[winson604]

I've been going through a long journey of finding a place to buy as a starter home and weighed a lot of possibilities from type of home to location etc etc

Up until now, concrete was a must have if we were to do condo but our not willing to budge on location has made things a bit difficult. I know we can't have it all so in doing my due diligence I want to find out more about wood framed condos.

What are some peoples experience with wood framed condos in terms of noise and maintenance? Noise above you, below you, beside you? Any common big maintenance issues and approx how long until they happen? 5 years? 10 years?

Was your building more recent or older? I'm sure that the wood framed has probably come a long way in terms of sound proofing and all that.

I know a lot depends on the types of materials used and all that but generally speaking what are your feelings.

When compared to concrete I know wood framed is cheaper to buy, resale not as high, higher maintenance costs down the road, more noise. Is there anything I'm missing?

Thanks for any input.

[blkgsr]

where are you getting higher maintenance costs from? as long as the roof and exterior cladding are maintained, the structure will never need to be touched

mechanical equipment (boilers etc) are similar in any structure type

as for noise, a newer building will have added noise barrier systems....ask the developer what was used. All suite to suite and suite to corridor walls will be insulated. The only "extra" a builder can use is using sound bar on the joists prior to installing the ceiling drywall. Ceiling insulation would be nice but no ones going to pay for that.

[Marioo1991]

I lived in a brand new low rise wood frame condo for 5 years, noise was almost non-existent from the walls of my neighbors, once in a while there would be some noise from the ceiling. I now live in a 70s townhouse, much more noise from the walls of my neighbours in comparison to my condo but still very faint, doesn't really bother me

[cruz-in]

noise barrier systems on wood frame apartments wont stop noise if the people above you have elephant feet and move around like kangaroos.

[MindBomber]

Ceilings are typically insulated in the wood frame condos currently being built, but poorly so don't give that fact to much weight in your decision.

[VR6GTI]

concrete building new in 2005 i never heard anyone downstairs or upstairs maybe it was just the building but the hallway was like there was no walls you could hear everyone in the hallway and it was loud as fuck
new wood frame built in 2010 i hear some sound once and awhile below and upstairs, sometimes it can be a piss off but in this market what the fuck can you do?

[Tapioca]

You will hear noise even in concrete buildings, especially if the slabs are narrow and if your neighbours have hardwood/laminate. You will hear noise even from people across the hall through the door, especially if they have pets.

Noise is pretty much unavoidable in any multiplex building.

[quasi]

I've priced more of these things then I'd like to remember, this is pretty typical but usually it's fiberglass insulation as opposed to mineral wool. I don't know how anybody except maybe the developer makes any money doing these, there is no money in them.

http://i.imgur.com/X9bztMm.jpg

[Spoon]

Colleague bought a wood frame condo in surrey several years back. She's in the process of selling it because of problematic neighbours above. Kids were running everywhere late at night and they were losing sleep; strata won't do shit.

[SumAznGuy]

You will hear noise even in concrete buildings, especially if the slabs are narrow and if your neighbours have hardwood/laminate. You will hear noise even from people across the hall through the door, especially if they have pets.

Concrete low raise built in 2006.
I can hear upstairs. Always sounds like she is walking about in high heels.
Every now and then you hear them drop something that sounds like a marble or golf ball.
Middle of the night, I can hear the guy use the toilet. :heckno:
I can hear the neighbour listening to his rave music in the day.
The unit at the end of the hall had a yappy dog. It was as clear as if it was in our unit.

As Tapioca said, noise will always be there, it's just if you have good neighbours or not.

[Tapioca]

Something to consider is what the strata's bylaws are on modifications, such as hardwood or laminate. Also, if you're looking at used units, review the minutes to see if the strata has a history of investigating noise complaints. Some proactive strata will force owners to rip out hardwood installations that weren't installed with proper underlayment, for example.

[svelt]

Loud as fuck. Live on the ground floor of a 2013 unit. There are pretty strict noise restrictions in our building so they are quiet Sunday to Thursday nights, but the guy above me goes balls out til 3AM Fri and Saturday nights. I don't really mind since we're night owls, but certainly something to keep in mind. I would think resourcing the strata council would be more effective wrt noise issues in wood than looking into the building construction or any sort of noise dampening mechanisms.

[cdizzle_996]

Live in late 2002 built wood frame. Unless the people tip toe you can hear everything.

[stump]

My mom lives in a 10 year old wood frame built by Onni. Pretty sure it's just dry wall between the units with no sound deadening at all because the noise is pretty bad. In addition, when the downstairs neighbour has her grand kids over, they run back and forth and it actually shakes the floor of my mom's condo. What the fuck. Worst quality building I've ever seen. If you plan on buying, stay the fuck away from Onni built condos.

I live in a concrete building and it's far more quiet. Nothing is perfect though. I still hear faint noises from other units (like some idiot who just moved in with a subwoofer. Who the fuck uses a subwoofer in a condo and plays music past midnight?) and sound travels a lot more so what sounds like noise above me could be coming from a unit elsewhere.

[jing]

Buy a penthouse. Problem solved.

[nns]

I live in a 2 year old wood frame low rise condo. When people in the hallway walk by, the floor shakes. I can hear my downstairs neighbor walk around. I live on the top floor too. Despite that, I still hear all the noise.

Other than my stupid neighbor on the right and her dumb barking dogs, my other neighbors are reasonably quiet.

Nonetheless, I do not at all recommend moving into a wood frame apartment/condo no matter what floor it is.

[Inaii]

I live in a low rise, wood condo. I can't hear downstairs or next door (unless it's the odd time they have their music up loud) but upstairs can diaf. Not only can I hear them stomping around, but I can hear him talking on his phone, them yelling at their young child, etc, etc. I can hear EVERYTHING from them. And it's fucking irritating.

If my landlords weren't so amazing, I'd have moved the second these assholes moved in upstairs. I miss the Filipino family that lived up there before.

[Hondaracer]

Do not move into a wood frame multi-family, period.

in the last 6 years my company has built roughly 400 multifamily units, majority being townhouses with buildings ranging from 2-12 units in 1 building. As well, we also built 2 low rise wood frame buildings, both 4 storey in different configurations.

me and my parents bought 2 units in the first wood 4 storey as an investment 7 years ago. Every single renter we have has complained about noise from adjoining units and it was so bad 2 years ago with super rowdy partying drug dealers that cops were getting called nightly and our tentants moved out in the middle of the month. Any sort of music/noise/talking during the night when its otherwise "quiet" can be easilly heard. While we were building these units cars would drive by with their systems bumping and it would shake the structure of the unit i was working in.

The townhouses we built are no better. So say you live in a unit in the middle of the building with a unit on either side. Typically, and this is somthing no one really clues into, at LEAST one of the adjoining bed rooms is overlapping into your unit. so the layout switches from unit to unit and typically the master bed room floor is overlapping into YOUR living room ceiling, it's just to expand the space and keep a building square with the feeling like your living space isnt just a box.

In all these units the divider is a double 2x4 interior wall, a batt of insulation in either side of the stud space, and a single sheet of 1'2" drywall on both interior walls.

This may sound like it would provide a noise barrier.. and "technically" it meets spec, but it does not block -anything-

When building the townhouses i often do a little test, I have the small job site makita radio, listening to AM radio, litterally no vocal or bass sounds i'll leave it in one finished unit, go out the deck, and go into the neighboring unit closing each patio door. Without any other sound around the voice of the radio is clearly audible through the wall.

Crying baby? Parties? Stereos with Subs?

lol..

Honestly, from what i know, have heard, and have seen, you couldnt pay me to live in a wood frame building. I'd prefer to rent a basement suite and risk dealing with the 1 home owner than roll the dice and have 1-6 adjoining neighbors and pray to jesus that they are "good" neighbors.

In comparison, and as others have echoed, me and le GF now own in a complete concrete high rise. This building was built in 1988, which is a benefit because structurally, this building has more concrete in it than most new buildings twice the height. I've been trying to get info on the thickness of the slabs and walls but it's hard to track down.

Anyways, our direct neighbor down the hall has 2 kids who are under 6, sometimes when you come home at night the kids are fucking SCREAMING, very audible in the hallway. Go into our unit with a steel fire door, close the door with a tight sweep on it, which is litterally 6 feet away from their door, 95% of sound eliminated.

Walk another 10 feet down the hall into my office, zero sound, -ever-

our bed rooms, living room, and kitchen? We've never heard noise from surrounding neighbors once. Yea, of course if somone like drops somthing heavy etc you'll hear a thud, but often when i'm just relaxing, reading etc. not once does the thought of neighbors cross my mind.

Weigh your options, but like i said, for me, never, ever.

[Mr.HappySilp]

I wouldn't move into a wood frame building. Friend just bought a low raise 4 storey wood frame (she lives on the 4th floor) You could hear ppl from other units and downstairs. But then the developer is known to cheap out on things. I was thinking of getting a unit myself there as well and I am sure glad I didn't lol.

So I guess your developer is pretty important. Always check the developers history.

[Presto]

I have been living in my condo since 2006. It's a 4-floor wood-frame complex in Langley. When I bought it, I did so with the intention of getting something that would be easy to resell. So, I was either going to go main floor, or top floor. I had experience living in a concrete high-rise in downtown, and sometimes I could hear the occupants above me. So, I went with the top-floor, corner unit, because I knew I wouldn't be able to tolerate footsteps above me, and I didn't want to be surrounded.

Overall, it's been great. Initially, I was the jerk that had his music/bass too loud, but I've learned to live without the subwoofer. This is my first home purchase, and I think I lucked out in a lot of ways. There are a lot of factors that can make or break one's enjoyment of their domicile, and I'm fortunate in where I ended up. I talked to some neighbor's that had a place facing a road on an incline, and they complained about the noise of vehicles accelerating up the hill. Then, there's the side of the building that's near a pond, and it sounds like there are millions of crickets and frogs rocking out their ballads all night long.

It's really important to do research, and get opinions of other condo owners. Look into how the strata is being managed. Don't be fooled by low strata fees on new condos. Buy with the plan of reselling... ...and other stuff I can't remember at the moment.

[sdubfid]

I saw some cool plywood for jimmy pattisons yacht. Approx 1" thick with alternating layers of lead in between. Super heavy but quiet as a mouse. Just don't lick it

[winson604]

Thanks everyone. Always looking to talk to as many people who've experienced things first hand as I can. Looks like what I assumed stays true which is noise is generally unavoidable in a multi family building and it's the luck of the draw with neighbors that really make or break it. Thanks RS once again.

[Special K]

Same topic.. What about those big houses "chopped" into 3 or 4 units in Kits? They are $900k for a ground floor suite. :heckno:

[multicartual]

I was the jerk that had his music/bass too loud, but I've learned to live without the subwoofer.


First they came for the subwoofers
and I did not speak out
because I was in a wooden building
Then they came for the 6 speed manual
and I did not speak out
because I was a daily commuter
Then they came for the sweet dank bud
and I did not speak out
because my significant other doesn't like smoking
Then they came for my testicles
and there was nothing left
keeping me feeling young

[Hondaracer]

I saw some cool plywood for jimmy pattisons yacht. Approx 1" thick with alternating layers of lead in between. Super heavy but quiet as a mouse. Just don't lick it

Yea at $30/sq foot probably lol

[TOS'd]

Reviewing construction assemblies and details for townhouses, lol.. :badpokerface:

[rsx]

If you're going to view a unit, go on a weekday and a time when most people are home from work. You can get a truer sound level of the neighbors.

[Hondaracer]

Also if you're considering a townhouse Id strongly suggest finding a strata that doesn't permit dogs.

Some of the owners in the townhouses we built have little dogs that literally bark alllll day long. It's annoying through a sliding glass door, let alone living next to it.

To add to what I posted on the last page, the units we've built up to this point are by no means high end, they are almost all exclusively in Surrey/Langley and ranging in price from 320-650k so fairly standard in terms of pricing at entry level town homes. However, we are a fairly good builder backed by developers who have quite high standards for the price point, especially when it comes to finishing etc. We have never skimped on our design aspects nor our sound proofing with overlaps etc.

I used to always kind of think "lol look at this crap we build, who would want to live there?" Then I went and over a 2 month period walked though about 8 different display homes for various townhouses and low rise wood frames in Surrey, Burnaby, and east Van. I could not believe how terrible the quality of finishing was. And this is in a SHOW HOME, not the unit you're buying, this is the best they can put on display in an attempt to sell you on buying one.

I used to live in Fraser Heights and there is a development at 176th and HWY1 I visited. Believe it's called highcrest. Their show home was in such poor shape I was going to go back to the salesman and say somthing along the lines of, not to be a dick, but you couldn't pay me to buy here with a display like this...they had basketball sized holes cut in the kitchen ceiling, wires sticking out of baseboards, in random closets there was off cuts and construction material just left there not cleaned up, it was an absolute joke.

I don't really like to bring race in it but I've got numbers to back this up, if you're interested in buying any of these wood frame multi families, I would suggest against buying from an east-indian builder/developer. About 95% of the "good" builders in BC have new home warantees with Travellers, they are the largest provider and have an excellent screening process/knowledge of the builder base, almost every single townhouse development I want into which was being built by East Indians has their warantee through National guarantee, which is essentially taking on builders Travellers rejects based on claim history etc.

To sum it up, I wouldn't buy any of the units I've been a part of building for living nor investment, and that was even before I came to realize that we are actually building a very good product relatively speaking to the market.

[hypediss]

Also if you're considering a townhouse Id strongly suggest finding a strata that doesn't permit dogs.

Some of the owners in the townhouses we built have little dogs that literally bark alllll day long. It's annoying through a sliding glass door, let alone living next to it.

To add to what I posted on the last page, the units we've built up to this point are by no means high end, they are almost all exclusively in Surrey/Langley and ranging in price from 320-650k so fairly standard in terms of pricing at entry level town homes. However, we are a fairly good builder backed by developers who have quite high standards for the price point, especially when it comes to finishing etc. We have never skimped on our design aspects nor our sound proofing with overlaps etc.

I used to always kind of think "lol look at this crap we build, who would want to live there?" Then I went and over a 2 month period walked though about 8 different display homes for various townhouses and low rise wood frames in Surrey, Burnaby, and east Van. I could not believe how terrible the quality of finishing was. And this is in a SHOW HOME, not the unit you're buying, this is the best they can put on display in an attempt to sell you on buying one.

I used to live in Fraser Heights and there is a development at 176th and HWY1 I visited. Believe it's called highcrest. Their show home was in such poor shape I was going to go back to the salesman and say somthing along the lines of, not to be a dick, but you couldn't pay me to buy here with a display like this...they had basketball sized holes cut in the kitchen ceiling, wires sticking out of baseboards, in random closets there was off cuts and construction material just left there not cleaned up, it was an absolute joke.

I don't really like to bring race in it but I've got numbers to back this up, if you're interested in buying any of these wood frame multi families, I would suggest against buying from an east-indian builder/developer. About 95% of the "good" builders in BC have new home warantees with Travellers, they are the largest provider and have an excellent screening process/knowledge of the builder base, almost every single townhouse development I want into which was being built by East Indians has their warantee through National guarantee, which is essentially taking on builders Travellers rejects based on claim history etc.

To sum it up, I wouldn't buy any of the units I've been a part of building for living nor investment, and that was even before I came to realize that we are actually building a very good product relatively speaking to the market.

What are some of the developers you would recommend? I heard good things about intracorp but I'm still skeptical about consumer feedback better to hear it from someone within the industry

[TOS'd]

^ curious as well, but also interested in some examples of townhouses in langley that you have worked on. pm if you'd like or not if you choose to keep that private.

[Hondaracer]

Intracorp is actually pretty good I know a few people who work for them

Smaller guys who I've worked with who Id recommend would be Dawson Sawyer, fairborne

Big guys like Bosa, Beedie, polygon etc all are all pretty reputable and put together a good product.

Other than that it's hard for me to say, so many small builder/developers are popping up now it's hard to keep track.

I've been told also now a new thing in Richmond are these foreign investors who basically fund a project strictly with cash, depending on the builder this could be a huge red flag because although they obviously have massive capital to back large scale (50-200 unit projects) by having such liquidity it seems like there could be very little to go after if anything ever went wrong. Some developer who just funded a 50 million dollar project with cash flow isn't gonna give a shit that you're having problems, he doesn't have his balls being held by the bank like almost every other developer does.

In the end do your own research as I'm just a superintendant who's been in the industry for about 9 years now, I can only really directly comment on what I've seen/heard but some shit especially in the last 4-5 years with this explosion of townhouses has really opened my eyes.

If I think of anything else I'll be sure to post it.

[Mr.HappySilp]

^^ concord pacific seems to be decent.

[Lomac]

I've lived in both concrete and wood condos. While you would think that concrete would be a better option, my experience is that it's not true. This was an early 90's condo in Coq so obviously minimum code was different at that that, but you could hear a mouse cough in the surrounding units. Just absolutely terrible. That said, I've been in friend's condos that were all wood and they were just as bad. It's definitely a case of who the builder was and whether they cheaped out on sound proofing or went full boar into it.

Currently I live in a three story townhouse surrounded by two other units. It's a 70's build, but even though I have university kids living in the neighbouring units, the lack of sound that's transmitted is surprising. I've had my home theatre bass cranked up at 2am before and my neighbours said that, apart from slight vibration on the wall, they didn't notice anything.

YMMV. /shrug

[winson604]

Thanks boys

Definitely developer is one of the first things I look at. Some I just skip over regardless of how good the price and layout is such as Thind for example. Like Honda, I don't want to be racist but the EI built townhouses or developers scare me.

[Inaii]

Bosa imo is one of the good development companies. My mom used to live in one of their newer buildings (all concrete) and we never heard anything from the neighbours at all unless they dropped something really heavy.

[Hondaracer]

Bosa basically builds nothing but high rises now anyways so typically you're pretty good in those.

Anyone interested in the construction of these buildings, stop and have a good look next time you see a high rise coming out of the ground. I know one of those surrey central towers was stopped in construction about 10 storeys up, good opportunity to see what really seperates the units.

Although now they seem to use a lot less concrete bearing walls as unit dividers and rely more on columns etc. Then it's not much different than a townhouse for lateral neighbors because it's just steel stud and insullation then

[RS_Pat]

Wood frame condo = you want to kill the people above you and the people below you want to kill you.

[Mr.HappySilp]

Bosa basically builds nothing but high rises now anyways so typically you're pretty good in those.

Anyone interested in the construction of these buildings, stop and have a good look next time you see a high rise coming out of the ground. I know one of those surrey central towers was stopped in construction about 10 storeys up, good opportunity to see what really seperates the units.

Although now they seem to use a lot less concrete bearing walls as unit dividers and rely more on columns etc. Then it's not much different than a townhouse for lateral neighbors because it's just steel stud and insullation then

I remember the wood frame low raise my friend purchase was build by this Chinese dude who is always on FairChild (pretty fat). I went to the one of the actual units to see and is was so bad. The electric outlet wasn't line up, Hardwood floor felt uneven, Windows were thin, blinds were paper and you can hear people talking outside. Went to the parking lot and you could see the ceilings are coming off. And this is a brand new building. Sure it was cheap like 260k for a 600sq ft place but I rather pay more for a better build quality.

[VR6GTI]

i know someone that spent over a million for a penthouse suite in new west built by bosa. He's lived there for almost a year and is thinking about selling it. He will never buy anything Bosa built anything again.
I don't think it really matters if its wood or concrete its more of the people around you that is the big picture. You can live in a detached house and still want to shoot yourself in the face if you have shitty people around you

[quasi]

I'm not fan of Bosa but that's more related to how they do business then necessarily the end product. Axiom is also a Bosa company as is Appia (owned by Jim as opposed to Robert) there are probably others as well. I won't comment on what kind of product they put out just the dealing I've had in the past. Like Hondaracer said they do mostly concrete highrise developments and a lot of them.

[N8]

Just moved into a rental townhouse Jan that was built in 1995. Lucky to have an end-unit so I really only have to deal with one neighbour. Lived in a concrete building downtown for 3 years before and it really is night and day. Pretty much nothing from conrete except the 'marbles' dropping sound that others have described.

However I'm lucky to have a good neighbour - only real thing is when they play movies or fly some mini drone, which seems to penetrate as if nothing were there into my living room. From the bedroom I can barely hear it. All in all, the extra space(at a cost of a 30 min commute in rush hour), 2nd floor and garage makes it worth it, and it really feels like a home to me now.

When it comes to buy I will get a townhouse as long as I can afford one - and as long as its an end unit.

[meme405]

Wood is being used for a lot more these days:

Prince George centre opens as towering presence in all-wood construction sector (http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Prince+George+centre+opens+towering+presence+wood+ construction+sector/10392940/story.html)

Seriously the use of new stuff like LVL and Paralam means that we can go to great extents with wood. There is even 15+ story buildings being proposed of wood frame.

From a fire protection standpoint it's downright frightening. But since one of my biggest clients is a fire protection specialist, it's just going to keep me in the money for years to come...:lawl:

[Hondaracer]

Building code only recently allowed 6 storey wood frame and almost right after that was passed there was a massive fire of a 6 storey in either Cali or NY, can't remember but since it's been passed I've yet to see a 6. I beleive I've seen a few 5 storey though

[Lomac]

I don't think it really matters if its wood or concrete its more of the people around you that is the big picture. You can live in a detached house and still want to shoot yourself in the face if you have shitty people around you

My house in Salmon Arm is twenty-two fucking acres away from my neighbour and they still complain about noise coming from my property. And about the fire pit smoke. And the sound of my (girlfriend's) kids jumping on their trampoline.

There's just no winning when it comes to certain people.

[multicartual]

My house in Salmon Arm is twenty-two fucking acres away from my neighbour and they still complain about noise coming from my property. And about the fire pit smoke. And the sound of my (girlfriend's) kids jumping on their trampoline.

There's just no winning when it comes to certain people.


Bwahaha!!! WHAT?!?!?!?!?


Tell them you're filming a music video, and to chill out and support artists. What a bunch of dicks.

[J-Chow]

Bought our condo 2 years ago in Richmond. Mayfair Place by Polgyon. It was a pretty good deal at the time, the developer was paying all the taxes. Its a wood built frame, so far, no problems.







Btw,

I'm on the top floor. :fuckthatshit: :troll: :awwyeah:

[meme405]

Building code only recently allowed 6 storey wood frame and almost right after that was passed there was a massive fire of a 6 storey in either Cali or NY, can't remember but since it's been passed I've yet to see a 6. I beleive I've seen a few 5 storey though

Actually what's really scary about that is that the NFPA didn't catch up to the building code until almost 2 years later.

So for 2 years people were building 5 (or possibly 6, although your right I havnt seen one either) story buildings with just a regular 4 story wood frame fire protection system. I would never in a million years buy in one of these buildings.

[winson604]

Bought our condo 2 years ago in Richmond. Mayfair Place by Polgyon. It was a pretty good deal at the time, the developer was paying all the taxes. Its a wood built frame, so far, no problems.

Btw,

I'm on the top floor. :fuckthatshit: :troll: :awwyeah:

Lol 9388 McKim Way? Friend is also on top floor but selling their place now.

[MindBomber]

The divide between 'East Indian' and 'White' developers isn't as significant as some believe. I would have no trouble naming a number of 'White' developers that deliver workmanship that is beyond terrible, and that turn around and sell 'high end' units starting at $800k+. Late last year, we pulled out of one such 'high end' project by a big name 'White' developer because the quality of the other trades work was too poor for us to do our work to our standards. While on the other hand, we're working with an 'East Indian' developer at the moment that is delivering great workmanship.

[J____]

Concrete low raise built in 2006.
I can hear upstairs. Always sounds like she is walking about in high heels.
Every now and then you hear them drop something that sounds like a marble or golf ball.
Middle of the night, I can hear the guy use the toilet. :heckno:
I can hear the neighbour listening to his rave music in the day.
The unit at the end of the hall had a yappy dog. It was as clear as if it was in our unit.

As Tapioca said, noise will always be there, it's just if you have good neighbours or not.

lol same with me, concrete building and I can hear the guy using the toilet next door. Don't have units above or below me though so no comment on that one. I'm living in a concrete highrise here in shanghai atm and find concrete resonate sound more than wood. If someone's drilling into the wall or drops something hard 5-7 floors down, I can feel it in my walls.

[Hondaracer]

The divide between 'East Indian' and 'White' developers isn't as significant as some believe. I would have no trouble naming a number of 'White' developers that deliver workmanship that is beyond terrible, and that turn around and sell 'high end' units starting at $800k+. Late last year, we pulled out of one such 'high end' project by a big name 'White' developer because the quality of the other trades work was too poor for us to do our work to our standards. While on the other hand, we're working with an 'East Indian' developer at the moment that is delivering great workmanship.

Developers yes, builders, no.

[GLOW]

Actually what's really scary about that is that the NFPA didn't catch up to the building code until almost 2 years later.

So for 2 years people were building 5 (or possibly 6, although your right I havnt seen one either) story buildings with just a regular 4 story wood frame fire protection system. I would never in a million years buy in one of these buildings.

first building i heard that was doing it i believe was in richmond a few years back...must not have been doing well because it burned down by "accident"...

[MindBomber]

Developers yes, builders, no.

True. Though, I can't recall ever working for an East Indian builder.

[meowjinboo]

Do not move into a wood frame multi-family, period.

in the last 6 years my company has built roughly 400 multifamily units, majority being townhouses with buildings ranging from 2-12 units in 1 building. As well, we also built 2 low rise wood frame buildings, both 4 storey in different configurations.

me and my parents bought 2 units in the first wood 4 storey as an investment 7 years ago. Every single renter we have has complained about noise from adjoining units and it was so bad 2 years ago with super rowdy partying drug dealers that cops were getting called nightly and our tentants moved out in the middle of the month. Any sort of music/noise/talking during the night when its otherwise "quiet" can be easilly heard. While we were building these units cars would drive by with their systems bumping and it would shake the structure of the unit i was working in.

The townhouses we built are no better. So say you live in a unit in the middle of the building with a unit on either side. Typically, and this is somthing no one really clues into, at LEAST one of the adjoining bed rooms is overlapping into your unit. so the layout switches from unit to unit and typically the master bed room floor is overlapping into YOUR living room ceiling, it's just to expand the space and keep a building square with the feeling like your living space isnt just a box.

In all these units the divider is a double 2x4 interior wall, a batt of insulation in either side of the stud space, and a single sheet of 1'2" drywall on both interior walls.

This may sound like it would provide a noise barrier.. and "technically" it meets spec, but it does not block -anything-

When building the townhouses i often do a little test, I have the small job site makita radio, listening to AM radio, litterally no vocal or bass sounds i'll leave it in one finished unit, go out the deck, and go into the neighboring unit closing each patio door. Without any other sound around the voice of the radio is clearly audible through the wall.

Crying baby? Parties? Stereos with Subs?

lol..

Honestly, from what i know, have heard, and have seen, you couldnt pay me to live in a wood frame building. I'd prefer to rent a basement suite and risk dealing with the 1 home owner than roll the dice and have 1-6 adjoining neighbors and pray to jesus that they are "good" neighbors.

In comparison, and as others have echoed, me and le GF now own in a complete concrete high rise. This building was built in 1988, which is a benefit because structurally, this building has more concrete in it than most new buildings twice the height. I've been trying to get info on the thickness of the slabs and walls but it's hard to track down.

Anyways, our direct neighbor down the hall has 2 kids who are under 6, sometimes when you come home at night the kids are fucking SCREAMING, very audible in the hallway. Go into our unit with a steel fire door, close the door with a tight sweep on it, which is litterally 6 feet away from their door, 95% of sound eliminated.

Walk another 10 feet down the hall into my office, zero sound, -ever-

our bed rooms, living room, and kitchen? We've never heard noise from surrounding neighbors once. Yea, of course if somone like drops somthing heavy etc you'll hear a thud, but often when i'm just relaxing, reading etc. not once does the thought of neighbors cross my mind.

Weigh your options, but like i said, for me, never, ever.

If you're really really curious, you can simply open up a wall where you think a drainage stack is, put some measuring tape down the hole.

Most concrete highrises im building right now have 8 inches.

Source: Plumber.

[meowjinboo]

btw, i'm currently building intracorp/axiom and I can honestly say you are getting a real good product.

[J-Chow]

Lol 9388 McKim Way? Friend is also on top floor but selling their place now.

LOL what a coincidence. So am I :lawl:

[PeanutButter]

I lived in a concrete building for four years. It was a brand new building built in 2010.
I lived on the 15th floor.

My neighbour on the left had loud as hell dog, nothing could stop me from hearing that. My neighbour to the right would have random parties until 3am on weeknights. I'm not talking loud music types of parties, i'm talking people over just talking and laughing. I could still hear them, not clearly, but it was still annoying if I wanted to study in my place.

The worst was the family above me, they seemed like they had lead feet and I could hear them throughout the day.

That being said, when I went over to my friends condo which was wood framed, I thought I was lucky, because the noise going through was worse.

I probably would not want to live in a wood framed building if I could help it. However, another friends unit was in a wood framed condo and his neighbours were quiet as mice.
So I feel, it has to do more with the type of neighbour you get. Because even with concrete between my neighbours, it wasn't ideal.

I guess you just have to roll the di.ce

[Ch28]

My gf bought a new wood frame condo and we've been living here for the past 1.5 years. We're on the top floor, so noise above us is non-existent. The two neighbours sandwiching us are extremely quiet except for the occasional dinner party, but they're respectful and noise levels are never outrageous. We don't have to worry about noise across the hall because it's a staggered floor plan, so I guess that cuts out a bit of the noise as well.

Like most people have pointed out, it doesn't really matter if you're in a concrete or wooden building, because it's your neighbours that will determine the noise level. You obviously have no control who your neighbours are, so the best thing you can do is try to get a top floor and have one less thing (neighbour above you) to worry about.

[meowjinboo]

I lived in a concrete building for four years. It was a brand new building built in 2010.
I lived on the 15th floor.

My neighbour on the left had loud as hell dog, nothing could stop me from hearing that. My neighbour to the right would have random parties until 3am on weeknights. I'm not talking loud music types of parties, i'm talking people over just talking and laughing. I could still hear them, not clearly, but it was still annoying if I wanted to study in my place.

The worst was the family above me, they seemed like they had lead feet and I could hear them throughout the day.

That being said, when I went over to my friends condo which was wood framed, I thought I was lucky, because the noise going through was worse.

I probably would not want to live in a wood framed building if I could help it. However, another friends unit was in a wood framed condo and his neighbours were quiet as mice.
So I feel, it has to do more with the type of neighbour you get. Because even with concrete between my neighbours, it wasn't ideal.

I guess you just have to roll the di.ce


all that seperates you from your neighberous is 4 layers of drywall and some insulation.

[winson604]

LOL what a coincidence. So am I :lawl:

lol friends selling #407