It's horrible when you don't feel comfortable in your own home thanks to those next door.
Whether it's barking dogs, loud music, or screaming children, noisy neighbours can make you feel like you want to move house as soon as possible, and it can be hard to know how best to confront the situation.
When one woman, who lived in a basement flat, couldn't handle the noise from the "stomping and crying" kids upstairs, she took to Reddit's 'Neighbours From Hell' forum to ask for advice. "Their stomping also stresses my dog out where he hides under the bed most of the day," she fumed.
She wrote: "I live in the basement of a 4 floor townhouse. The other 3 floors are rented by one family. The floor right above me is where the kitchen/living room is. They moved from the UK to Canada a few months ago. Since they moved in, their kids (3.5 and 1 year old) have been extremely loud and active starting at 530-6 am.
"I assumed maybe it was jet lag and wasn't upset at the time. When I initially met them, they mentioned that their furniture was delayed overseas. I was completely empathetic and offered wifi, cutlery, plates, blankets for the time being until their stuff arrived. It took about a month for them to receive everything and settle in.
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"Fast forward to today, and it is still as loud as ever. They start running around the floor above me at 6 am, even on weekends. I'm fortunate that they are in bed at a reasonable time so I get a couple hours of peace and quiet at night. However, I do work from home and my colleagues can hear them in the background during meetings. Their stomping also stresses my dog out where he hides under the bed most of the day.
"I use the heavy duty Loop earplugs and it does a good job muffling out the screaming and tantrums, but I can still feel the stomping through the ceiling and walls."
She then asked people for advice on how to "approach the family in a respectful manner without upsetting them". She continued: "What is considered reasonable to ask of them? I really don't want to get off on the wrong foot. I've had neighbours living upstairs before with dogs and a newborn and it was never a problem.
"I understand kids can be loud, but this is severely affecting my sleep. I am 27 and sleeping at 9-10 pm to get 8 hours of sleep seems a bit unrealistic and would require a drastic shift in my lifestyle."
In the comments, people suggested that it was easy to keep things cordial. One wrote: "Just ask to talk and tell them that you work from home and are having a hard time because of the running around, and that your coworkers can hear it. Maybe they’ll add some area rugs to keep the voice to a minimum?" She responded: "I've thought about gifting them those foam mats that look like puzzle pieces. I used to love those as a kid!"
Another said: "Do you feel able to talk to the parents? Maybe bring one of them down to the basement while the noise is going on, to show them how much disturbance it's causing for you. You could perhaps suggest that the kids stay on the floor above their living room until a more reasonable time."
Someone else penned: "Kids are loud. I have two boys in elementary. They were once this old and believe you me my neighbour was not as nice and understanding as you are being. So I definitely recommend maybe talking to them about it.
"If my neighbour had been as polite as you, it would have been different [...] I hope they're receptive to your kindness and reasonable requests."
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