[Lisa CCU RN]

The parking isn't so nice in apartments either.

I really appreciate my neighbors parking their car, truck, AND motorcycle right near their door while I trudge from the dark recesses of the lot with all my groceries and my nursing school books.

Add to that at least three inoperable cars that per the apartment rules are supposed to be moved within ten days, and you see how fun the parking can be.

I swear there is a car sitting on not one, but TWO flat tires that has been here over six months.

I had the noise issue too in the apartments before these. My upstairs neighbors had two boys who never sat down. Now I just listen to my own kids run around.

It never ends.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Oh been there, done that. I hope apartment life is over for me, forever. I feel for you. I remember, waking up to the lovely sound of some frat guys puking outside my bedroom window at 4 a.m. (my wonderful downstairs neighbors having one of their nearly everynight parties). And each dude had a stereo in his bedroom, all with different music, from Christina Aguilera to Eminem, playing til all hours of the morning. This was the garbage we put up with for 8 months while in our apartment, waiting for base housing, oh and there's more fun, folks......

Ummm, yea nice memories of the lady above us thought 5 a.m. was a great time to do her laundry and do aerobics, overhead. And who loved to play her own music in her bedroom til 11 or midnight.....(not to mention her very active bedroom life which we did NOT want to know about....oh yea, SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET).

Oh and the nice gentlemen across from me that housed about 150 reptiles of all shapes and sizes (including an alligator in a tub), oh that aroma was lovely in summertime (none of us had air con, so we got to smell that when our windows were open on 85 degree days). Nice guys, really, but OMG the stink......horrible. It mixed nicely with the hashish they smoked, I guess, to get past the odor of all those friendly little pets of theirs. Of course all of this was against the rules, but do you think the manager gave a rats behind? ya right. Just give him the rent and go away....speaking of the rent....

How about the dude catty-corner who never paid his rent and complained to ME about how mean our manager was. UMMM GET A CLUE man, no pay, you leave. What a nice thing, to let his chihuahua poop in front of MY doorway.....dink.

Oh and knowing there were numerous sex offenders on probationary stays in the complex (the school warned us)----that was so reassuring to know that. Nice to know, after moving in, this was a special deal with the apt complex and their probationary programs! I felt so good sleeping at night, knowing this.

And the dumpster that magically rolled across the parking lot, hitting our truck and denting it. That was icing on the cake, the last month we lived there. Loved that.

One recommendation: Buy some sound-blocking headphones or a good box fan for sleeping at night. It was the only thing that saved my sanity in those days. And have a good sense of humor. Really you will need it.

NEVER AGAIN if I can help it. Pure hell.

[EmerNurse]

I remember my very first apt - paper thin walls - it was a convert so there was pretty much only panneling between apts. Couple next door were VERY armourous and SHE was VERY VERY loud. Good grief like living next door to a live sex show - every single night! (don't some people SLEEP?).

Then later, owned a duplex and the owner of the one next door (attached) rented to a group of unruly young gentlemen (term used VERY loosely). I had a brand new baby, and they had parties every night, sold drugs at every hours of the day, BLARED music to the point that my walls shook, with a deep bass beat!

When they finally got thrown out, tons of cop visits etc later, we went into the place. They'd defacated on the floors on the way out - every bedroom wall was painted with that air-paint graffiti (beautiful, talented work, btw) except the subject matter was incredibly vulgar, sexually and racially. Good God, these people were simply ANIMALS. Then a nice family moved in.

When I buy again, it'll be a single home with LOTS of land around it - so I can't hear the neighbors no matter who they are. Gads.

[H ynnoD]

Originally Posted by EmerNurse

I remember my very first apt - paper thin walls - it was a convert so there was pretty much only panneling between apts. Couple next door were VERY armourous and SHE was VERY VERY loud. Good grief like living next door to a live sex show - every single night! (don't some people SLEEP?).

Then later, owned a duplex and the owner of the one next door (attached) rented to a group of unruly young gentlemen (term used VERY loosely). I had a brand new baby, and they had parties every night, sold drugs at every hours of the day, BLARED music to the point that my walls shook, with a deep bass beat!

When they finally got thrown out, tons of cop visits etc later, we went into the place. They'd defacated on the floors on the way out - every bedroom wall was painted with that air-paint graffiti (beautiful, talented work, btw) except the subject matter was incredibly vulgar, sexually and racially. Good God, these people were simply ANIMALS. Then a nice family moved in.

When I buy again, it'll be a single home with LOTS of land around it - so I can't hear the neighbors no matter who they are. Gads.

When I buy again,there will have to be lots of land around also.When we owned a home in town.The neighbors were still to close.Our nieghbor right now just told us shes moving out at the end of the month,which sucks.because shes been great.The bad thing about apartments is no one stays in them very long,so if you get a good nieghbor,you hate to see them leave. l

[nursemary9]

Hi

I, too, don't miss apartment living!!
DH had never lived in a house until we bought this one & he says the same thing----HOPEFULLY NEVER AGAIN!!!

Mary Ann

[RNfromMN]

I live next to a string of bars in my small town, so that can be good for some added fun once in awhile. The Halloween before last, I came home @ bar time to find a friend-of-a-friend of mine passed out in my entry way wearing pink fishnet stockings, a denim mini-skirt & tank top...Thank God our mutual friend was a bartender next door...I called him & he was able to get this guy out of my house...& back home to his wife & 3 kids. I should have known something was up when earlier in the night this guy asked me, "Hey, you still got that couch?" (BTW, my landlord had hired him to do some work on our place over the summer...that's the only reason this guy knew where my place was & that I had a couch)

I finally had to spread the word that no drunken-late-night-booty-calls would be welcomed over @ my place either, after old neighbors of mine informed me that a certain acquaintance of mine was seen knocking on my door @ bar time on several different occasions.

[earle58]

well i have a different point of view....
all of the aforementioned examples are worthy of complaint.
definitely.
yet i remember when i lived in 2 different apts, that both neighbors complained to the landlord about me laughing too loud and laughing too much.
one neighbor was a middle-aged, single woman who lived a quiet and private life.
maybe i could understand her complaint, since i was 17 at the time.
but the other apt., 2 brothers lived together, who drank alot, fought alot, swore aloud and alot yet had the audacity to knock on our door (i was in my late 20's) and asked my dh what HE was doing to make me laugh so much.
they were both straight-faced and earnest.

laughing?????
as john stossel would say, "give me a break".

leslie

[RNfromMN]

Totally get where you're coming from Leslie...I've only complained about the noise when it's the kids obviously unattended wresting around upstairs to the point my ceiling is shaking and pictures are falling off my walls. When I heard my neighbors cell phone ring from my apartment, I realized just how thin these walls are & that some things can't be helped. I can even hear my own dog walking around when I'm in the basement.

Laughing...that's ridiculous. That's one of those things where, yeah, hearing your neighbors laughing can be annoying, but it's the price you pay for being a renter. So, no I'm not going to complain about the phone conversations I can hear my neighbor having upstairs, or constant footsteps throughout the apt, etc.

It's the profanity-filled screaming rants that irritate me to no end. I mean, come on...have a little consideration. Wouldn't you be embarrassed?

Just curious...Has anyone out there ever been confronted about the noise they've made in their apartment & had no idea anyone else could hear it? I know I was mortified when I asked my upstairs neighbors if they were ever bothered by any noise coming from my place and they told me they could hear me singing along to the radio sometimes.

[bethin]

Jessica and others, you will be happy to know it took me a month to figure out I even had neighbors. The only thing I hear is flushing toilets from upstairs and that doesn't bother me. No music, thuds, etc. Very very quiet. No banging doors, etc. Thank God because you all had me scared!

Now I hope I didn't jinx myself.

[GardenDove]

Jessica, you are hilarious!!!