We gotta get out of this place

kazwookie

If you do get constantly-on security lights make sure they have a cover grill on them, or the toe rags will just chuck a brick at them and break them.

poppy10_2

PasturesNew wrote: »

It might be your position on the road/estate. Close to a lamp post is often a gathering point.

They really are just mongrels.

The only way to deal with these sub-humans is to fight back - police and council won't do anything. When I had similar problems around ten years ago, it didn't stop until I followed one of the youths and threw him in the river.

tony_ack

poppy10 wrote: »

They really are just mongrels.

The only way to deal with these sub-humans is to fight back - police and council won't do anything. When I had similar problems around ten years ago, it didn't stop until I followed one of the youths and threw him in the river.

I think if we replaced 'river' with 'blender' we may be on to something... :-)

Thanks for all the support - really appreciate it.

I still want to sell up and rent for the time being - the other factor being flexibility, as I may want to relocate to another part of the country in the next couple of years. Selling through a property buying agency seems would normally be a no-no, but seems to suit my circumstances quite well. I couldn't in good conscience sell the house directly to another first time buyer as we were duped into buying the house with the problems in the area and we don't wish the same on anyone else starting out (the previous owner apparently had his car 'done over' a couple of times, but neglected to mention it when we asked him if there was much trouble in the area).

So, if anyone has any good recommendations for a property buying agent please let me know. There are a quite a few out there on the internet - MPG seem to be quite prominent, and offer a quick turnaround.

daveyliver

Tony I dont know much about this, but if your sellers didnt declare that there was a problem of anti social behaviour towards the house, couldnt you seek compensation??? it could maybe get you back the few extra grand you lose. I know my girlfriend was asked in person and writing about any problems with neighbours or anti social behaviour. See the lawyer that dealt with your house purchase.

Bungarm2001

Well, I'm with the throw-em-in-the-river team. Also the "invite 20 biig blokes around for a bbq every weekend" team. Failing that, a few suggestions:

Do what we did once and invite all our biker mates around to another mates house who was having the same trouble as you. No problem after that.

A neighbour of my sons phoned the cops and told them she thought she saw a gun..that galvanized them into action. (can't do that too many times tho )

Another neighbour actually went and joined them (this particular gang of kids was kicking footballs around at night + swearing + drinking) so he and another couple of neighbours kinda took over, and had a great time! They did this once more...after that...no more bratty lowlife kids <hurrah>

All joking apart, I do really feel for you though. These things should never happen, but sadly, things are getting worse not better and there doesn't seem to be any help out there. The cops are little better than useless for various reasons, and local concillors couldn't care less as long as it isn't in their back yard. I hope you get rid of the house soon one way or another and find some peace soon.

kingkano

With the buy your house quick crowd your looking at 20-30% below the price you bought it for (because this information will be freely available now on land registry). Exactly what % you'd only find out by calling them. I only phoned one and found them quite curteous and gave me a value within a couple days. As mentioned anyone who wants a fee give it a miss.

secretjedi

Really sorry to hear about this. It really sickens me how the UK just accepts this is part of life now. Scummy kids whose vile parents prefer them out roaming the street so they can have 'peace'.

What area do you live? How far are you from the estate?

Just sell up if you can take the hit on any financial loss. I can't see how things will improve.

Daneyboy

Smell has a funny effect on kids,stick some dog turd around near your property or get one of those boxes that knocks out foul smells,it worked for me until i moved.

tony_ack

Daneyboy wrote: »

Smell has a funny effect on kids,stick some dog turd around near your property or get one of those boxes that knocks out foul smells,it worked for me until i moved.

Hehe... tried that before, and it keeps them from gathering quite well. Unfortunately it doesn't stop the more direct vandalism from smaller groups.

Davey - there may be some legal stuff to sort out somewhere with the previous owner. We may look into after we are out of the house - I haven't got the energy at the moment to fight a war on two fronts.

I was hoping for 10-20% below market value, but I guess these things are a last resort for a reason. I think 25% is the absolute limit of what I could afford (even then a little voice in my head is telling me I'm crazy!)

Just another question - as the offer for my house will likely be below the value of my mortgage, will my lender refuse the sale (even if I can get unsecured credit to cover the shortfall)? I've heard that lenders have been known to refuse offers that they feel are too low. I know it's not particularly logical to do so, but they are an awkward bunch...

JonathanA

I can't really add anything constructive, but I've been in a similar situation (fortunately when renting rather than owning a home). It is a nightmare to not know what to expect when you come home, we suffered from vandalism, attacks on neighbours, windows being smashed etc, and all by one family who didn't have anything beter to do.

Our response each time was to phone the police and get them involved - at first they weren't interested, but eventually, they did get involved and after one particularly nasty incident, the culprits were charged (the court subsequently let them off due to 'insufficient evidence'). You have to persevere if you can, whilst looking at options to move - which is what we eventually did - a real shame in our case as we had a great landlord and a decent house. Keep a diary of 'events' as well, and see if any of your neighbours can verify or also get involved, that way it doesn't look like a one person crusade.