Noisy neighbours can be a nuisance wherever you live – but when you live in an apartment block and your noisy neighbours can be above, below or right next door to you, they can seem like an inescapable problem.
Often the best way to tackle what can be a tricky issue is to talk to your neighbour in a calm and reasonable way.
They may not be aware of how noisy they are, or the impact it’s having on you. So, is you decide to raise it with them, give two or three recent examples of high noise levels and explain how it affected you.
You should also be prepared to suggest a potential solution. For example, if the noise is from a regular activity, such as late-night parties or someone playing the drums, your neighbour may agree to keep the parties to weekend evenings with music turned down after midnight, or not to play the drums after 9pm
If the noise is due to everyday use of the apartment – such as people walking in heavy footwear on a wooden floor in the flat above you, your neighbour may be prepared to consider laying floor coverings or removing their shoes to reduce the noise levels.
If talking to your neighbour doesn’t fix the problem and the noise is due to their inconsiderate behaviour, rather than normal use of their home, you may want to report it to the local council.
This could lead to increased tension with your neighbour, and as your complaint will go on record it could also make your apartment harder to sell, so before taking this step, it’s worth taking advice on the subject from your local council or Citizens Advice.
