Neighbours - should I be concerned?

Mrs_Arkwright

Carter wrote:

I know you have just sold your house so did your neighbours house put buyers off or did it raise any questions, like mine?

One or two did ask about the neighbours, and we told them as above - I don't know if that affected people's view or not - we certainly didn't have any feedback specifically saying 'they haven't offered because of the state of your neighbour's garden'.

I think it's certainly a good thing to try and check out neighbours if you can - but don't take everything at face value. As I said, if you looked at our neighbours, you'd think they would be trouble, and they're really not In fact, she lent me some baskets and pots to put at the front of our house to attract buyers!

scrivomcdivo

Unless you know the local bobby who can run (illegal) checks on your neighbours, little you can do. If they have only just recently moved in, this may be why the house is in a shabby state as they're skint at the moment. Likewise, they could possibly work nights or the property may even be vacant while they decorate, hence the curtains drawn.

loveandlight

I have just put my place on the market as I want to get away from some problem neighbours also.

When I bought my apartment my plan was to keep it for many years but my neighbours underneath are a young couple with a 12 month son.

The wife is sooo inconsiderate and selfish. Her son has done nothing but cry day and night for the past several months and even though we have approached her several times about our sleep being disturbed she couldn't care less and says she's not getting sleep either!

As a result my health has deteriorated a lot and I had to go to hospital quickly about three weeks ago as I have now developed Trigeminal Neuralgia on the right side of my face. (Try saying that when you've had a drink!). This is a facial pain that comes on suddenly and is excruciating!

It has been brought on through stress as I've not had a good nights sleep for many months and every day there is constant noise from them, e.g. their child bangs on the radiators a lot.

I still haven't figured out yet what to say to any buyer I get but my Management Committee have told me in the past they don't want to get involved because the couple have a young baby and are from Latvia and they are worried that Social Services will come down heavy on them as a Management Committee for complaining!. The fact that I have to work and have a 9year old son doesn't seem to matter at all!

The point I'm trying to make to you is make a lot more enquiries about those neighbours. Listen to your gut instinct. Its usually right. Check with Environmental Dept and see if they've had any complaints. Good luck.

mi-key

loveandlight - I could be wrong here, but I think you now have to tell prospective buyers about any problems with neighbours if they ask - especially as you have complained to the neighbours about the noise already.

There are sensible things you can do as a buyer though - as others have mentioned, go and sit in your car in the street on a friday or saturday night - are there loads of teenagers hanging around ? are the neighbours having loud barbecues or parties ? ( better to check this in the summer as its when its most annoying - especially on those really hot nights when you really need your bedroom windows open ) do people from the local pub use the street as a shortcut ?

As well as this the general condition of the area - are the front gardens tidy ? ( if they are immaculate with lots of work done, this is often the sign of older people living there ), are the neighbours cars decent, or are they rusting heaps worth £100 that look like they'd never pass an MOT ? Do the houses look in good repair, smartly painted on the outside ?

I was always advised to try and move 'above yourself' - i.e. move into the best area you can, as it is true that you get a nicer class of people, and are more likely to have all the homes privately owned rather than lots of renters.

Saying this, I think our new neighbours are going to worry a bit when they see us moving in - we are probably 20 years younger than most, both have sports cars, and look like the sort of people likely to be having wild parties ( we arent, and the reason we are moving where we are is that we want somewhere really quiet ) !!!

loveandlight

mi-key
Thanks for your concern.
We won't need to disclose the problem with our neighbours as we have never got into a dispute with them over it. We asked them a couple of times to keep the noise down and spoke to the management committee who were useless, so we have just accepted that no-body cares and as you can't make people care, it's either in your nature to care or its not, we have decided that it will be easier for us to just move.

As for researching areas, appearances can be very deceiving. Our development is in a very affluent, highly respected area and from an outsiders view point, our development is extremely well cared for. Gardens are immaculately kept and people here look very, very respectable including.......... my problem neighbours.

tazgirl

Mrs_Arkwright wrote:

My curtains are often shut in the afternoon, simply because the sun shines through on to the TV.

Also, my neighbours house and garden is not the tidiest in the street, as they bought it as a repossession and it needed a lot of work and tidying up doing, and they, as most people, are doing it bit by bit as and when they have the time and the money. They are the nicest and most friendly and helpful neighbours you could ever wish to have.

Things are not always as they seem

I agree - we moved in to our current house in July, and are in the midst of complicated decorating/building work. Our front garden looks a complete state as we've had ladders/windows/builders in it so often that there's no point tidying it up until we're finished.

We often leave the living room curtains closed during the day as we've still got computer equipment in boxes, and don't want it on show. Also sometimes run out of time when rushing out to work in the morning!

We're (hopefully!) model neighbours - quiet, professional couple, very concerned about any noise, and will eventually have a lovely front garden (in my dreams at the moment!) and hopefully be organised enough to draw the curtains every morning!!

Don't let your imagination run away with you...

Carter_2

Thank you for your replies.

Loveandlight, you do have my sympathy, I have been in exactly the same position as you in the past to the point where it affected my health too. I suppose that is why I am so wary now. The house is in a really nice generally well kept area. There is no pub close by and no thoroughfare, as it is cul de sac. The surrounding houses are larger and more expensive than the one I am buying which is also one of the reasons why it appealed to me.

The street where I am living now has a bit of a rundown house two doors away. Thinking about it, he works away a lot, has curtains drawn etc but never hear a peep from him. Two doors the other way they are a respectable looking family, house immaculate yet my neighbour that side tells me they play loud music. You just cant tell these days...

I am going to do my research tonight I think.

Horasio

I am so wary about neighbours now.

In the last 10 years I have had to endure

Loud parties from overgrown students in very expensive flats in town. So going upmarket isn't always OK. They can be arrogant and uncaring.
2 Major rebuilding projects in flats and the owners are very uncaring when we enquired as to how long it was going to go on.
Loud banging doors and windows from neighbours in the flats we lived in.
Loud TVs in the bedroom below when you want to sleep at night!

So we thought we would buy a detached house but in the last 2 years we have had

Loud parties from the overgrown students behind, who threatened us last time we complained of their party in the week when we had to get up early for work. They play loud music with their doors open in the summer too during the day, right into our back garden.

Screaming children in one garden, and I mean loud screaming! The father virtually living in a huge shed and banging bits of wood right by our back garden at random times, so we can't sit in our garden in the summer and we hear it in our back bedrooms too.

The other one who has dogs that are in the garden and bark at anyone passing by, so the rooms on that side get the barking dogs.

We have had to complain to all three - we only have the three neighbours! and whilst things have improved, they haven't taken too well be being told we are upset by the noise they make.

They may not have realised they were disturbing us. We are in the middle of the three neighbours, so they don't tend to hear each other but we hear them.

We were polite and we hate complaining but it has affected the atmosphere living here. They were very friendly when we first moved in, so thought we could approach them nicely about their noise. Their reply is 'it isn't that bad'. Duh, would I complain if it wasn't? I do hate being made out we are over-reacting when we want peace in our home and being made out to be the nasty villain.

If they had some commonsense we wouldn't have to tell them.

Carter_2

Oh my word CCStar what a nightmare you have had!

I went last night to do my stakeout and all was quiet. Admittedly I didnt stay long as the vendors were out and knowing my luck they would arrive home as I am sat outside their house and be concerned. Next door was occupied as the light was on, car outside and curtains drawn.

Its like pinning the tail on the donkey I guess. Unless I can move into the house for a week beforehand I will never know how they are going to be...

fraser

for all with problem neighbours I would recommend looking in on

https://www.nfh.org.uk

some good strategies and also very good support

I too had problems neighbours for nearly a year - loud music all night in the week, abuse and screaming kids from parents who don't give a damn and a ike to party all night every night.

we eventually got the evicted as we complained to the landlord with a 60 point record of each disruption over a month...

to the OP - I too am very cautious about properties and potential neighbours - have you tried knocking on the door of the house in question?

hours spent outside the property are a must, saturdays, sundays and week nights usually tell the true story - good luck