August 16, 2026 at 7:35 am

A Toddler Stomps for Hours Every Day While a Nearby Park Sits Empty—Is the Renter Overreacting?

by Benjamin Cottrell

woman covering ears from loud sound

Pexels/Reddit

Living in a shared house means accepting some noise as normal. What noise levels classify as “normal?” Well, that’s the hard part.

One tenant has spent months tracking a predictable but exhausting pattern of stomping and crying from the toddler living above her, starting as early as 7am and stretching well into the evening.

A park sits just a block or two away, rarely used, and even play mats haven’t done much to soften the noise.

Multiple conversations with the family and the landlord haven’t led to any real change.

Now the renter is at her wit’s end and wondering what to do next.

Keep reading for the full story.

Is this amount of noise tolerable in an apartment building?

I live in a house, but it’s split into 3 sections, each for 1 household.

This renter has some problems with the upstairs neighbors.

Above me are people who don’t wear slippers and occasionally make noise stomping, which I can tolerate (from the adults).

On the other hand, they have a toddler who they don’t take out often.

The noise is pretty constant.

The child’s stomping starts around 7-8 AM and lasts around 11 AM-12 PM. After that there might be toddler noises from 2-4 PM, some of him screaming, crying, or stomping again.

Later on, there is noise around 6-8 PM, with some being around 9-10 PM.

The stomping is frequent-occasional and can happen beyond these hours, except after 10, they are just where it is more frequent.

The renter is starting to doubt whether these neighbors are really good parents.

I don’t understand why the guardians of this child don’t bring him outside when there is a park 1-2 blocks away.

When they do take him out, I don’t understand why they have him sit in a baby stroller instead of letting him run outside like he does inside.

The renter describes the situation further.

I know that both parents go to work, and sometimes during the afternoon hours, but they have a grandma who is supposed to look after the toddler, and she used to take him out in the morning, but now it’s like sometimes when they go out to do laundry or shop.

They do yell at him to be quiet and stop running around, but it doesn’t work and just repeats tomorrow and so on.

No other methods of intervention has seemed to work.

We already talked to them about 3 times, and to the landlord the same amount.

We also gave them some play mats so the noise isn’t too much, but we can still hear them, they have no carpeting besides that.

The landlord really doesn’t care about making the situation right.

The landlord did talk to them about it, but they don’t care to make better changes, like take him outside more often, they just scream at him until he stops or cries.

And the landlord will not evict them because he is greedy and only cares about rent.

I want to know if this type of noise is intolerable or I am just overreacting.

This sounds like an absolute nightmare.

What did Reddit have to say?

The top floor apartment seems like it’s the way to go, even though that’s a lot easier said than done.

Screenshot 2026 08 15 at 1.43.07 PM A Toddler Stomps for Hours Every Day While a Nearby Park Sits Empty—Is the Renter Overreacting?

This user loves stating the obvious.

Screenshot 2026 08 15 at 1.43.46 PM A Toddler Stomps for Hours Every Day While a Nearby Park Sits Empty—Is the Renter Overreacting?

At this point, maybe it’s time for this renter to cut their losses.

Screenshot 2026 08 15 at 1.44.39 PM A Toddler Stomps for Hours Every Day While a Nearby Park Sits Empty—Is the Renter Overreacting?

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a condo owner who replaced a whole a/c unit just to stop the complaints.

This user provides some much needed sympathy.

Screenshot 2026 08 15 at 1.45.19 PM A Toddler Stomps for Hours Every Day While a Nearby Park Sits Empty—Is the Renter Overreacting?

Hearing a toddler occasionally isn’t unreasonable to expect in a shared house. But hearing the exact same stomping and screaming pattern every single day, for months, with zero attempt at a real solution, is where things get unreasonable.

The most frustrating part was that an easy fix was sitting one or two blocks away the entire time. Toddlers need to burn off energy, and it’s better if the downstairs neighbor doesn’t have to hear it.

Everyone’s patience runs out eventually, even with the best intentions.

Enjoyed this story?

Readers who liked this also read this story about neighbors who have to set a firm boundary with neighbors who ask too many child-related favors.
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Benjamin Cottrell | Assistant Editor, Internet Culture

Benjamin Cottrell is an Assistant Editor and contributing writer at TwistedSifter, specializing in internet culture, viral social dynamics, and the moral complexities of online communities. He brings a highly analytical, editorial voice to his reporting on workplace conflicts, malicious compliance, and interpersonal drama, with a specific focus on nuanced stories that lack an obvious villain.

As a published author of rhetorical criticism, Benjamin leverages his academic background in human communication to dissect and elevate viral social media threads. Instead of simply summarizing events, he provides readers with balanced, deep-dive commentary into why the internet reacts the way it does. In addition to his cultural reporting, he is an experienced fine art photography essayist and video game reviewer.

When he isn’t analyzing the latest viral debates, Benjamin is usually chipping away at his extensive video game backlog, hunting down the best new restaurants, or out exploring the city with a camera in hand.

Connect with Benjamin on Instagram and read more of his essays on Substack.