Pros and Cons of living in an apartment block

You’re overthinking, Carol! 

I have lived in both houses & apartments over the years.  There’s no guarantee with either that you won’t have noisy neighbours.

Apartments generally have , what we call out in Aus, body Corporate rules which do list the cans & cant do’s like smoking in the foyer or even on your own balcony if the smoke annoys your neighbour.  They will have similar in Spain and you will probably want to ask your lawyer for a copy of the rules to see what people SHOULD be doing. 

Of course, there’s no guarantees either way.  Take into account , is the block mostly full time residents or are they holiday homes & how often are they used?  At least with holiday renters , the annoying ones do leave after a while ! But with regulars you can build relationships. 

Don’t stress too much, just do a little homework on the apartment you like. Go around at different times of the day.  Stand outside the building. What do you hear?  Kids screaming? A wanna be Ringo Starr? Traffic?  Apartments are often up for sale for months so don’t panic buy. Take your time. 

Thank you, I guess it's fear of the unknown and wanting everything to be just right!

We live in an apartment block and there are a couple of things to consider before buying.

Floors are tiled and if you have someone living  above you, they will have a major bearing on how much noise you experience. If they return home from a late night at the pub and walk across the floor in their shoes (especially high heels) you could easily be woken. While some neighbours are no doubt fine, we would never purchase unless we were on the top floor. As it is noise carries in our block and it sometimes sounds as if there is a noise from above when an adjacent neighbour makes a noise.

We often hear the lift in our block when people arrive at unsocial hours. So an apartments location in relation to the lift can have an influence on your quality of life as well.

Yes, the dreaded drunken high heel walk!  Personally, I kick off my shoes as soon as I enter the front door but these gals seem to wander around for ages in shoes ! 

We ended up purchasing a 2nd floor unit. Furthest door from the lift and no one actually walks past our door. But being on the approach to 60 and both having badly arthritic knees already, we decided against higher floors.  We plan to retire out there and if that lift breaks I have no chance of making it to the 5th floor lol (not sure I could get to the 2nd tbh!) 

There is an awful lot to toss up & consider!  

Hi

Ive never lived in a flat but rented while i was looking to buy.

We had a lot of spanish and they worked in the bars and restaurants. When they came home late even the slightest noise was loud. General conversation sounded like we were all in the same room.

Not for me. 

Good luck house hunting

Thanks to all for your feedback.

I think noise would always be the biggest annoyance so it could be back to the drawing board for us!

You just have to have realistic expectations , Carol. A flat may generally be noisier than a house but not necessarily “noisy” .  If you buy a house on an “urbanisation”, they are usually terraced. You’ll hear people next door through the wall just like you do in a terrace in the UK. 

The Spanish are quite “noisy” people in general. They talk at full volume allll the time especially in a group. Lol

And if you hate cigarette smoke, you’re in for a treat! They smoke like chimneys & have no qualms about smoking anywhere -  even INSIDE a cafe or restaurant that has a no smoking sign up,  or next to a newborn. Kinda like the 60’s & 70’s back in the UK ! 

I think you’d do well to think of somewhere you would want to live & then take a holiday or 2 there. Rent an apartment rather than having a hotel room. Might give you a better idea. 

Good luck! 

Hi, yes I'm taking all these points on board. 

We've already booked an apartment holiday in the area we fancy in order to give it a trial run. Keen, you see. 

We gave up on hotels a while ago - all that getting up for breakfast before the crack of noon! Joking aside, the freedom to do our own thing is important and to experience a place as if we lived there on a day-to-day basis including doing the chores. If this area doesn't work out or feel right, we'll find another one. We've tried several already.

I know what you mean about the Spanish talking loudly and smoking everywhere, but I love Spain and that includes her loud and passionate people. It's rudeness/dishonesty etc that is unwelcome but I believe that if you treat people with respect they will do the same to you. 

We remain ever hopeful.

Carol.