Behind the facade of many a New York City apartment building is the dissonant sound of residents complaining. The gripes that make their way to the inbox of my Ask Real Estate column offer a glimpse into how residents cope with the myriad irritations that come with living in cramped and costly homes. They include the co-op shareholder horrified by a neighbor’s rats’ nest; the parents whose building has barred them from using a stroller in the elevator; and the renter whose kitchen cabinets fell from the walls.

In short, some New Yorkers dislike their neighbors almost as much as they do their landlords. Co-op and condominium boards beware: You do not fare much better.

The questions New Yorkers ask the column are dictated not only by their individual circumstances but also by the larger issues of the day, like rising housing costs, gentrification and shoddy construction. In the end, 2014 was a year of things going up — home prices, rents and, above all, buildings, with 16,700 units approved for construction through October, according to the Real Estate Board of New York.

So what forces will shape the questions asked next year? It depends on who (and where) you are. While buyers should brace for another year of high-stakes bidding wars, residents of the city’s far-flung neighborhoods (I’m talking about you, Grand Concourse) should be ready for an onslaught of prospective residents seeking bargains — bargains, that is, relative to the gilded ZIP codes that are out of the reach of most mortals.