting this to be the case so we suck it up !