What Should You Ask the Neighbours Before Buying an Apartment? 10 Answers You Won’t Find in the Listing
Photographs can show you the layout, views and interior design. An agent can explain the documentation, price and condition of the property. The owner can tell you what it is like to live in the apartment.
But there is another source of information that buyers often completely overlook – the people who already live in the building.
Neighbours know when the lift becomes noisy, how difficult it is to find parking after 6 p.m., whether the building stays warm during winter, whether the basement floods after heavy rain and whether the café that seems completely quiet during a daytime viewing becomes very lively on Friday evenings.
Of course, one neighbour’s opinion should never be treated as absolute truth. However, a few simple questions can help you build a much more realistic picture of everyday life in the property.
Eurovilla highlights 10 questions worth asking before making your final decision on an apartment.
1. What is the building actually like to live in?
It may sound like an overly broad question, but that is precisely why it can produce an interesting answer.
Do not immediately ask whether there are any problems.
Simply ask:
“What is it like living here?”
The way someone reacts can sometimes tell you as much as the answer itself.
If a neighbour immediately starts talking about good maintenance, peace and quiet, organisation and friendly residents, that is a positive sign.
If there is a long pause followed by, “Well... it’s not bad,” you may want to ask a few more questions.
2. Can you hear the neighbours?
Sound insulation is one of the hardest things to assess during a short property viewing.
There may be nobody in the apartment above while you are visiting. The children could be at school, your future neighbour may still be at work, and the situation may feel completely different later in the evening.
Ask:
- whether footsteps can be heard from above
- whether sound travels through adjoining walls
- whether the lift is audible
- whether the main entrance door is noisy
- whether apartments in the building are frequently rented to tourists.
Buyers sometimes assume that newer construction automatically means excellent sound insulation, but the age of a building alone does not guarantee quality.
3. What is parking like in the evening?
You might view an apartment at 11 a.m. on a Tuesday and conclude that there is plenty of parking around the building.
Return at 7:30 p.m. and the situation may be completely different.
If the apartment does not have its own garage or allocated parking space, ask the neighbours:
“How long does it usually take you to find parking in the evening?”
That is far more useful than simply asking whether parking exists.
If you spend twenty minutes circling the neighbourhood every evening after work, something that seemed like a minor disadvantage during the purchase can quickly become a serious frustration.
4. How well does the heating work in winter?
A seller can show you the heating system, but a neighbour can tell you how it actually performs in January.
Ask whether apartments stay comfortably warm during winter, whether there are major differences between floors and whether heating costs are reasonable.
In older buildings, it is also worth asking whether residents have experienced cold walls, condensation or damp.
Sometimes, information about neighbouring apartments can help you understand the property you are considering more clearly.
5. Are there problems with water, the roof or basement?
This is particularly useful to ask after a rainy period.
The apartment itself may look completely dry and well maintained, while the real problem is hidden in the common areas of the building.
Neighbours often know:
- whether the roof leaks
- whether water enters the garage
- whether the basement floods
- whether there have been problems with vertical pipes
- whether the building has recently experienced a major breakdown.
A single historic incident is not necessarily a reason to walk away.
What matters much more is understanding whether the problem has been resolved or keeps returning.
6. How well is the building maintained?
The amount paid into the building reserve fund is information a buyer can obtain formally.
But the figure alone does not tell you how effectively the money is used.
It is worth asking neighbours:
- whether maintenance is carried out regularly
- whether major works are planned
- whether residents generally pay their contributions
- whether the co-owners’ representative is active
- whether the building manager responds when problems occur.
A building with slightly higher monthly contributions but excellent maintenance may be a better long-term choice than one with very low costs where nothing has been repaired for years.
7. What is the neighbourhood like after 6 p.m.?
A micro-location can change completely during the course of a day.
A quiet street at midday may be filled with cars in the evening. The café beneath the apartment may be almost empty during your viewing but packed on Friday and Saturday nights.
Ask neighbours about:
- evening noise
- traffic
- cafés and restaurants
- deliveries
- gatherings
- how safe the area feels
- street lighting.
Better still, return to the neighbourhood yourself in the evening and spend fifteen minutes walking around.
You are not buying the property only for the hours between 10 and 11 in the morning.
8. Are there many short-term rentals in the building?
For some buyers, this will not be a problem at all.
For others, constantly changing guests, suitcases in the hallway and visitors unfamiliar with the building rules can become a significant irritation.
If you are looking for a peaceful family home, it is worth knowing how many other apartments in the building are used for short-term rentals.
On the other hand, if you intend to rent the property to tourists yourself, you should also verify the legal conditions that apply to short-term rental, rather than simply assuming it is possible because other apartments in the building already do it.
9. Are any major works planned?
Imagine buying an apartment, moving in and discovering three months later that the building is about to replace the roof, façade or lift.
Such works may ultimately improve the value and quality of the building, but they can also involve additional costs.
Ask whether there are plans for:
- a new façade
- energy renovation
- lift replacement
- roof repairs
- staircase refurbishment
- major installation work.
A buyer should not discover a significant planned building expense only after completing the purchase.
10. Would you buy an apartment in this building again?
This may be the simplest question, but it is also one of the best.
“If you were choosing again today, would you still buy an apartment here?”
You are not asking for a detailed technical analysis.
You are looking for the reaction.
Someone who has lived in the building for ten years knows things that cannot be discovered through two viewings and a stack of documents.
If they immediately say they would happily choose the same building again, that is useful information.
If the answer begins with, “Well, honestly...”, listen carefully to what comes next.
A neighbour is not a substitute for professional due diligence
Talking to neighbours can be extremely useful, but it should never replace proper checks of documentation, ownership, technical condition and market value.
A neighbour may be wrong.
They may be unhappy because of a personal disagreement with another resident or simply have completely different expectations from yours.
Their comments should therefore be treated as another piece of the puzzle, not as a final verdict.
The strongest purchasing decision comes from combining what you see, what the documentation confirms, professional advice and what you can learn from the people who already live there.
You are buying more than the inside of an apartment
You can renovate a bathroom.
You can replace the kitchen.
You can change the floors, doors and lighting.
It is much harder to change the building, the neighbours, traffic, parking or the atmosphere of the neighbourhood.
That is why it is worth looking beyond the apartment itself and trying to understand what your real everyday life will look like after moving in.
Eurovilla helps clients evaluate properties beyond price and square footage alone. If you are looking for a new home or investment, contact us and let us find a property that suits not only your budget, but also the way you actually want to live.