Living in a downstairs apartment can be challenging, especially with noisy upstairs neighbors.
One frustrated parent took to Redditto vent about their situation, describing their neighbors' noise as disruptive and constant. They detailed how the neighbors' "lead feet" and frequent banging and stomping often continued late into the night. Their solution? An unconventional approach to confrontation that has gone viral with 10,000 upvotes in their post titled "update on insanely loud upstairs neighbors."
"They vacuum three times a day, and I wish that was an exaggeration," the poster, u/danjsark, wrote, noting that the noise was so loud it sometimes shook the chair they were sitting in.
With three young children who go to bed early, the parent was struggling to deal with the constant disruptions. After months of silence, they decided to try a new approach—opting for a kind gesture instead of a direct confrontation.
A Basket, a Note and a Kind Request
The poster assembled a gift basket and left it at their neighbors' door with a carefully worded note. The note explained their situation in a polite and understanding way, apologizing for any noise their own children might make.
"We wanted to drop off this basket as a little hello from downstairs," the note began. "I also wanted to kindly mention something—the sound from your apartment carries more than you might realize, especially in the late evenings into the night."
The note ended on a humble and non-demanding tone, stating, "We completely understand that everyone has their own routine, and we don't expect you to change your lifestyle for us, but anything you can do to keep things a bit quieter in the late evenings into the night would mean a lot."
An Unexpectedly Positive Outcome
The poster's kindness paid off in a big way. In a later update, they revealed that the neighbor came home from work, vacuumed once and they were essentially silent the rest of the night. They were shocked, writing, "They have truly never been so quiet. I think they must have taken kindly to the gesture! Time will tell."
The viral story of the successful noise complaint quickly gained traction, with commenters praising their calm and considerate approach.
"You know it's hard to take that poorly when you drop off a basket of goodies. Good call," one person wrote. Another commenter agreed, saying, "Honestly if I got this at the door, I'd come apologize to you. Sometimes we get caught up in life and forget how we can affect others' lives."
While one commenter noted their own similar attempt with a Starbucks gift card had been found "patronizing and unscrupulous" by their neighbor, the vast majority of people agreed the poster's approach was a masterclass in conflict resolution. The poster themselves shared their belief in the power of politeness.
"I'm from a small-ish town in the South," they wrote. "People are usually pretty polite unless you give them a reason not to be."
Newsweek reached out to u/danjsark for comment via Reddit.