If you live alone, do you feel safer living in a house or apartment?

[Hapity]

I've lived alone in my apartment for over 20 years now, I love the location, apartment and have always felt safe, I'm not on the ground floor, quiet neighbours - until recently. About 3 months ago, a very intoxicated resident of the block went around banging and kicking on the 10 or so apartments in the block in the early hours of the morning, police were called and he was taken away. I only learned afterwards he was a resident and renting here about a year. I heard himself and his girlfriend have since broken up and, although she's still here, I haven't seen him around thankfully - however, I'm still extremely nervous when I hear people coming in the main door in the early hours and awake at every little noise, am not sleeping great. I've good neighbours around me, the doors are strong, so realistically I know no one can get in.

I feel a bit silly feeling like this still bit he was roaring and shouting and kicking doors. I'm also angry at someone living here for such a short time causing me - and my neighbours - to feel like this.

If you've lived in a house and an apartment, which did you prefer?

I am currently living alone, in a semi detached house, for the first time in my life (I'm 51) and I have been here for nearly a year.

I have to say that I do feel safe, but I am very security conscious. I have two front doors (porch and main door) and I have a ring doorbell out the front. I do have a back gate, but its a very tall one and I always have it padlocked. The parameter of my garden is either a tall wall or a fence covered in bushes.

I'm also in a cul-de-sac of (mainly) bungalows, which is full of older people - and they have been wonderful to me. I know, in the short amount of time I have been here, two doors I could knock on in the event of help needed.

I lived alone on a tough council estate for 8 years while a mature student. I had two break ins both over a balcony. I later moved to a rented house where I had 2 masked men kick the door in, beat me up and demand money. So it just goes to show that you can be unsafe in either a house or a flat. I now live in a detached house in a very diverse area where some female neighbours are at home during the day so I feel safer. Ironically I felt safest living on the top floor of a tower block. They have very sturdy doors.

I loved my flat in many ways when I had one.

But it wasn’t the best area (or even the worst). Safety was somewhat an issue in that we had a common entrance with no lock and one of the residents blocked it being converted to a door entry system. We did get undesirable people popping in every now and then, poking into the meters cupboard and one occasion someone (presumably drunk) dropping by to do a very runny number two in the common entrance late one night. It was discovered the next morning. The cleaner (understandably) wouldn’t touch it, neither would anyone else and muggins here cleaned it up.

Also … nasty man upstairs dumping his old furniture over the balcony into the common garden. He had to pay for the managing agents to arrange for it to be taken away eventually, but unpleasant in the meantime. The same flat having a burst pipe, naffing about for an hour before getting a plumber in to deal with and leaving me with water damage down the walls to sort out.

I far prefer living in a house. I’m responsible for everything now, but at least I have more control.