I suspect its actually older properties that are more robustly constructed - the flats we had in central Edinburgh had 1m+ thick sandstone walls and we never heard anything from neighbours.
I'm currently in a 10 year old house based on old farm buildings and the walls here are even thicker (still sandstone).
I'm currently in a 10 year old house based on old farm buildings and the walls here are even thicker (still sandstone).