A property can meet all the regulations and still not meet the expectations of the occupants (that is, to live within their own property without being disturbed by their neighbours’ day-to-day activities).

If we forget all about Part E and maximum decibels for a moment and instead ask the directors, engineers, designers and senior managers of the housebuilder to stay in the apartments they have built for one month, we can then ask then one simple question: would they like to live there?

The apartment I live in has a problem with noise from the apartment above, particularly impact noise. I contacted the builder and they told me that it all the criteria of Part E. I put it to them that, regardless of this, their director should live in my apartment for a month and see what he thinks of it. I haven’t heard anything since.

Man-with-a-headache, London

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