10 noise questions to ask before you buy a home

10 noise questions to ask before you buy a home

A viewing tells you what a home sounds like at one time on one day. These ten questions help you find out the rest before you commit. Use them with the agent, with the seller and, above all, with your own ears on a second and third visit.

There are no right or wrong answers. The aim is to know what you are buying into, so that you can decide with the facts in front of you.

Questions about when and where the noise happens

1. Is it noisy at night, or only in the day? Road and rail noise can differ a great deal between the day and the small hours, and night-time is when it tends to matter for sleep. Ask about the night-time level (Lnight) as well as the daytime one, and walk the street late in the evening and early in the morning if you can. What Lden and Lnight mean explains the two figures.

2. Which rooms face the noise, and is one of them a bedroom? The same road can be far quieter on the side of a house that faces away from it. Note which way the bedrooms, the living room and the garden face, and where the road, railway or other source sits in relation to them.

3. Have I visited at rush hour and late in the evening? A quiet mid-morning viewing can hide the morning and evening peaks, and a busy afternoon can hide a still night. Visit at least twice, at different times and on different days, and listen with the windows open and shut. The 10-minute sound walk shows a simple way to do it.

Questions about the evidence and what is planned

4. What does the official noise map show for this street, and which year is it from? Defra publishes modelled noise maps for England's major roads, railways and large urban areas. They are a useful starting point, but they are modelled rather than measured, they show long-term averages, and a street that is not covered can still be noisy. Check which year the map is from, because roads and traffic change. How to read the Defra noise map walks through it.

5. Is anything planned nearby that could change the noise? Look for plans for a new or widened road, a new junction, a railway upgrade, a large development or a commercial site. Your local council's planning pages list applications by address, and the organisations that run the roads and railways publish their larger schemes. A quiet street today may not stay that way.

Questions about the garden, the windows and the neighbours

6. Is the garden sheltered, or open to the road? Outdoor space is often where noise is most noticeable. A garden with the house, a building or a solid barrier between it and the road can be much quieter than one that looks straight at it. Stand in the garden and listen rather than judging from the kitchen window. Reducing road noise in a garden covers what can help.

7. What are the windows like, and have they been changed? Windows are one of the main routes for noise into a room. Ask how old they are, whether they are double glazed or have secondary glazing, and whether there are vents or other openings on the road side. How much windows reduce road noise explains what to expect.

8. Have the owners or neighbours already done anything about noise, and did it work? Ask what has been tried, such as new windows, a fence, planting or moving a bedroom, and what difference it made in their experience. That is useful evidence about the property, though it is one person's view and not a measurement. What to ask the seller about noise has more questions for the conversation.

Questions about the wider area and the decision

9. Is there a flight path, school, pub, bus stop or other source within earshot? Road and rail are the common sources but not the only ones. Listen for aircraft overhead, a school playground, a pub or takeaway, a bus stop, a bin collection point or a commercial unit, and think about how each would sound at the times you would be at home.

10. Would a calculation for this address change my decision, and what would I do if it came back high? Decide before you see a result what you would do with it: ask for a lower price, look at ways of reducing the noise, keep looking, or walk away. An AcoustaPLOT address check gives a modelled estimate for a property in England to help with that decision.

Get the checklist as a one-page PDF

The ten questions above are free to read and use. If you would like them as a one-page A4 checklist to take to viewings, you can ask for the PDF below. It is entirely optional. We email you a link to confirm your address first, and the PDF is available once you have confirmed.

AcoustaPLOT results are modelled, not measured. Where a decision matters, a measured survey is the right next step.