Updated: May 13, 2026 Scratching sounds at night are easy to dismiss as pipes, settling, or normal house noises — until the sounds start moving from wall to wall. That is when the question changes from “What was that noise?” to something much less comforting: Are rats living inside the walls? Rats can live inside wall cavities, attics, crawlspaces, basements, and utility openings long before a homeowner ever sees one. The warning signs are usually subtle at first: faint scratching, droppings near baseboards, grease marks, small holes, or a smell that seems to come from one section of the house. More…