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Original poster

Moving because of neighbours

83 replies

Elephant75 · 15/03/2021 07:15

Morning everyone

We bought our lovely ground floor flat with private garden just over 1.5 years ago. It's a old building converted into 6 flats. Yes... You know where I'm going with this.

We are lucky and don't have a mortgage. Just the usual ground rent and service charge. We love our flat and the location is brilliant. We love it

However since we have been here the noise from upstairs has become unbearable. I appreciate that we will hear noise being on the ground floor and in an old building. We are almost in our 50s so are pretty sensible about things.

We, along with other neighbours, have all complained to the freeholder about the noise. It's not loud music just to be clear. Just their family constantly over, over the weekend we have had about 15 hours of children running over floors, jumping, etc. It was unbearable. This has been happening every couple of days for hours on end. Even before lockdown started
Not sure why the children of the family aren't in school

They rent off the freeholder and she has been extremely sympathetic to us and has told them to stop.she admits there are problems with them. However, it has continued. We have even had plaster come off our walls and bit comes off our radiator where the jumping and shuddering has been severe. Our flat cost us over £400k and to see it being damaged almost daily is heart breaking.

A house along the road has just come up for sale. Obviously we would have to get a mortgage of around £100,000 and the downstairs and garden needs a bit of work. Also parking for 2 cars. We could pay this mortgage off within 3 years.

The question is.... Would you stick it out in our lovely flat and see if the neighbours move on. They also have 3 week old baby so I am sympathetic to them and conscious about her feelings and feel that I can no longer complain. Or go for the house. We are leasehold, the flat is freehold.

I bumped into the son of the freeholder the other day who obviously knew of the complaints. He informed me that his mum and had put them on a shorter lease and that she would like them out before the end of the year but feels she can't move them now because of the baby which is understandable. No sure how true this is but he seems a sensible bloke and works for his mum at the company.

We know the lady who is selling the house. She now lives abroad and won't be coming back so is in rush and is willing to wait until we sell our flat.

Any thoughts. The noise and damage is really getting me down now so appreciate any advice or similar situations.

OP posts:
Chloemol · 15/03/2021 08:25

Move

Elieza · 15/03/2021 08:36

You can pay a £100k mortgage off in three years?

Why are you even asking? Clearly you have the financial resources to do this. Go for it. And if your £20k soarer meet in the middle and crack on.

Elieza · 15/03/2021 08:36

Apart

Original poster
Elephant75 · 15/03/2021 08:45

I'm asking because I'd like to hear other opinions from people who have been in the same position as me due to neighbours. Sorry if my post wasn't clear but the son of the freeholder also said his mum wanted to sell it. Just to be clear his mum is the freeholder of the entire building. It could be that a lovely almost retired person like me and my husband buys it. Such a gamble isn't it. The flat above is worth nearly £600k so not cheap.

OP posts:
ChameleonClara · 15/03/2021 08:50

Move. You will have more control that way, if you stay you may not see them move out.

ChameleonClara · 15/03/2021 08:52

Also your savings are being put into property, not, for example, like those poor people who are having to pay fire patrols due to cladding - they have lost that money forever.

If you have an escape route, use it!

JackieWeaverFever · 15/03/2021 08:54

Having been in a similar situation - Run..

Get the mortgage and move.

FrangipaniBlue · 15/03/2021 08:59

Buy the house.

Even if they move out there's no guarantee you will get quieter neighbours.

CheckMate2021 · 15/03/2021 09:03

It is a shame, sounds like you loved the flat Sad but as others have said, I’d say move. The house you’ve seen sounds like a very good option, and you’re not leaving the area which is all very positive.
Best of luck Smile

windisblowing · 15/03/2021 09:08

I'd move

Original poster
Elephant75 · 15/03/2021 09:28

Thanks again all. You are right. I love my flat. We thought we would be here for years but unfortunately it wasn't meant to be. We have a new neighbour due to move in shortly who has bought. A retired hospital consultant in his 70s. He will be living next door to them. I wonder whether he will hear the noise being next door to them or whether it's the people below that suffer the most.

OP posts:
murbblurb · 15/03/2021 09:28

Even if they were given a Section 21 tomorrow, they may not be out for two years. Move, whatever it takes. People are so disgusting sometimes, these clearly have no social skills or consideration and see breeding more of the same.

grapewine · 15/03/2021 09:34

Definitely move. I wouldn't even think twice in your position. Hope you get the house you want.

SnuggyBuggy · 15/03/2021 09:38

I doubt the situation with the noisy family will get better and could get a lot worse once the baby starts moving so I'd take this opportunity.

MsHedgehog · 15/03/2021 09:41

Move! Definitely move! I used to live in a ground floor flat with a garden. It was a large (huge!) house converted into 3 flats, so that each floor was a flat.

The noise from upstairs was unbearable. When we moved in there was no one there so it was fine. Then a family with two young boys moved in and I couldn’t cope. It was constant running around and jumping all the time. Luckily the owner of the freehold for their flat listened to our complaints and didn’t renew their tenancy even though the family were keen to stay. They were a lovely family but the noise was too much for us to bear.

Then it remained empty for about a year and a couple moved in. Again, the noise was constant. Walking around in heels, music, etc etc.

We realised that no matter who lives there, we will have someone living on top of us with a crazy amount of noise. It’s not necessarily that the people who live there are noisy, but some buildings aren’t made for converted flats, so the noise is ridiculously high.

If your building is one of those, then I would suggest you move. Once this family move out, there will be someone else living there making noise and disturbing your peace.

sarahc336 · 15/03/2021 09:50

If it's affecting your happiness I think it's time to move on, life's too short isn't it xx

steppemum · 15/03/2021 10:09

house v flat
freehold v leasehold

no brainer, yes move.

Original poster
Elephant75 · 15/03/2021 10:12

Thank you again to everyone. The replies are really helpful.

Ms Hedgehog - sounds exactly like our flat and the building. Beautiful historic building but awful noise. We've paid a real premium to live here. Marketed to professional couples and retired professionals.

Thinks its time to move for my own mental health. I've never had issues with neighbours before. It's just really sad.

OP posts:
idontlikealdi · 15/03/2021 10:21

What is the flooring up there? Can it be insulated? Wooden floors are usually specifically excluded for noise reasons.

Brokenrecord3006 · 15/03/2021 10:34

I live in a flat with insulation, sound proofing, thick carpet and a huge rug and downstairs still complain about our noise (we're a small, very quiet family and can't be any quieter) so I agree with all other posters and think moving is a good idea. Because even if they did sort out their flooring there's no guarantee it would get better.

MsHedgehog · 15/03/2021 10:58

@Elephant75 I know, it's really sad. Our flat was amazing. TBH it was never going to be a forever home but we would have stayed there for a long time if it wasn't for the noise, as it was in a really nice part of London, 3 bedrooms, big garden, etc.

But the noise just meant we could never relax. When you get that sort of noise every single day, it goes from it being general annoying noise to it sometimes enraging you, when all they are doing upstairs is ordinary living. It gradually winds you down and it becomes truly unbearable. I now advise anyone looking at buying a converted flat to either live on the top floor, or avoid altogether.

Original poster
Elephant75 · 15/03/2021 11:06

Thanks again everyone. They say they have carpet up there but the noise is truly horrific still. I think their living area and bedroom has carpet and their kitchen and bathroom has wood or tiles which is fair enough.

Inkyhands. That is truly how I feel. Worn down and exhausted by it all. On the verge of tears today.

OP posts:
SnuggyBuggy · 15/03/2021 11:09

It's a difficult situation especially with lockdown but I imagine large families in flats worked better in the days when kids were expected to play out during the day. Now it's just a noisy nightmare as you can't really keep them quiet.

Original poster
Elephant75 · 15/03/2021 11:20

Their extended family are here most days. A little boy of 8 and one around 5. They don't seem to go to school. When I see her car drive in, my heart sinks.

OP posts:
squarespecs · 15/03/2021 11:20

Definitely move.

My friend lives in a beautiful ground floor flat. The noise upstairs is not as bad as yours and the neighbours are pleasant enough but like many people inconsiderate. No carpets, have taken over the shared garden etc etc.

Previous neighbours have been similar, not antisocial people but lacking thought for others, walking about on wooden floors till the early hours of the morning, that kind of thing.

She's now reluctantly thinking of moving.