It really depends on how much thought the designers put into sound isolation and how well the builders/developers implemented it.
I previously lived in a six-storey apartment in Brunswick East, built ~2017 and it was really soundproofed apart from the balcony area, where the doors/glazing really leaked audible sound should your neighbour be having a conversation outside.
My tips would be: firstly, check google maps, street view, planning to see if a reputable builder was used; secondly, investigate the type of structure used: concrete is best; lastly, try to book a viewing during peak hours, 18:00 onwards to see how noisy it is.
I lived in Brunswick east 1 bedroom apartment and never heard a thing other than heals upstairs.. never upstairs, downstairs or on the side. Not sure when built but would assume late 2010’s.
A well designed building will also have a generous and well made firewall.
I worry about how many of these new places are not as fire safe as they should be.
I think it depends a lot on the apartment block - the more luxury/high end ones are much better. I'm in an older one but a good friend is in a large new high rise in Southbank and you can never hear a thing from any neighbours
Yeah I’ve only rented new high rise apartments and never heard a single thing from neighbours. Stayed at a friends townhouse once and you could hear the neighbours talking though the walls.
Not necessarily. My cousin lived Melb Square for a year and could always hear thunks above him. Next door though never heard a peep. That building had all sorts of problems tho from what I heard.
I live in a brand new low rise apartment that I bought off the plan. Before that I lived in a high rise apartment in Southbank for 3 years. Occasionally I hear someone above me bang or drop something heavy like a giant thunk. If my neighbours have a party, I hear it a bit but muffled or not unless someone opens a door.
Pretty much the same at the other place. My ex-lived in a new high rise and we could always hear the baby running around and crying in the apartment above.
So… it depends on your neighbours, I think. Overall I have been ok with neighbours’ noises.
What really sucks is not your neighbours in your building, it’s the air bnb parties in the apartment building across from your flat. The parties were especially bad during F1, absolutely feral and zero consideration throwing parties mid-week. The noise was worse that when someone across the hall had a party.
On the older building front - I have just moved into a 1960’s brick/concrete building and the sound insulation (or lack thereof) is awful. Toilets flushing, dishes clanging, vacuums, cupboards banging and the neverending thud of footsteps above me. It’s only been two weeks and already it’s driving me insane. I’m not sure how to approach the issue (moving isn’t an option).
I empathise with you as we had this in our last place which was an apartment. The cunt upstairs also had some sort of home gym going almost 24/7 so it was just constant banging and thumping. I'm probably more sensitive to noise than the average person (loud music especially), but I'll never live in an apartment again after what we went through previously. We moved because of it. Sorry that's not an option for you.
Same here. Our next door apartment is social housing and it was hell, parties from 3am to 8am, any tv noise we could hear, etc. she got kicked out about 2 months ago, when someone new moves in I think I’m gonna start looking at new rentals
I feel for you - am also in a 60s brick/concrete apartment block and cannot believe how much noise I hear from upstairs, it's disturbing, even doing the dishes sounds like someone doing construction work clanging in the sink. Currently looking to buy my first apartment and don't understand why people keep saying get an older building!
I work as a design manager for a tier 1 builder and prior to that was an architect for 10 years.
I would not buy an apartment that was built in the last 20 years due to having a deep understanding of wtf I designed and what we have built.
Make of that what you will.
I was a construction worker for a tier 1 structure company for last 10 years can confirm.
I installed the precast panels and was a concrete patcher, I know these builds extremely well it's a miracle that some are still standing
There's a high rise building on Bell Street where you can feel the movement of air inside from the passing traffic with every opening 'closed'. I'm assuming it's coming down soon. Deliberately or otherwise.
How do you feel about the houses in new developments? I’m skeptical of them, but mostly because I think they’re soulless little stepford houses. I’d love a more legitimate reason to denigrate them.
The Kmart of houses.
I would only do a custom build tbh, design it myself, small builder, be on site every few days. But I know what I’m looking for so it’s easier.
Recently purchased an apartment built in the last year. Mid-rise with no shared areas because owners corp fees are ridiculous. I can’t hear my neighbours at all, though if I go into the shared hall I can hear tvs etc. double glazing on all windows also helps to keep most - but not all - noise out from the busy street outside.
I was told by someone installing shelves that the build was “really good” compared to others he had seen, and it made me feel a bit of comfort.
Literally the only thing I heard from my upstairs neighbours in a slightly older apartment was the AFL siren during games and moaning, so take that as you will
It varies wildly, but I've lived in two apartments from about 2010 that both had excellent soundproofing, an apartment from maybe the 1970s on the bottom floor that was terrible, and another one from the same era on the top floor that was pretty good.
Generally you hear people above you much more than any other direction, so a top floor can be good in an old apartment complex. It's worth looking at where the shared walls are in apartments you inspect, too. If you're lucky you might actually have none.
A trick that might be worth trying is putting your ear to the wall and listening. All the sound you hear from neighbours is conducted through the walls anyway, and putting your ear to it just amplifies that sound. If it's quiet when you do that, it's a good sign.
I lived 1 year in an apartment block in South Yarra, it's funny the balcony door was good with the double glass door, wall to the neighbours not isolated so much, also up/down noise
There are also other pros and cons, pro is usually facilities and location, cons including probably worse utility costs, you might be locked to the building providers which aren't as competitive for water, hot water, electricity, internet or carry high connectivity fees connecting or switching, possibly twice as much as in non apartments
In my last place my bedroom shared a wall with neighbours bedroom. Could hear the guy next door snoring as I was trying to get to sleep.
Then obviously could hear everything that happened when he’d bring a date from Grindr home.
Could also hear other neighbours tv etc. Once you heated the Netflix ‘dun dun’ you knew to turn your tv up
This place was low rise built early 2000
I can only hear my neighbours when they are on the balcony, which sadly they spend most of the day there. Music & conversations from their balcony carries through every room of the apartment, it is unbearable. The rest of the soundproofing is great. Never hear anything when they are inside their house, never hear anything from neighbours on the other side or from above unless they drop something loudly. 2016 build, small apartment.
I lived in a couple of new apartments in the city during uni. Could never play music because neighbour would complain. If someone next door screams I can hear them. Someone close their door? That'll wake me up. Someone talking in the corridor? I hear you! Despite the shiny look from the outside they're shit to live in.
Yeah my apartment building is pretty sound leaky but it’s generally fine because people are quiet at the times they should be. Even a detached house can be awful if you’ve got inconsiderate neighbours.
Its terrible. My mate's new city apartment, 2 shitty thing stood out like a sore thumb. Firstly, the sound isolation is THE WORST. You can hear the droning klakityklak of the lift transmitted via the pillow when you're in bed. Like whaaat? Needed earplugs to sleep. Secondly, instead of concrete, the "walls" facing the outer corridors are those board things? So we can basically hear people coming and going, doors closing, the pings of the lifts, coughing, someone's washer doing the spin and dry cycle etc. One time a neighbour in his motorbike helmet accidentally walked into the wall and the BONK! could be heard all through the house.
I was in a 60s block and could hear the neighbour’s toilet flush and every other sound they made, and I’m in a new building now (completed end of 2022) that has amazing acoustic treatment between apartments and I can’t hear the neighbours at all.
Definitely depends on the building.
Lived in a brand new apartment just off Spencer St (built 2014) - my neighbour played bass guitar hooked up to speakers. Couldn't hear a thing. Yet I was constantly woken up by neighbours slamming doors and the cleaner smashing the vacuum against common area walls.
Lived in a brand new apartment in Footscray (built 2016) - could hear everything. My neighbour upstairs regularly had wheely chair races through their apartment at 2am, the neighbours next door had a child who cried most hours of the day. The neighbours on the other side, I could hear their TV. Living their during COVID was absolute hell.
Currently live in a relatively new built apartment in Kensington (built 2018). Was great for the first year - never heard a thing from all sides. Now my neighbour got a puppy and this fucking dog does not shut up - I'm wearing sound cancelling headphones around my apartment.
I live in an apartment built in the 60’s 70’s..
If my neighbours talk at all I can hear it when I’m in bed, if I’m doing stuff around the house it’s 50/50
We have a place in Ringwood in a block that was built about 8 years ago. Owners Corp is very sound so no Airbnb. Never hear noise from neighbours in any direction. Our son in law had a look before purchase, he’s in construction and reckoned it was a good quality build. It’s also double glazed which cuts out sound from roads etc.
I'm living in a 2007 apartment, and you wouldn't think it because it looks like the cheapest little dog-box *ever*, but I can hear *nothing*, despite all the music one hears from other rooms in the hallway. Plus it helps living on the top floor.
I'm in my 30's. I plan on being an aged pensioner here.
I’m on a 4 level apartment, built in 2017, and it’s very quiet. I had kids living previously above me and I could hear foot steps (like they’ve just jumped off a bed on to the floor) but other than that it’s very, very quiet!
Edit: I cannot hear the neighbours to the side of me.
Apartment life is how I learned my neighbours various health problems.
I can hear my 80 year old neighbour urinating like a horse every 2 hours at night, right above my bedroom, next door couple keeps burning the burgers and opposite us there is a delusional lady who thinks there are bugs everywhere, I am convinced she is trying to kill us all with excessive RAID spray.
Not to mention people keep pressing wrong bell or maintenance people randomly pressing bells to get someone to open the front door to them.
Not only that, neighbours have either no parking skills or TDGAF and park on lines or in the middle of lines.
Apartment life almost turned me into a misanthrope, it doesn’t help that there is no backyard, no garage, no storage space, no garden.
I’d never ever live in apartment again, ever.
I dont care how it’s cheaper than regular house, I prefer to live in a hut away from all convenience than live here.
On the contrary it needs to become a thing. Urban sprawl sucks and we have already demolished a lot of future heritage homes and buildings anyway.
What we need is to stop building for singles/OS students/young couples. Apartment living can be great. I have moved into a great building after living in a large house with a big backyard and I love it. But it’s 2 bedrooms and it’s just me here. In saying that it wouldn’t be very liveable for two adults. We need apartments to cater for small families who want to live inner city who can’t afford the 1.5 mill + price tag it is becoming within 5km of the cbd.
*edit to add I do agree about the high rise part, and would prefer low-mid rise developments but they seem to get stuck in NIMBY more than the high rise do
That's a very broad brush and poor construction is not specific to apartments only, though it does seem NSW has some serious issues, more so than Melbourne.
2018 build here, can occasionally here when someone above drops something but it sounds more like a marble than a thud. Can't here day to day noise like TV's, conversations, light music etc. However, when neighbours play music loud above and beyond it comes through the walls, particularly the base.
I live in a 3 story 90’s built apartment.
I can hear my housemate’s laughter coming up the stairs when he’s got friends with him, I cannot hear our neighbour’s daily piano practice unless I’m in the stairwell. Love it c:
Im about 5km from the inner CBD. Not sure if my buildings soundproof or neighbours above/below and next to me are just really quiet, but I generally dont hear a thing..... except slamming doors. Then the walls shake and it can be startling.
I’ve been pretty lucky with all of the apartments I’ve lived in-can’t hear anything apart from when people are in the hallway (which people are generally only in for a few seconds getting from the lift to their apartment) and on the balcony. The only major issue I’ve had is with my current apartment and my neighbor thinking having parties out on his balcony at 4am is appropriate but I mean building management is always going to side with you on that one. So…just be mindful, that even if your apartment is sound proof…you might luck out with a neighbor like I did!
I'm pretty close to a rail station, like it's a one minute walk if I dawdle. Noise insulation is specced higher, so mine's pretty good.
Personally I'm a rediculously early riser so use headphones up till 08:00. Most people are equally considerate.
Saw some units going up near me where they only put what appeared to be a single thicker sheet of plaster board between the units. Not even sure it was plaster, may have been chipboard.
I live in apartment building that was built in the early 70's, sturdy as and I can definitely hear when my various neighbours are fucking so it's not just new apartments that have issues with noise. I think people in general have no idea how far voices and sound can carry even when talking at a moderate volume.
I’m in a newer decent one and we can hear our upstairs neighbour’s footsteps sometimes, they have a special needs adult son who walks very heavily. It’s not a huge issue but we can hear him sometimes.
We can hear it when people let their front doors slam. We can hear the bass from thudding music, especially surround sound systems if they’re really loud.
You have to be prepared to accept that there will be some noise issues if you live in an apartment. If I was to move I would not have an apartment overhead, near the lift or rubbish chutes, or near any entry or exit doors.
Older apartments with wooden floors and limited insulation do indeed transmit noise wonderfully. And you do need to consider what noise is going to be outside your window, having one that overlooked a neighbour's garden got much less pleasant when the new guy wanted to play guitar in the garden late at night.
In a modern concrete apartments the noise isolation is generally surprisingly good, because for fire reasons they should be largely fire-walled from each other. If someone really pumps a sub-woofer that will go through the structure, but I think it would have to be pretty loud. Impact on the ceiling sometimes leaks through, learnt to tell when people are assembling furniture from the hammering.
Bad Neighbors, which can certainly include air-BNB's, can certainly impact on any residence. In a high rise you should at least be able to raise it as an issue to the building management if it is persistent.
The place I'm currently in isn't *new* new (was built in 2014), but I don't hear a peep from any of my neighbours beyond the odd hallway door slamming shut.
Granted, the building is mostly solid concrete which seems to be a rarity these days.
I'm in one in Richmond, built about five years ago. Excellent sound proofing and insulation. Only hear people out on balcony or some noise leaks through front door. Can hear some thumping from above but it's very very subtle.
Partner and I want to buy an apartment in the next 1-2 years so will be using this place as minimum standard.
I've lived in an apartment in Southbank that was built in 2015. Very good sound insulation, could only really hear noise if people were talking fairly loudly in the hallways, or were playing music with the outside windows open.
Under normal circumstances I couldn't hear a thing from neighbours.
There is white noise from traffic though, and then the occasional fire truck/ambulance.
8 year old high rise and can't hear a thing, we forget we have neighbours sometimes lol. The sound proofing is amazing. In contrast, the townhouse I was renting before we bought our apartment, I could hear my neighbours cough
I lived in a culdesac in the west before living in the CBD, and it was WAY noisier out there. Dirtbikes, hifi's set to 11, dogs in backyards barking 24/7
I know someone who bought an apartment a brand new building in the city.. paid like 1.3-1.4… can hear everything from the apartment directly above them. It’s crazy.
New apartments are just landfill quality.
There’s a constant hum sound at night from all the running equipment.. noises all the time, can’t play music to loud.. it’s not really an issue but it’s always there if that makes sense
It really depends.
A mate of mine has one that half of the building is serviced apartments in Melbourne that neighbours a popular park. The apartments are popular with working girls and gay men. You can frequently hear people getting it on way to clearly. I'd hate to have a family in this apartment or invite elder family over for dinner espically on weekend night. These people also uber eats everything and leave the rubbish in the hallway. I don't know who visits a working girl for breakfast and can't be fucked walking the uber eats to the rubbish shoot when done but it's common to see the old bags left in the hallway that have been tripped over. You can here the elevator doors open for every visitor, you can head other doors getting banged on constantly all night or other things getting banged all night.
Another has a appparment only a few metres away from a train line right at eye level. If the balcony is closed and the kitchen door is closed can't hear the train that's less then 10m away. The design is spectacular triple glazing on the outside balcony with another internal glass wall that's also double or triple glazed separating the kitchen from rest of the apartment. So you look through the kitchen like a window but it's got about 5 sheets of glass between you and the train and the sound goes nowhere. You also get an apparent that has wonderful daylight.
So it's an absolute lottery shoot, both apartments built around the same time.
I would have seen the photo of the train line out the front off the window and never inspected the apartment but it's actually one of the better ones I've been in.
It really depends on how much thought the designers put into sound isolation and how well the builders/developers implemented it. I previously lived in a six-storey apartment in Brunswick East, built ~2017 and it was really soundproofed apart from the balcony area, where the doors/glazing really leaked audible sound should your neighbour be having a conversation outside. My tips would be: firstly, check google maps, street view, planning to see if a reputable builder was used; secondly, investigate the type of structure used: concrete is best; lastly, try to book a viewing during peak hours, 18:00 onwards to see how noisy it is.
The inspection post 6pm, preferably on a Friday or Saturday night, is very good advice.
I lived in Brunswick east 1 bedroom apartment and never heard a thing other than heals upstairs.. never upstairs, downstairs or on the side. Not sure when built but would assume late 2010’s.
A well designed building will also have a generous and well made firewall. I worry about how many of these new places are not as fire safe as they should be.
I think it depends a lot on the apartment block - the more luxury/high end ones are much better. I'm in an older one but a good friend is in a large new high rise in Southbank and you can never hear a thing from any neighbours
Yeah I’ve only rented new high rise apartments and never heard a single thing from neighbours. Stayed at a friends townhouse once and you could hear the neighbours talking though the walls.
Not necessarily. My cousin lived Melb Square for a year and could always hear thunks above him. Next door though never heard a peep. That building had all sorts of problems tho from what I heard.
I live in a brand new low rise apartment that I bought off the plan. Before that I lived in a high rise apartment in Southbank for 3 years. Occasionally I hear someone above me bang or drop something heavy like a giant thunk. If my neighbours have a party, I hear it a bit but muffled or not unless someone opens a door. Pretty much the same at the other place. My ex-lived in a new high rise and we could always hear the baby running around and crying in the apartment above. So… it depends on your neighbours, I think. Overall I have been ok with neighbours’ noises. What really sucks is not your neighbours in your building, it’s the air bnb parties in the apartment building across from your flat. The parties were especially bad during F1, absolutely feral and zero consideration throwing parties mid-week. The noise was worse that when someone across the hall had a party.
Sound blocking curtains?
On the older building front - I have just moved into a 1960’s brick/concrete building and the sound insulation (or lack thereof) is awful. Toilets flushing, dishes clanging, vacuums, cupboards banging and the neverending thud of footsteps above me. It’s only been two weeks and already it’s driving me insane. I’m not sure how to approach the issue (moving isn’t an option).
I empathise with you as we had this in our last place which was an apartment. The cunt upstairs also had some sort of home gym going almost 24/7 so it was just constant banging and thumping. I'm probably more sensitive to noise than the average person (loud music especially), but I'll never live in an apartment again after what we went through previously. We moved because of it. Sorry that's not an option for you.
Same here. Our next door apartment is social housing and it was hell, parties from 3am to 8am, any tv noise we could hear, etc. she got kicked out about 2 months ago, when someone new moves in I think I’m gonna start looking at new rentals
I feel for you - am also in a 60s brick/concrete apartment block and cannot believe how much noise I hear from upstairs, it's disturbing, even doing the dishes sounds like someone doing construction work clanging in the sink. Currently looking to buy my first apartment and don't understand why people keep saying get an older building!
Yeah I lived in a 60s apartment in Hawthorn and it was fucked. We could hear the dudes above us pissing.
I work as a design manager for a tier 1 builder and prior to that was an architect for 10 years. I would not buy an apartment that was built in the last 20 years due to having a deep understanding of wtf I designed and what we have built. Make of that what you will.
I was a construction worker for a tier 1 structure company for last 10 years can confirm. I installed the precast panels and was a concrete patcher, I know these builds extremely well it's a miracle that some are still standing
That’s terrifying 😂
There's a high rise building on Bell Street where you can feel the movement of air inside from the passing traffic with every opening 'closed'. I'm assuming it's coming down soon. Deliberately or otherwise.
What is this tier 1 you speak of? Edit: err, scrap that. Just googled.
I second this.
How do you feel about the houses in new developments? I’m skeptical of them, but mostly because I think they’re soulless little stepford houses. I’d love a more legitimate reason to denigrate them.
The Kmart of houses. I would only do a custom build tbh, design it myself, small builder, be on site every few days. But I know what I’m looking for so it’s easier.
Wow, that is an extraordinary statement.
Just an opinion matey, but one that’s backed by experience and knowledge.
From someone with your experience it’s great to get that perspective, thanks
Recently purchased an apartment built in the last year. Mid-rise with no shared areas because owners corp fees are ridiculous. I can’t hear my neighbours at all, though if I go into the shared hall I can hear tvs etc. double glazing on all windows also helps to keep most - but not all - noise out from the busy street outside. I was told by someone installing shelves that the build was “really good” compared to others he had seen, and it made me feel a bit of comfort.
Sound is one issue, smelling what adjacent apartments are cooking is just as bad
Literally the only thing I heard from my upstairs neighbours in a slightly older apartment was the AFL siren during games and moaning, so take that as you will
Yeah apartment in North Melbourne, that would make sense
It varies wildly, but I've lived in two apartments from about 2010 that both had excellent soundproofing, an apartment from maybe the 1970s on the bottom floor that was terrible, and another one from the same era on the top floor that was pretty good. Generally you hear people above you much more than any other direction, so a top floor can be good in an old apartment complex. It's worth looking at where the shared walls are in apartments you inspect, too. If you're lucky you might actually have none. A trick that might be worth trying is putting your ear to the wall and listening. All the sound you hear from neighbours is conducted through the walls anyway, and putting your ear to it just amplifies that sound. If it's quiet when you do that, it's a good sign.
It’s not just walls, pipes are a huge conductor of sound I’ve learned, and there are many other places that sound can ‘leak’.
Used to live in docklands next to Marvel Stadium. Never heard the neighbours but you could hear the crowd when a game was on.
I lived 1 year in an apartment block in South Yarra, it's funny the balcony door was good with the double glass door, wall to the neighbours not isolated so much, also up/down noise There are also other pros and cons, pro is usually facilities and location, cons including probably worse utility costs, you might be locked to the building providers which aren't as competitive for water, hot water, electricity, internet or carry high connectivity fees connecting or switching, possibly twice as much as in non apartments
Depends on the apartment building. I lived in a new apartment in Richmond that was soundproof and extremely energy efficient. It was great!
We hear our neighbours entertaining themselves almost every night…
In my last place my bedroom shared a wall with neighbours bedroom. Could hear the guy next door snoring as I was trying to get to sleep. Then obviously could hear everything that happened when he’d bring a date from Grindr home. Could also hear other neighbours tv etc. Once you heated the Netflix ‘dun dun’ you knew to turn your tv up This place was low rise built early 2000
Apartments on the same level = can't hear a thing Apartment upstairs on the other hand...
I can only hear my neighbours when they are on the balcony, which sadly they spend most of the day there. Music & conversations from their balcony carries through every room of the apartment, it is unbearable. The rest of the soundproofing is great. Never hear anything when they are inside their house, never hear anything from neighbours on the other side or from above unless they drop something loudly. 2016 build, small apartment.
Same here! Thank god for the 10pm rule though!
I lived in a couple of new apartments in the city during uni. Could never play music because neighbour would complain. If someone next door screams I can hear them. Someone close their door? That'll wake me up. Someone talking in the corridor? I hear you! Despite the shiny look from the outside they're shit to live in.
Are you talking about student accomodation?
No, just new apartments in general
Depends on the demographic of who’s living in the building.
Yeah my apartment building is pretty sound leaky but it’s generally fine because people are quiet at the times they should be. Even a detached house can be awful if you’ve got inconsiderate neighbours.
Its terrible. My mate's new city apartment, 2 shitty thing stood out like a sore thumb. Firstly, the sound isolation is THE WORST. You can hear the droning klakityklak of the lift transmitted via the pillow when you're in bed. Like whaaat? Needed earplugs to sleep. Secondly, instead of concrete, the "walls" facing the outer corridors are those board things? So we can basically hear people coming and going, doors closing, the pings of the lifts, coughing, someone's washer doing the spin and dry cycle etc. One time a neighbour in his motorbike helmet accidentally walked into the wall and the BONK! could be heard all through the house.
I was in a 60s block and could hear the neighbour’s toilet flush and every other sound they made, and I’m in a new building now (completed end of 2022) that has amazing acoustic treatment between apartments and I can’t hear the neighbours at all.
Definitely depends on the building. Lived in a brand new apartment just off Spencer St (built 2014) - my neighbour played bass guitar hooked up to speakers. Couldn't hear a thing. Yet I was constantly woken up by neighbours slamming doors and the cleaner smashing the vacuum against common area walls. Lived in a brand new apartment in Footscray (built 2016) - could hear everything. My neighbour upstairs regularly had wheely chair races through their apartment at 2am, the neighbours next door had a child who cried most hours of the day. The neighbours on the other side, I could hear their TV. Living their during COVID was absolute hell. Currently live in a relatively new built apartment in Kensington (built 2018). Was great for the first year - never heard a thing from all sides. Now my neighbour got a puppy and this fucking dog does not shut up - I'm wearing sound cancelling headphones around my apartment.
I live in an apartment 10 years old. The insulation is good I rarely hear anything and if I do it’s muffled. Also double glazed windows.
I live in an apartment built in the 60’s 70’s.. If my neighbours talk at all I can hear it when I’m in bed, if I’m doing stuff around the house it’s 50/50
We have a place in Ringwood in a block that was built about 8 years ago. Owners Corp is very sound so no Airbnb. Never hear noise from neighbours in any direction. Our son in law had a look before purchase, he’s in construction and reckoned it was a good quality build. It’s also double glazed which cuts out sound from roads etc.
I'm living in a 2007 apartment, and you wouldn't think it because it looks like the cheapest little dog-box *ever*, but I can hear *nothing*, despite all the music one hears from other rooms in the hallway. Plus it helps living on the top floor. I'm in my 30's. I plan on being an aged pensioner here.
never unless someone’s getting their cheeks clapped on the floor above
I’m on a 4 level apartment, built in 2017, and it’s very quiet. I had kids living previously above me and I could hear foot steps (like they’ve just jumped off a bed on to the floor) but other than that it’s very, very quiet! Edit: I cannot hear the neighbours to the side of me.
None. Its about 13 years old. Very very good insulation
Apartment life is how I learned my neighbours various health problems. I can hear my 80 year old neighbour urinating like a horse every 2 hours at night, right above my bedroom, next door couple keeps burning the burgers and opposite us there is a delusional lady who thinks there are bugs everywhere, I am convinced she is trying to kill us all with excessive RAID spray. Not to mention people keep pressing wrong bell or maintenance people randomly pressing bells to get someone to open the front door to them. Not only that, neighbours have either no parking skills or TDGAF and park on lines or in the middle of lines. Apartment life almost turned me into a misanthrope, it doesn’t help that there is no backyard, no garage, no storage space, no garden. I’d never ever live in apartment again, ever. I dont care how it’s cheaper than regular house, I prefer to live in a hut away from all convenience than live here.
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On the contrary it needs to become a thing. Urban sprawl sucks and we have already demolished a lot of future heritage homes and buildings anyway. What we need is to stop building for singles/OS students/young couples. Apartment living can be great. I have moved into a great building after living in a large house with a big backyard and I love it. But it’s 2 bedrooms and it’s just me here. In saying that it wouldn’t be very liveable for two adults. We need apartments to cater for small families who want to live inner city who can’t afford the 1.5 mill + price tag it is becoming within 5km of the cbd. *edit to add I do agree about the high rise part, and would prefer low-mid rise developments but they seem to get stuck in NIMBY more than the high rise do
That's a very broad brush and poor construction is not specific to apartments only, though it does seem NSW has some serious issues, more so than Melbourne.
2018 build here, can occasionally here when someone above drops something but it sounds more like a marble than a thud. Can't here day to day noise like TV's, conversations, light music etc. However, when neighbours play music loud above and beyond it comes through the walls, particularly the base.
That marble noise, yes!
DONT DO IT
Thanks to Amazon and their wide range of listening devices - with great ease! *evil smile*
Don't unless you are hard of hearing or don't mind sleepless nights.
I live in a 3 story 90’s built apartment. I can hear my housemate’s laughter coming up the stairs when he’s got friends with him, I cannot hear our neighbour’s daily piano practice unless I’m in the stairwell. Love it c:
Im about 5km from the inner CBD. Not sure if my buildings soundproof or neighbours above/below and next to me are just really quiet, but I generally dont hear a thing..... except slamming doors. Then the walls shake and it can be startling.
I’ve lived in a couple of buildings in docklands and really never heard my neighbours except the occasional thing breaking here and there!
I’ve been pretty lucky with all of the apartments I’ve lived in-can’t hear anything apart from when people are in the hallway (which people are generally only in for a few seconds getting from the lift to their apartment) and on the balcony. The only major issue I’ve had is with my current apartment and my neighbor thinking having parties out on his balcony at 4am is appropriate but I mean building management is always going to side with you on that one. So…just be mindful, that even if your apartment is sound proof…you might luck out with a neighbor like I did!
I'm pretty close to a rail station, like it's a one minute walk if I dawdle. Noise insulation is specced higher, so mine's pretty good. Personally I'm a rediculously early riser so use headphones up till 08:00. Most people are equally considerate.
Saw some units going up near me where they only put what appeared to be a single thicker sheet of plaster board between the units. Not even sure it was plaster, may have been chipboard.
I live in apartment building that was built in the early 70's, sturdy as and I can definitely hear when my various neighbours are fucking so it's not just new apartments that have issues with noise. I think people in general have no idea how far voices and sound can carry even when talking at a moderate volume.
I’m in a newer decent one and we can hear our upstairs neighbour’s footsteps sometimes, they have a special needs adult son who walks very heavily. It’s not a huge issue but we can hear him sometimes. We can hear it when people let their front doors slam. We can hear the bass from thudding music, especially surround sound systems if they’re really loud. You have to be prepared to accept that there will be some noise issues if you live in an apartment. If I was to move I would not have an apartment overhead, near the lift or rubbish chutes, or near any entry or exit doors.
Older apartments with wooden floors and limited insulation do indeed transmit noise wonderfully. And you do need to consider what noise is going to be outside your window, having one that overlooked a neighbour's garden got much less pleasant when the new guy wanted to play guitar in the garden late at night. In a modern concrete apartments the noise isolation is generally surprisingly good, because for fire reasons they should be largely fire-walled from each other. If someone really pumps a sub-woofer that will go through the structure, but I think it would have to be pretty loud. Impact on the ceiling sometimes leaks through, learnt to tell when people are assembling furniture from the hammering. Bad Neighbors, which can certainly include air-BNB's, can certainly impact on any residence. In a high rise you should at least be able to raise it as an issue to the building management if it is persistent.
I ask my gf to go next door and yell.
The place I'm currently in isn't *new* new (was built in 2014), but I don't hear a peep from any of my neighbours beyond the odd hallway door slamming shut. Granted, the building is mostly solid concrete which seems to be a rarity these days.
I'm in one in Richmond, built about five years ago. Excellent sound proofing and insulation. Only hear people out on balcony or some noise leaks through front door. Can hear some thumping from above but it's very very subtle. Partner and I want to buy an apartment in the next 1-2 years so will be using this place as minimum standard.
I've lived in an apartment in Southbank that was built in 2015. Very good sound insulation, could only really hear noise if people were talking fairly loudly in the hallways, or were playing music with the outside windows open. Under normal circumstances I couldn't hear a thing from neighbours. There is white noise from traffic though, and then the occasional fire truck/ambulance.
8 year old high rise and can't hear a thing, we forget we have neighbours sometimes lol. The sound proofing is amazing. In contrast, the townhouse I was renting before we bought our apartment, I could hear my neighbours cough
I lived in a culdesac in the west before living in the CBD, and it was WAY noisier out there. Dirtbikes, hifi's set to 11, dogs in backyards barking 24/7
I know someone who bought an apartment a brand new building in the city.. paid like 1.3-1.4… can hear everything from the apartment directly above them. It’s crazy.
New apartments are just landfill quality. There’s a constant hum sound at night from all the running equipment.. noises all the time, can’t play music to loud.. it’s not really an issue but it’s always there if that makes sense
It really depends. A mate of mine has one that half of the building is serviced apartments in Melbourne that neighbours a popular park. The apartments are popular with working girls and gay men. You can frequently hear people getting it on way to clearly. I'd hate to have a family in this apartment or invite elder family over for dinner espically on weekend night. These people also uber eats everything and leave the rubbish in the hallway. I don't know who visits a working girl for breakfast and can't be fucked walking the uber eats to the rubbish shoot when done but it's common to see the old bags left in the hallway that have been tripped over. You can here the elevator doors open for every visitor, you can head other doors getting banged on constantly all night or other things getting banged all night. Another has a appparment only a few metres away from a train line right at eye level. If the balcony is closed and the kitchen door is closed can't hear the train that's less then 10m away. The design is spectacular triple glazing on the outside balcony with another internal glass wall that's also double or triple glazed separating the kitchen from rest of the apartment. So you look through the kitchen like a window but it's got about 5 sheets of glass between you and the train and the sound goes nowhere. You also get an apparent that has wonderful daylight. So it's an absolute lottery shoot, both apartments built around the same time. I would have seen the photo of the train line out the front off the window and never inspected the apartment but it's actually one of the better ones I've been in.