There is a dryer vent that vents out the bedroom side wall and we thought - maybe we could add this at some point in the future when we get to know the rules better (we have an attic!!). Just ask your association, but the odds are very low. It's one thing to have an original hole in the building envelope and quite another to allow people to make more, as far as most of them are concerned. But they'll tell you for sure one way or the other. It should be a fairly immediate response either way, although you may have some hoops to jump through once you decide to proceed, if it's a provisional okay. FWIW, I live in a townhouse complex with vented dryers in each unit but they would never in a million years allow a cooking vent. ETA Keep forgetting to say to be sure to check references on the tile restoration co. Sometimes the stuff they use gets peel-y very quickly.

Quietwalk or 1/4" cork. I've seen the Eco-cork "numbers" and how they achieved them....not pretty. Unless you can buy your downstairs neighbor a 12" drop-down Armstrong Acoustic ceiling, you will not get what you want from that product. Eco-Cork foam is 90% polyethylene foam (not cork). They HAD to add cork because of some complaints that they were using the word "cork" when it didn't have ANY cork (100% polyethylene foam = false advertising anyone?). So...they added a snick of cork and then republished their old numbers. Done like dinner. And still wonky after all these years. Having sold and worked with cork for more than 6 years, I have investigated pretty much every underpad out there. QuietWalk is the ONLY one I have respect for. Please use their 3mm thick pad...or thicker if you can. The 1/4" cork is lovely because you throw it down like a beach blanket. No tape. No glue. Just butt the edges together and start laying the floating wood floor. It will help even out tiny wobbles in the gypcrete...which is helpful because gypcrete is a PAIN in the @ss to deal with if it needs patching. Either one will get you a nice quiet home....the cork will be more rigid and sometimes that is needed over a little bit of a wonky subfloor.

Cork has a wide range of "happy". They can handle 35% - 65% humidity....but it is the SWINGS in humidity that upset any floor on the market. If you constantly sit around 60%...you should be fine. If you constantly sit around 35%, you should be fine. If you swing between 35% - 65% and then back to 35%, you could be in trouble. It also depends on which TYPE of cork flooring you are interested in. A floating floor is NOT ENOUGH for acoustic insulation in a multifamily situation (like a 2nd story condo). The good news is you can add MORE CORK to a cork floating floor (6mm cork underlay is the START....12mm cork underlay is the END). A glue down cork tile can be 'enough' so long as you work with 6mm or 8mm thick tiles. The tiles are MUCH more expensive to purchase and MUCH MORE expensive to install, but they have the LEAST amount of movement when exposed to humidity SWINGS. Whew. So much to know about cork. But first you must decide WHICH TYPE of cork you are working with (floating or glue down) as well as the HOA's acoustic requirements. The two things put together will tell you how much cork you NEED to have to achieve an acoustic installation. Then you get to go out and find the product(s) and the professional to install them. Cork is a great product, but it is finicky. It scratches (normal), it dimples (can be corrected with a hot wet cloth), it fades (can be slowed down with high UV protection on windows...if allowed). It can be refinished (if you choose the right manufacturer). It can have some maintenance (if you choose the right manufacturer) or A LOT of maintenance (if you choose the wrong manufacturer). It is soft. Quiet. Lovely. Beautiful. But if you feel hardwood floors scratch or turn colours "too much" for your tastes, then cork is going to be difficult for you to live with.

IMO neither color is what I would consider a long-lasting selection. Select something that appears closer to a natural wood finish. Consider the colors you plan to use in the furnishings that will be placed on this floor.