house buying - checking noise from neighbours - is this reasonable thing to do?

[mrsmike]

We have made an offer on a new house, 3 yrs old. It is a semi and I am feeling increasingly worried about noise from neighbours. When we viewed, all was silent, no one in next door. Is it OK for me to ask to go back when their neighbours are in so I can check how noisy things are? What I would really like to do is go in the neighbours house, talk loudly in their kitchen, and see if dh can hear me next door. Will they think I am off my rocker? Irony is, with 2 teenagers and a 2 yr old it is probably US who will be the noisy ones.

try telling the neighbours that you are worried about being noisy and you would like to see what they could hear if your lot are rampaging around.

Bet they let you in then!

I would just make an appointment to go around
for second viewing when neighbours are likely to be there and make a judgement based on that. I think it is fine to ask the current neighbours if noise is a problem - do any neighbours own dogs , have large parties etc. While you are there, and if you do see lights on at any neighbouring houses, then knock on door and sweetly say you are thinking of buying house down road but you have been plagued by noise in your current home and is there anything they could tell you about this street.

Sound insulation reqs have been tightened in new homes but poor build quality often means that extra measures are worth naff all .

Thanks kind people. Anyone else gone on a specific noise-finding-mission?

Has anyone done a sound-check on a house they might buy?

I would also suggest asking the vendors if the neighbours are noisy/they can hear the neighbours and scrutinise their reaction!!

(We are selling a house where we DO have a noisy neighbour and I dread the neighbour related questions...)

If you have reason to be suspicious about neighbourhood noise, you can go and sit outside house in car at times when there are likely to be flashpoints - late Saturday evening or whatever. Best thing to do is just visit house at different times - even if you have to pretend you are measuring up for curtains or whatever. You can also ask your sellers in writing via solicitor if they have had any experience of poor sound insulation/neighbourhood noise problems. They would be pretty daft to lie under circs because they can be sued for making false statement, I believe, and chased for compensation. Also find out why they are selling - if they say that they fancy a change or something, I would be as house is only three years old.

Do it, do it, do it!

It's not only reasonable but utterly, completely sensible.

Friends of my husband have just stretched themselves to the absolute limit to buy a place (as in they have no curtains because they won't be able to afford them for another year, possibly two). First night they moved in, they discovered they could hear EVERYTHING the neighbours were doing, down to the cutlery clinking as they set the table.

They can't afford to move and they can't afford to soundproof. They're miserable.