“This condo is as quiet as a single-family home.”
If you are buying in a yet-to-be-completed building, the developer’s sales agent might just say that – “The developer is doing everything possible for sound mitigation”.
What does that mean?
Well, most likely, you’ll still end up hearing your upstairs neighbor’s high-heeled shoes (Hi Kristen!), your next-door neighbor’s snoring (Hi Angel!), and your downstairs neighbor’s video games (Hi Thomas) or crying (Hi guy who cried), around the clock.
There’s just so much that can be done, in a condominium or apartment building.
Still, there are limits on what you should have to endure.
The New York Times’ Walk-Through blog posts about it, by pointing readers to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, which did a series of articles on the subject, including what issues people are enduring (running toilet noises … and worse), what to do if you encounter a problem (one word, white-noise machine), and what to look for, before you buy.
Reminds me of a situation in my sister’s building. She smokes. The guy upstairs could smell it, so when he put his property on the market, he asked my sister to either not smoke or leave her condo, while he was hosting open houses.
That’s pretty sneaky, but I don’t think he did anything illegal. The new buyers would’ve been pretty angry, once they found out, I’m sure, and probably a lot of foul words, or worse, would have passed between them.
Complete story (and links to Minneapolis Star Tribune stories): When the Neighbors Tap Dance and Chain Smoke – By Joyce Cohen, The Walk-Through, The New York Times
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Updated: January 2018
