# Apartment Living



## Blackie (Jun 21, 2009)

Hi.
Could the forum advise me on living permanently in an apartment. The good and bad points, which is a better buy, a ground ,mid floor or penthouse and what to look for when viewing. How do you actually dispose of your weekly rubbish?. Apartments with allocated parking underneath, if you have an allocated parking place do other residents or visitors jump in and use it when you go out?. Are noisy neighbours a problem? And are the outer doors to the apartment block secured?. I’ve never even seen the inside of an apartment apart from the pics displayed by the online estate agents so any comments and information will be very much appreciated.
Thank You
Blackie.


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## Cleo Shahateet (Feb 23, 2009)

It all depends on location, price, amenities and upkeep to determine what is a better buy. If it is ground floor, check how private it is and go view when upper neighbours are home to determine if you can live with noise from above (if they are noisy or have 5 people living there!). There may be alot of people that all have to pass by your apartment to get to the rubbish or parking lot. If it is a penthouse, is there a lift? Mid floor? Then neighbours are above and below you. In apartments, you never know who your neighbours will be and no one can gaurantee if it will be quiet or not. 

I have seen a few apartment buildings with possibility for secure access however, the main doors have always been open when I go see them. 

All apartments should have a central area for rubbish. As for parking, it depends who is visiting if anyone will jump into your space - another aspect no one can guarantee if it will happen or not or if it will happen when you are coming home to use it. 

When viewing, go at times when the community would be busiest like on a Saturday or Sunday in the summer, ask about fees for communal expenses and check out surrounding areas. Sometimes in Cyprus a restaurant can be in close proximity to apartments and have live music that can interfere with your lifestyle.


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## kouklamou (May 20, 2009)

Also the newer buildings look nice but do check for a solid construction as they can often have terrible sound insulation (plus other problems). But older buildings can have different sorts of problems: definitely check there's central heating, as in the winter in can get quite chilly and buildings here are not adequately equipped. My advice would also be to make at least a couple of appointments to view a flat in which you are interested, plus spending additional time hanging around the building itself, just to be sure.


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## Suenneil (Feb 17, 2009)

Hi Blackie

I agree with the advice of the previous posters ... we had never lived in an apartment until we moved to Spain where we are now. We love it actually ..... but it is important to know your own tolerance levels! and also understand your own way of living and how that may impact on others.

For example my OH loves to sit at the pc on a weekend checking out the football scores etc! and he plays music through the pc at the same time ... now in our previous house this was never a problem as we had no neighbours! Now I do have to remind him that not everyone in the block may like his musical choices ..lol

Seriously, the only "issue" we have is learning to accept we wont get silence all the time, that some noise has to be expected and providing it doesnt go on afer midnight until the early hours then you almost have to accept it. THe couple above us are lovely ... BUT she walks around their apartment in high heels a lot of time and we can hear every step!! particularly as we have marble floors ... now its only a small thing, but its noticeable - but part of life!

Our apartments also have undergroud parking spaces for each unit, and we have a allocated numbered space so we dont have any problems there.

Best of luck ....

Sue lane:


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## Blackie (Jun 21, 2009)

*Apartment Living II*

Thank you all for replying. 
As for noise,I take on board Sue's comments about the impact my own noise would have on others. I'm a sort of live and let live person and like most people, could tolerate a reasonable ammount of noise but I'm a terrible light sleeper. 
I'd have to do as Cleo suggests, once I've located a property to visit at different times and check them out,and as kouklamou has indicated,to check out the quality of the whole building.

Knowing my luck.I'll probably get arrested after somebody phones the police to complain about a white haired old man sitting in a car 'staking out' their apartment block


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