I cannot comment on the relative possibility of them spreading within the structure, compared with other buildings. However, they do spread within buildings. They can travel via walls or pipe chasings. If you have a laundry room (or any kind of common areas whatsoever, from a package shelf to a lobby chair), they can be transmitted there. Maintenance and other staff can trek them in. If nothing else, they can walk under a crack under the door.

It’s usually difficult to prove who brought them in or how they arrived, though perhaps you have had a recent run in with bed bugs elsewhere and this gave you the idea you brought them in.

If not, proactive building managers would probably want to have a better sense whether any units in a cloverleaf pattern (above, below, touching any side or corner) were infested.

Good luck and keep us posted!

i live in a 54 loft unit building in oakland, ca. we’ve just had our second treatment with pyrethrins.

my landlord has been very sympathetic, but since we think we brought the BB into the unit, she said we had to pay for treatment.

both she and the PCO don’t believe that the BB could spread to other units, because of the structure of the building (cement floors, very high ceilings, no cracks between floors and drywall).

should the other tenants know about this? it seems that my LL doesn’t want anyone else to know about it.

do we just wait to see if the BB are gone in another month, and if not — maybe try to encourage the LL to inspect other units?

thank you.
-tinyvampire