Buying a house next to a council rented property?

C_Mababejive

Look at it this way...if the house next door was owned and they misbehaved,you could do almost nothing. If its council..well you can complain to the council.

azzabazza

Jamman960 wrote: »

I'm not overly bothered whether they own or rent, the fact that they've only just moved in and the gardens are suddenly overgrown compared to the pics on streetview concerns me though, Council tennants tend to stay for longer periods of time so if I can help it I'd rather not get stuck with them if they are potentially the reason for the house being on the market in the first place! and I don't intend to buy a house and immediatly end up fighting to evict the neighbours

If we buy this place and the neighbours aren't too much trouble I can see us staying there for a long time but if the current owners are moving out because of the neighbours we'll probably end up wanting move again but not being able to afford it.

Feel free to interperate what I've said as snobbery - living in a nice house is all well and good but bad neighbours can make it hell - we rented a brilliant ground floor flat for 4 years before a couple with a 2 year old moved in above and let the 2 year old run around most nights till 2am in the morning! we moved as soon as we found out she was expecting another... it wouldn't have been that easy if we owned.

There are loads of reasons why people move after a short period of time. Redundancy, relocation, financial problems etc etc. You may be reading something into a situation which just doesn't exist.

My son and daughter in law bought an ex council house several years ago and are flanked on either side by Council tenants. Absolutely no problem at all. The property is far superior to anything which was a new build at the time of purchase.

faerie~spangles

Jamman960 wrote: »

I'm not overly bothered whether they own or rent, the fact that they've only just moved in and the gardens are suddenly overgrown compared to the pics on streetview concerns me though, Council tennants tend to stay for longer periods of time so if I can help it I'd rather not get stuck with them if they are potentially the reason for the house being on the market in the first place! and I don't intend to buy a house and immediatly end up fighting to evict the neighbours

If we buy this place and the neighbours aren't too much trouble I can see us staying there for a long time but if the current owners are moving out because of the neighbours we'll probably end up wanting move again but not being able to afford it.

Feel free to interperate what I've said as snobbery - living in a nice house is all well and good but bad neighbours can make it hell - we rented a brilliant ground floor flat for 4 years before a couple with a 2 year old moved in above and let the 2 year old run around most nights till 2am in the morning! we moved as soon as we found out she was expecting another... it wouldn't have been that easy if we owned.

Do you know how recent that information is? It could be years old.

The new tenants may be doing up their home before they tackle the garden.

ETA: As an aside, my daughter's bf bought a riverside apartment for cash and his neighbours on either side were 'ladies of the night'!

BigAunty

Notmyrealname wrote: »

Actually it is very easy and certainly some LAs like ours are enforcing tenancy agreements strictly when they get a complaint from a neighbour.

It may be easier in the very initial period if the social housing tenants have a probationary period but, apart from that, the security of tenure for social housing tenants is very strong and eviction is very difficult - they have rights enshrined in the Human Rights Act that private tenants do not enjoy.

I personally have heard from a local housing officer that virtually all of their cases for possession get thrown out of the local court, especially where the household has children, and that they have to demonstrate it is a totally last resort - the bar is set very high indeed.

BigAunty

HapPea wrote: »

They may be well built, spacious etc. But snobbery is rife in Britain today and so this may reduce the number of potential purchasers when you come to sell.

This isn't the first "Should I buy an old council house" thread I've seen on here.

...

Fact of the matter is that most social housing is now allocated to 'needy' people because it is based on need. Housing the vulnerable, the needy, in social housing is a must but some needy households have vulnerabilities that make them unideal as neighbours.

I grew up in social housing and recall a good, safe, friendly environment. However, my first social housing allocation after the needs based principle came in was being surrounded by workless junkies, alcoholics, mentally ill and the sheer noisy - my nearest neighbour would go away from long weekends and leave the stereo on high to deter burglars....

The OP has a very balanced and unsnobbish approach to me - their neighbour is letting their immediate environment go to pot and wonder if it will bring with a whole host of other forms of neglect. First impressions and all that...

pmlindyloo

I think you are being extremely harsh on the OP.

Maybe the post is badly worded but her concern that a neighbour is neglecting the front and back gardens is understandable.

It is a fact that some people in rented accommodation/council housing do not take pride in their house as they feel that it is not their house so they do not feel responsible.

There are others, as some people here have said, that do take a pride in their home. Neglecting the front and back garden would suggest that these neighbours may not be that kind.

OK, so there may be a good reason why the gardens are neglected but I think the OP has perfect right to be concerned that it may be an indication of the type of neighbours that might prove to be difficult/lacking responsibility.

Those that have suggested driving round at different times/talking to the neighbours are spot on in my opinion.

I just dislike those that are implying that the OP shouldn't be concerned and that they are snobs/whatever.

It is not east to get rid of troublesome neighbours, whether they are renting or privately owning. Having friends and relatives that have been in this situation it can drag on for years, be very stressful and ruin your lives. Take a look at the threads on here about the very same problem.

Give the OP a break.

Locana

Also, if you are looking at google street view to see, surely those pictures were taken some time ago. I know my mothers house has my car parked on the drive that I sold 18 months ago....

dodger1

These are just facts and nothing else. I used to have a milk round in Winchester which was pretty much split between a private estate and a council estate. There were lovely people on each estate, there were unpleasant and uncaring people on each estate.

However, without doubt per capita the council estate had the higher percentage of the second group. This isn't bigotry or snobishness just plain facts, I got on very well with the nice people on both estates.

jozbo

Lol, my 'scum' comment was in jest. Can't stand the shameless stereotyping of council tenants. We've just had an offer
accepted on an ex council flat in a large estate,kids all play with eachother, playground in the middle, neighbours friendly etc. People are people doesn't matter if they're rich or poor.

mummaof4girls

Hi every one ,I have been a member for over 2 years and read many topics on here but never posted but after reading this I would like to tell you about my experience,I am a council tenant ,houses either side of me have been brought,I have a lovely 3 double bedroomed semi detatched house ,the house that I am joined to are lovely people ,nice house and garden the other side whom I am only joined to by the garden well ,the front & back gardens are a right mess and have been for the 17 years i have lived here,they let their dog fowl outside and chain him up at the back door (I have reported this )I have been trying to down size to a 2 bedroomed as children have grown up and left home,but a few people that have come and viewed say the state of next door is not nice and the dog puts them off,I take pride in my home and garden so I would just like to say just because you own your home dosent make you better than a tenant.