Life after You Buy Your Freehold: Wood Floors

In the early 1990s, when my husband and I bought our flat in London, a curious thing happened. British friends that came to visit would often say "This feels like a New York apartment!"

Our flat is in a traditional red-brick mansion block which was constructed in the early 1990s, so I couldn't figure out what our visitors meant. Then I got it.

We had wood floors!

At the time, many flats in the UK had wall-to-wall carpeting in most rooms.

But in the last several years, home-decoration tastes have evolved dramatically. Apartment living in the UK has become chic and many flat owners now opt for a simple, minimalist, clutter-free look -- including hard wood floors.

This makes for some beautiful apartments.

The bad news is that the floors/ceilings in many buildings were not constructed with wood floors in mind and many lack sufficient sound proofing between each storey to eliminate noise from people walking overhead.

In addition to the structural issue, many old leases require that carpets be laid in every room except bathrooms and the kitchen, and these leases provide no allowance for wood floors. This means that many buildings have no written requirement for a sound-deadening layer to be put down underneath wood floors.

Added to these construction and lease issues, there is a simple lifestyle problem. Many flat owners seem to focus more on their beautiful new renovated home than on the simple, old-fashioned principles of being a good neighbour.

I get complaints from people that for years have lived happily in a block of flats, only to find life unbearable when an older couple buys the flat above, rips up the carpets, puts down wood floors and then hands over the property to a stiletto-heel-wearing daughter. The noise from the stiletto heels at 5pm is irritating for those living below, residents tell me, but it becomes unbearable at 2am when the young woman returns home from clubbing and does not think to take off her high heels.

Then there are the young couples that fail to realise that their adorable toddlers, by being allowed to run repeatedly back and forth in the flat every Sunday at 6am are waking up neighbours that are trying to sleep in the flat below.

Sometimes things get very bad.

I know of one senior citizen that had resided in a mansion block for decades and that became enraged by the sound of people walking above after the upstairs neighbours renovated their flat, got rid of the carpets and put down hard wood floors. The gentleman downstairs took to banging on his ceiling with a broom handle. The young couple in the renovated flat above became frantic. They told me that they took care to remove their shoes whenever they entered their flat and they were now at a loss as to what else they could do. Finally, the man downstairs put a note through the door of his upstairs neighbours, threatening to inflict bodily harm if the noise continued. The upstairs neighbours called the police and a police report was filed. In short, it was a mess.

Fortunately, most buildings are able to address the problem of noise caused by the installation of wood floors without bringing in the police.

Flat owners that have collectively bought their building freehold should view the wood-floor issue as one of the teething problems that comes with acquring the responsibility of jointly owning the building. It should not be seen as a deal killer regarding enjoying apartment living.

Today's apartment owner in the UK can take a few lessons from people in other countries that have long had unwritten codes of conduct that help to make living together in a block of flats a pleasant experience.

To address the wood-floor issue properly, one should follow best practice and ensure there are sensible written rules regarding acoustic underlays. One also needs to follow through by enforcing these rules.

When you and your neighbours buy your building freehold, you will most likely want to grant yourselves new 999-year lease. (Actually, it's the company that bought the freehold, of which you and your fellow leaseholders are shareholders, that grants the new leases.)

Be sure to include in the new template lease a detailed clause requiring that permission be granted by the freeholder before any carpets may be taken up and wood floors installed. The clause should specify that adequate sound-deadening acoustic underlay must be installed before the wood floor is laid and that specifications for the materials to be used must be approved in writing beforehand by the freeholder. This approval comes in the form of a "licence for alteration" that the freeholder grants to the leaseholder that wishes to change his/her flat.

In blocks of flats that are managed by a managing agent, it is the managing agent that, on behalf of the freeholder, vets the request to lay wood floors and to carry out other renovation work.

Finally, neighbours need to talk to each other.

Many senior citizens tell me they are delighted to see their block of flats go through a generational rejuvenation with the arrival of young families. But these same seniors seem to feel they have to suffer in silence when decades of quiet living are ended by the elephant-stampede sound of children running and jumping in the flat overhead. Many young parents seem unaware that their family is causing a noise-disturbance problem. Young couples need to tune in to the rhythm of the building and talk with their neighbours, to ensure they are not damaging people's quality of life in the block.

Apartment living when your neighbours behave in a manner that is inconsiderate is not fun. But when people in a building show respect and thought for one another, it's like living in a pleasant village.

The issue of noise from wood floors represents one of the most common complaints by flat dwellers regarding noise disturbance. But residents can tackle this issue, if they approach it in a thoughtful and rational manner, and follow best practice.

I hope it works out for you.

Comments

[James]

Interesting blog. I'm living the wooden floor nightmare and would like to know what is the best practice you refer too. Currently I am contacting the freeholder requesting support relating to the Commonhold and LeaseHold Reform Act 2000 Section 168/4 because I have tried all other routes. Is there anything else I could be doing?
Regards,James.

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