I have been in the process of buying a flat and intending to install wood floors, but just I discovered that according to the lease it has to be carpeted. I really don’t want to put a carpet like some old person’s home. I wonder if any of you lot have any ideas about what alternatives there are to boring old carpet, while adhering to the lease? As it stands, I’m thinking of just walking away from the purchase. Thanks for your ideas !!

Tiles? Or are they banned too. The ban is usually due to the noise nuisance from reverberating floors. That means the building will be noisy and walking away may be the best option.

Says it has to be carpeted 🙁

As a verb? 🙂

To live in, or to rent out?

To live in, I wouldn’t accept spending that amount of money and then be expected to be bound by some arbitrary rules as to what I can do with the inside of my own property.

To rent out, it’s probably cheaper to carpet it and certainly easier to repair if the floor covering gets spoiled or damaged.

Sick down whatever you like.

The only time you’ll ever ever ever hear from the leaseholder is when they want money

Thing is, if I go ahead and put down a wood floor and the person below complains, I’m stuffed.

I have gone for large purgen style rugs, does that count as carpeted? You could try that.

Astroturf it? Maybe get some of that woodland wallpaper stuff as well and bring the outdoors in? Heck, you could scrap the kitchen and get an indoor firepit of some description to cook over…

Thing is, if I go ahead and put down a wood floor and the person below complains, I’m stuffed.

I think you can put down a layer of high density foam then a wooden flooring to reduce noise. Also don’t walk around in your shoes, especially if they are clogs.

I have gone for large purgen style rugs, does that count as carpeted? You could try that.

Nope.

But Persian rugs might be an option…

Not quite sure you get my point.

The leaseholders will NEVER contact you for anthing more than money.

That not to say you shouldn’t be considering the neighbours

If it says carpet, then put down carpet or buy another flat. The freeholders may well be active, especially if freehold is owned by a co-op of the leaseholders in a self-management system.

Wood floors are so 1997.

Seagrass, Sisal, Coir etc.

Buying somewhere and being told you cant put your own choice of floor furnish down??? Id tell them to GTFO, and find a nice house somewhere with no one below.

The concern here is noise transmission to neighbouring units. Carpet is the lowest transmitting floor covering. There are a few underlayments that get close to carpet on a sound isolation perspective. If you can provide your homeowner board with empirical data to show that the underlayment you want to install will reach similar levels to carpet, you may get granted variance.
As a rental though, is it worth the hassle if you don’t get to enjoy the flooring?

If it was a rental, I wouldn’t care, but it is for me to live in 🙁 The annoying thing is that the place is otherwise perfect in terms of size, location etc. I guess as Kirstie says, it’s all about compromises 🙁

The neighbour will only know there’s anything to complain about if you’re making enough noise, in which case it’s just as well there’s a restriction. If you put down enough underlay and rugs on top then surely there won’t be a problem. Were you planning on tap-dancing?

Wood print lino?

put a wood floor over the top of carpet?

or just put down a well damped with underlay wood floor and see if you get any complaints. As long as it’s not noisy then your neighbours won’t complain.

Why not track down decent thick pile rugs (big ones) that leave a wooden border all the way round. I have this in parts of the house. Love it. I hate carpet and you can roll up the rug, change it and clean it very very easily.

What’s wrong with carpet, typically cheaper, warmer, better sound proofing.

Go and look at some, there is stacks of choice. Surely it has carpet in already anyway which must give you an idea?

What’s wrong with carpet, typically cheaper, warmer, better sound proofing.

It’s ugly 🙂

Those suggesting rug over carpet are missing the point of the leaseholders concern for sound transmission.
Carpet generally muffles footfall but carpet is most effective at reducing ambient noise transmission when its fitted wall to wall.
really thick (soft) underlay under a laminate/wooden floor will only result in the floor failing.
The only solution to effectively quieten a wooden floor installation is to use a solid acoustic underlayment that wont let the floor deflect when walked on. These are often rubber type acoustic underlayments and they carry sound ratings. They are also expensive. There is also the issue of structure borne sound transmission where your wood floor may contact skirting board that is in contact with the walls. That sound then travels through the walls

These acoustic underlayments also only approach carpets sound transmission reduction values they don’t and won’t exceed even cheap carpet performance.