Inter-floor noise isn’t just a mild annoyance but a serious issue in Korea, where most people live in high-rise apartments with thin walls. Everyday sounds like kids running, furniture dragging, or late-night washing machines can feel unbearable, leading to frequent disputes between neighbors. Complaints about floor noise have exploded over the past decade, jumping from just under 9,000 cases in 2012 to more than 33,000 formal complaints by 2024. The mediation centers meant to handle these disputes are swamped, and most cases take months to resolve, with only a small fraction ending in genuine reconciliation. Surveys show that nearly nine out of ten residents admit to feeling constant irritation because of their neighbors’ noise, and more than half have argued or fought over it at least once.
What makes this worse is how often it turns violent. Police data shows a shocking rise in serious crimes tied to floor-noise disputes, with incidents jumping from 11 reported cases in 2016 to 110 by 2021. Some of these confrontations have ended in tragedy, where families were attacked in their own homes, arson incidents sparked by months of simmering resentment, and fatal stabbings triggered by nothing more than footsteps overhead. In one infamous case in 2022, a man in Incheon stabbed an entire family after enduring three months of what he called “torturous” noise from above.
The government has tried to intervene, enforcing strict decibel limits (43 dB during the day, 38 at night) and requiring newer apartments to use thicker slabs and better insulation. In theory, no apartment should pass inspection if noise exceeds 49 dB. But in practice, enforcement is weak, and older buildings, where most of these disputes happen, are rarely retrofitted with better soundproofing. Even in brand-new apartments, residents still report constant thumping, dragging, and muffled conversations. For Koreans, this isn’t just an inconvenience, but is a social wound.
