To think there might be something dodgy going on?

[1Pinkfluffyelephant]

A family living opposite us sold their house almost a year ago, the new neighbours have still not moved in.
They mentioned back before Xmas they would be hoping to move after Xmas, then they blamed Covid for not being able to get a removal company (despite other families having moved recently both on our street and surrounding).

They come and go randomly, turn up for half hour then leave again then don’t come back for a day or two. It’s a quiet dead end road so really obvious when cars come and go.

All the curtains and blinds the old neighbours left are still up and have remained shut. The windows also never opened even during the heat wave etc - we were out in the garden most the day with DC’s so it was very obvious they were the only house with everything shut.
Something tells me something odd is going on but maybe I’m over thinking 🤷‍♀️

[AdoptAdaptImprove]

Are you in a desirable school’s catchment area? Might they have bought it to make their child eligible?

Otherwise: cannabis farm?

[Marisishidinginmyattic]

Do you sit and watch the street all day? How much time did you spend studying your neighbours curtains and blinds to know these are the same ones?

I’m intrigued. Not with the neighbours but with how much time some people spend analysing the people who live around them.

[thepeopleversuswork]

Marisishidinginmyattic I'm with you. Who has time to study their neighbours in this way?

[AlCalavicci]

Make the most of it , my new neighbour's moved in after the house been empty for a couple of months and they are noisy swine's !

[ShouldWeChangeTheBulb]

Catchment scam wouldn’t explain the random visits. Are there children? Is it just the man or the women who visits or both?

[Laaalaaaa]

Cannabis farm or they are actually inside the house but entering and exiting when nosy neighbours are not watching...

[Ponoka7]

Are they stuck in a chain and need to sell their house?

Perhaps they were due to move in and Covid struck so they've moved in with a relative so they aren't isolated.

Perhaps they were moving for an easier commute and now wfh so aren't in a hurry.

Perhaps they've lost a relative and have an inheritance to fall back on, so aren't in a hurry to move, as said wfh.

Perhaps pregnancy/pregnancy loss/relationship breakup has changed things.

I could sit writing out scenarios for an hour. You need to myob.

[TheBeesKnee]

Perhaps they had to extend their tenancy? Or they discovered something about the house which means they can't move? Why don't you go and ask them when they're moving in next time you see them?

[MissConductUS]

@Marisishidinginmyattic

Do you sit and watch the street all day? How much time did you spend studying your neighbours curtains and blinds to know these are the same ones?

I’m intrigued. Not with the neighbours but with how much time some people spend analysing the people who live around them.

Funny story - An old friend of mine was a police officer. He told me about a call out he had, fairly far out in the countryside. An older woman answered the door. She asked him in and told him that her neighbors were having sex in front of their living room window with no curtains up, then pointed out the window. He looked out and all he could see was a house about a quarter of a mile up the road.

He told her "I can't see that." She responded "Of course you can't, you have to use the binoculars!" and handed him a pair.

[perfumeistooexpensive]

Is there anything that makes you suspicious that it's a drug factory or they are growing cannabis? A friend reported suspicious activity like this to the police and it was a massive cannabis farm inside. On the other hand, a house in our terrace stayed empty for a year after it was bought with people just popping in. It turned out that the wife had had a horrific accident and was in hospital near their previous home at the other end of the country and wasn't well enough to move in.

[TastelessBracelets]

"Of course you can't, you have to use the binoculars!"

[Newkitchen123]

How on earth is this any of your business?

[1Pinkfluffyelephant]

Really helpful comment @Marisishidinginmyattic🙄
No I don’t sit and watch the street all day.
Clearly I have my own things to do but as I said.... with the street being so quiet it’s obvious when people drive past and they pull up directly in front of our kitchen window and our downstairs is open plan so again it’s really obvious without having to actually spend time looking.
Also with regards to the windows and blinds, when your on maternity and out in the garden lots of the time in a heat wave and living somewhere where everyone’s gardens and houses are crammed so close together, it’s quite obvious when one house is completely shut up the whole time while everyone else is out side with every door/window open trying to cool the houses down. Also the curtains are really obvious too so it’s doesn’t take more than a quick glance to notice they are still in exactly the same place as they have been for the last year no matter what time of day. We’re also not the only ones to notice as another neighbour asked us about it first so it must be fairly obvious.

[BikerChick91]

I’m in this position. I’ve not managed to move in due to my relationship breaking down a fortnight after completion leaving me with all the financial burden with no security. We never managed to move in (we were getting work done to have it ready straight to move into). I ended up suicidal and had a nervous breakdown. Every time I went into the house I was heartbroken as it the future id imagined in there (husband, children of our own) was stolen from me.

I visit for half an hourish at times to sort the Mail out, clean up any dust/insects/ bleach the loos, check the meter etc. I’ve stayed longer at times to try and see how I feel with regards to whether I can move in alone and see a different future in there, wether I should sell it, rent it out etc.

I keep the blinds shut so that strangers can’t see that it’s unoccupied.

Nothing dodgy. Just heartbreak and worry.

Try not to assume the worst of people. It’s a difficult time. I’ve had difficulty getting someone to come out and complete the works needed due to the Covid situation and I’m also struggling financially as my job which was once secure now isn’t. There are all sorts of reasons things don’t go as smoothly as you’d hoped, especially these days.

[MagpieSong]

@MissConductUS

Couldn’t they be trying to arrange a removals company they can afford who is free on a date that works for them, but going in to do cleaning/security checks/redecorating? I would have loved to have the chance to do that prior to moving, but it was hours away so we revisited to measure for furniture and that was all.

Also, I keep my curtains shut at the front of the house (I do open windows, except for when the hive in our roof is swarming), but I hate being seen in my house by others, both strangers and neighbours. I want to relax, not feel overlooked, perhaps they have similar views? It may be they’re not opening windows because they’re there for half an hour and don’t want to forget and leave one open.

[1Pinkfluffyelephant]

@Newkitchen123 I don’t see why wondering if there is something dodgy going on due to the random visits at odd times and the house being shut up constantly (all both of which are possibly signs of drug activity) is not my business. I have small children in the house why should I not have an opinion on it or a right to wonder if there is anything Going on? The fact that I’m not the only person to wonder either highlights that what they have been doing has stood out?

[multiplemum3]

You've got too much time on your hands. They haven't moved in yet, doesn't mean they're drug dealers lol.

[1Pinkfluffyelephant]

They have no kids, just a couple, man and women. They were the ones who came to knock and introduced them selfs and let us know when they were planning to move. Then Dh bumped into them on his way out and they were chatting and told dh they couldn’t get a removal van. I can’t see why if more than one lot of neighbours have noticed a house being empty yet visited at odd times and always so closed up etc that we need to mind our own business and must have nothing better to do.

[category12]

Meth lab

[Suki2]

We're in a pandemic; everything to do with house sales and moving has the potential to be delayed.

[1Pinkfluffyelephant]

@multiplemum3 it’s not just the fact they haven’t moved it. There is clearly more too it than that. Nothing to do with having too much time on my hands. It’s obviously something a few people have noticed and hardly things that require a lot of time to notice either 👍🏼

[waitrosetrollydolly]

Maybe they are waiting for builders to do it up for them before they move in?

[AvoidingRealHumans]

So what do you want to do about it op? You've already accused and found them guilty in your head and are looking for validation on here.

The main thing is what you want to happen next. Hopefully they don't move in at all, nothing worse than living by the neighbourhood busybody.

[1Pinkfluffyelephant]

@Suki2 yes definitely it will do. But there have been lots of other people moving in/out that don’t seem to have had any issues. But yes it could just be that.

[Ariela]

Does it matter?

My friend's neighbours moved in about 6 months after buying, this was about 6 years ago. They then got planning permission to significantly alter the house, moved out into family, and it's over 2 1/2 or maybe 3 1/2 I lost count years later, they're still not finished the extensions and are talking about selling. My friend's DH doesn't mind because he can get on with his restoration work (can be noisy) all weekend without worrying about what the neighbours think!