"Should I Escape the Apartment... Noise Disputes Even on the First Floor"

Increasing Complaints Every Year, No Exception for 1st Floor
Noise from Lower Floors Causes Conflicts Among Neighbors

Conflicts between neighbors due to noise from upstairs are occurring frequently. In particular, conflicts caused by noise between floors sometimes escalate into violent crimes such as assault or even murder, requiring caution.

Complaints About Noise Between Floors Continue on Online Communities

[Image source=Asia Economy DB]

Recently, stories expressing suffering due to noise between floors have been continuously posted on online communities. On the 8th, a post titled "Is it okay to run freely if you live on the first floor of a villa?" was uploaded on an online community bulletin board.

The author, Mr. A, who revealed that he lives on the second floor of a villa, said, "About three months ago, a family moved into the first floor," and complained, "Not long after they moved in, I heard loud running noises from 11 p.m. to 2 or 3 a.m."

He continued, "The next day, when my family told them 'It was noisy last night,' the first-floor residents said they would be careful, and that was the end of it," adding, "When I went downstairs to talk, I was told there was a boy who looked like a preschooler."

According to Mr. A, the running noises continued every night after that. Unable to endure it any longer, Mr. A went downstairs again to express his suffering due to the noise between floors, but the downstairs resident said, "I moved to the first floor on purpose to let the kids run around, so if you can't tolerate this level of noise, go live in a detached house." When Mr. A asked, "Isn't it obvious not to run inside the house?" he retorted, "That's your opinion." The villa where Mr. A lives is a four-story building, and it is reported that there is no management office to mediate noise issues between floors.

Mr. A's post has attracted attention with over 140,000 views. Netizens responded in the comments, saying, "If the first-floor residents wanted the kids to run freely, they should have moved to a detached house," "Noise between floors is inevitably related both upstairs and downstairs, so you just have to get along well with neighbors," and "The downstairs residents are being unreasonable."

An Apartment Resident Wielded an Iron Pipe Over Noise Conflicts Between Floors

[Image source=Asia Economy DB]

Conflicts between neighbors due to noise between floors are not new. However, the problem is that conflicts caused by noise between floors often escalate into violent crimes.

Earlier, on the 3rd, the police applied for an arrest warrant for a man in his 40s who assaulted a neighbor with a blunt weapon after arguing over noise between floors in an apartment. The man is accused of going to the upstairs unit of an apartment in Mokpo-si, Jeollanam-do, where he lives, around 2 a.m. on the 1st, breaking kitchen shelves with an iron pipe and assaulting the neighbor once. According to police investigations, the man committed the crime after visiting the upstairs unit to protest the noise between floors.

Complaints about noise between floors continue unabated. According to the Korea Environment Corporation's "Noise Between Floors Neighbor Center," there were ▲20,657 cases in 2019 ▲42,250 cases in 2020 ▲46,596 cases in 2021, and ▲40,393 cases in 2022. Considering unreported cases, the actual number of conflicts caused by noise between floors is likely higher.

In response, the government strengthened noise standards between floors starting this year, but victims still face many difficulties as they must directly prove intentionality. Although individuals can file civil lawsuits, considering the time and cost, the process is not easy, making legal measures practically difficult to expect.

Stricter Noise Regulations and Forced Evictions Overseas Compared to Korea

Overseas, noise between floors is regulated more strictly than in Korea, and the severity of punishments is also higher. In New York, USA, if noise between floors occurs, the apartment manager issues warnings, and if it accumulates more than three times, forced eviction is ordered. Germany regulates noise more strongly with civil law, federal order law, and pollution prevention law, imposing fines up to 5,000 euros (about 7.2 million KRW) for noise disturbances.

In Australia, the lease contract for apartments clearly specifies the allowable noise levels by time. If noise between floors becomes an issue, the management office receives complaints from victims and sends warning letters to offenders. If the same complaints continue, the police are called. The police can impose fines on the spot, ranging from 200 to 400 Australian dollars (about 170,000 to 350,000 KRW). Additionally, Australia is known for many cases where people report neighbors causing disturbances even if they themselves are not directly affected.