Seven Things Not to Do While Living in an Apartment

In an uncertain economy, apartment life makes sense. But, apartments can be miserable places to live when neighbors don't extend basic courtesies to each other. When you live with lots of people, you have to be considerate of your neighbors. You don't want to be the noisy neighbor or the neighbor who can't park. If you do, you may end up being the evicted neighbor or whose car needs a new paint job. If you don't want to offend the people above you, below you, and to each side of you, here are some activities to avoid in your apartment:

1. Using A Surround Sound Stereo or Home Theater System in Your Apartment - If you have loud stereo speakers, surround sound equipment, or subwoofers operating in your apartment, then you are probably making your upstairs and downstairs neighbors miserable. Every time you run your stereo or play a video game, your downstairs neighbors will think there is a severe thunderstorm and your upstairs neighbors may get a foot massage through their floor. While you may have the right to run a loud stereo, in reality it is the rudest thing you can do while living in an apartment. If you don't want a reputation as a noisy neighbor, lots of noise complaints, and visits from the police, play your consumer electronics at a very low volume or better yet just get some wireless headphones.

2. Using Exercise Equipment In Your Apartment - Exercise equipment causes problems similar to stereo equipment. It generally causes repeated thumps and flexes in one area of the ceiling of an apartment below your unit. For example, an exercise bike might cause a thump on every down stroke of the pedals. It's easier to simply use the equipment in your apartment complexes fitness room.

3. Letting Your Kids Run Around In An Upper Floor Unit - If you let your kids run around like a thundering herd of buffalo in your apartment, then you are making your neighbors miserable. Kids living in an apartment complex need to learn the basic discipline of using quiet steps rather than stomping. Have them sneak like ninjas, wear slippers, and take loud play outside. The loud kids upstairs generally have very bad parents.

4. Hosting A Dance Recital In An Upper Floor Unit - Kids running is bad. But, kids dancing is even worse. It should be needless to say, but an upper floor apartment is no place to host a Riverdance or Stomp the Yard rehearsal.

5. Slamming Doors and Cabinetry - When you slam a cabinet door, your whole cabinet becomes a speaker and transmits the noise to apartments down below. Sure, opening and closing cabinets is "normal living noise," but you could be a considerate neighbor. Otherwise, your neighbors may believe domestic violence is occuring upstairs.

6. Failing To Clean Up After Your Dog - When you live with lots of other people, you really do need to clean up after your dog. You don't know where other people will want to walk, where their kids will play, where lawn care workers, and groundskeeper will need to go. But, you should know that no one likes to get dog doo on their shoes. If you need lessons in how to clean up after your dog, a definitive guide to picking up after your dog is available.

7. Double Parking - In most apartment complexes, parking spaces are narrow and scarce. It's pretty aggravating to lose two access to two spaces when someone doubleparks. If you are parking in an apartment complex, the lines are your friends and you need to park within them. If you have to parallel park within your complex, your neighbors would strongly prefer that you not use their bumpers to guide your efforts.

It's not hard to get along with your neighbors and have a good experience while living in an apartment. You just have a little decorum and follow a few basic rules that you should have learned in kindergarten.