24 Oct 2017 11:49 PM:

 

We’re about to move out of the little flat we own in Madrid and rent it out. It seemed like the perfect little pad for a couple. But a few weeks after we got the mortgage, new neighbours moved in upstairs…

We hear every step they take, both the impact and the fact that every floorboard squeaks very loudly. It’s often louder than the music and television in our flat (over 50db during the night, way more than what is allowed by Spanish law) and wakes me up even with earplugs designed for road workers. They slam the door and get up multiple times in the night to go to the toilet (which we also hear). We installed a layer of soundproof plasterboard on the ceiling, which did a little bit to reduce the woman’s footfalls, but not the man’s due to the way he walks.

We appreciate you can’t change how people move around, the only real solution is to get the floor refurbished (pretty sure a few screws and some lubricant would at least sort the squeaking) but they don’t want to. We spoke to the comunidad and building administrator, but nothing came of it. We also asked them to oil their clothes line because it has rusted to the point that it sounds like a medieval drawbridge opening  - nope.

Is this just normal in the city? Should we be nervous that tenants will get fed up and leave us with an empty property? Is there any legal action we can take? Should we offer to pay to have it reconditioned? Or should we just try to sell?

Any advice?

Thread: Take action against noisy neighbours before we rent flat out?

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