I wouldn't buy it. They will drive you crazy...

I currently live in a condo and am looking for a new place and WILL NOT buy another condo. If these people don't have the courtesy to keep their dogs quiet, I would guess you might have other problems with them. My building was very nice with nice neighbors for the first few years. Things are changing and we are getting riff-raff coming in. We have had a problem with theft within our security building. This isn't Park Ridge, though.

I agree with Kaye. A barking dog is like a crying baby. It goes hand in hand. Let me know if you need a good mortgage broker for your loan! 630-330-2229

Mason.. the truth is that if they bark now.. they will bark later and it is unlikely the association can do much.. This won't be resolved to you satisfacton.. so I would definitlley look at another unit..

You can talk to the condo board and see what the policy is about noise. There has to be a time cut off for noise. If it is during the day, there probably isn't much you can do about it, however; finding a building that is constructed using flexicore or concrete between floors should aleviate any noise transmission between floors.

Barking dogs can be quite annoying. I don't know if this will help you at all but on July 1st in NYC where I live the noise code was changed for the 1st time in 30 years. If a dog barks for 10 minutes straight or 5 minutes at night the city has a 311 number to call and the neighbor with the barking dog can be fined $175. Perhaps other cities and counties will be enacting similar rules.

If it bothers you when you're looking, it will could be a problem with you living there. Many of my clients don't see and hear things like that when they're looking and it becomes a real issue once they're living there and hearing it constantly. On the other hand I used to live right under a runway. For the first two weeks I didn't sleep a wink, then I got used to it. Then on 9/11 when the planes quit flying it was almost too quiet not to hear them. Very spooky in fact. The other thing to think about is you can't really control the neighbors. You may move into a quiet unit today and get loud neighbors next month. If you really like the unit, you might get the current owner to be the bad guy and complain to neighbor or management. It would probably be easier to get them to do it than for you to do it. They've got the most motivation to make it happen.

Mason,
Being that these dogs you are hearing from within the unit, I would suggest looking elsewhere. Park Ridge has 109 condos on the MLS right now. You may even consider looking in other areas if it means you can find a place you like and live without the noise. If you are working with a Realtor, I'm sure they can find more properties that will suit your needs in this present market. You are going to be investing a lot of money in something and you will want to enjoy it!

Hi Mason:
You've hit on a very complex dilemna... you love the property - BUT. The dogs didn't start barking the day you looked at the condo - and they probably won't stop. You have to ask yourself some questions:
1. Is the barking that loud?
2. Can you live with it - because you really want this property.
3. Do you possibly want to start off on the wrong foot with your possibly new neighbor?
4. Even with the CC&R's, what would be the ramifications be if you made issue right out of the gate?

Let me tell you what I would do because this is a sticky situation. I would definitely bring it up with my realtor (you have one right?) and have my representative (my realtor) discuss the situation with management.... indicating the clients concerns in reference to the noise.... and that this could possibly be a deal breaker.

This should keep you out of the loop - and make it a smooth transition. If it has been a significant problem in the complex, your agent will be able to discern this from the conversation he/she has with the management company.

Thank you for asking such a great question - I hope that you can resolve this issue quietly and amicably. Good luck to you and best wishes for a smooth transition!

Find out what the condo association rules (often called CC&R's) are as it applies to this situation. Find out from the condo management if there have been complaints from other nearby residents about the barking dogs. Good luck, and definitely do a little homework.