When should I ask the vendor if thy have had problems with their neighbours?

AlexOG

Im going for my 3rd view tonight at a property I thinking of putting in an offer for. Ive had a bad experience with a bad neighbour before and obviously dont want it to happen again.
The people who are selling this house have decided not to erect a 'for sale' board and when I have asked the estate agent about this he said sometime people decide not to have one up as they dont want neighbours to know they are moving etc. This rings alarm bells for me.
I was going to ask the estate agent anyhow to ask the vendor if they have ever had problems with any of their neighbours and to have this put in writing as as far as I understand they legally have to disclose this.
My question is do I ask this question before I enter into negotiations or after?

poppysarah

in writing through solicitor. Accept only reply in writing through solicitor.

Go and meet the neighbours yourself. BEFORE YOU BUY

AlexOG

eek really? Just know on the door? And say what?!

firstaspect

My solicitor asked the question for me as part of the paperwork for the sale.

Jowo_2

There are fairly legit reasons not to want a sale board up, from nosey neighbours, to not wanting to draw attention to a vacant property, to simply thinking it won't actually drum up any business if there's little footfall in the street.

you cannot rely on what the buyer tells you - verbal info can never be proved. Should be covered under the conveyancing process but do knock on the neighbours door, introduce yourself and get chatting about the street and neighbourhood.

Pigster_2

If you have had trouble before and this is something that will worry you, I agree with others that you should try and meet the main neighbours before you get much further. Just knock on the door and say hi, explain that you may be buying the house next door, and ask some question e.g. what is the traffic like, what do they think of the area etc etc. You will quickly get an idea of what they are like and will probably get some other useful information as well.

We did this a few years ago last time we moved and the couple we met ended up being our really good friends.

Good luck anyway.

Doozergirl

AlexOG wrote: »

The people who are selling this house have decided not to erect a 'for sale' board and when I have asked the estate agent about this he said sometime people decide not to have one up as they dont want neighbours to know they are moving etc. This rings alarm bells for me.

The only bells that rings for me is that it's the present owners that are weird. Trying to sell your house without what is still one of the main marketing tools that attract buyers just because you don't want the few people that live near to you to know something that they're going to find out anyway.

Sounds like my in-laws. And they are definitely weird.

Hammyman

The thing is though, the vendor may be the problem. The bloke I'm buying off is an alchy to the point that even his own solicitor instructed the EA to phone his wife on her mobile rather than ring the house phone as the bloke is quite abusive. The honest answer to the question in his case would be yes however its all of his own doing. I do recall when going to look at it that the neighbour seemed extremely enthusiastic about us buying it

Running_Horse

I didn't want a board because my old house was a newly painted terrace in a cul-de-sac straight onto the pavement. The message didn't get through and they nailed it straight into the wall, and then the whole company changed signs to triangular ones that jut out, and one day we came home to a new sign and nails sticking out the wall where the old one was. We came off the market for other reasons and didn't use that agent again.

The house we bought didn't have a sign, and the neighbours are lovely, although the vendor was and continues to be, a pain.

McKneff

Personally, I wouldnt hesitate to knock on the neighbours door just to say hello and ask about the neighbourhood, if they are going to be good neighbours the first sign is that they invite you in and ask if you want a cuppa.

TrickyDicky101

McKneff wrote: »

...if they are going to be good neighbours the first sign is that they invite you in and ask if you want a cuppa.

I have to be honest I don't think i would invite strangers into my home and offer them tea/coffee just because they claimed they were potential new neighbours! Being polite and chatting to them on the doorstep is one thing but i think I would pass on anything more.