House dilemma (with diagram)

If it otherwise seems ok, I would accept it. As others have said, you can out privacy screening on your window. If you find it really uncomfortable sitting in your garden if someone might come through, then just don't use your garden too much if the neighbour is about. Then it is no worse than having a flat without a garden, but you can use it when they are at work for example.

Speak to the neighbour and ask how often they actually use it! If it's only for bins and occasional in and out for eg new garden furniture then it won't be an issue

That's what next door to me have done (they are Number One, so the other three go through their garden. I am Number Two, so only three and four go through mine). They've put a gate on the garden that lies beyond the right of way, so it's enclosed away from the path. Their dogs (who are big) can then go out in the garden but be shut away from anyone coming through.

Unless you can live in detached house with some land on all sides you will always be at risk of annoying neighbours (and their visitors).

I'd weigh up:

1. How much did you like the rest of the house?
2. How many other offers do you get as eg if you only get one more that place could be terrible
3. How desperate are you for somewhere, if you fell off the list due to not accepting this or the next offer and went back to the bottom of the list what would this mean?

I had a similar right of access situation in a rented terraced house but it was that the neighbour could use the driveway of our house to exit his (so basically your situation but walking instead of driving). He used to drive his car right past our kitchen window and deliberately peer in (he was having a dispute with our landlady over the access so he was deliberately aggressive in asserting his right to go through and harrass us at all times). It was awful, I hated it and felt so overlooked. I probably wouldn't take it. But as I say above it is weighing it all up as if the rest of it is great and you won't have much chance for a better offer then hopefully it will just be a minor inconvenience.

We had this with the first house we bought, we were end terrace and our next door neighbours had right of access through our back garden and round the side to take their bins out. It. Was. Awful. They were such dicks about it all the time, would knock on the door to tell us to move our car (which was parked on our own driveway) if they felt it was too close to the wall and they would do it any time, not even on bin day. We couldn’t wait to get out of there and we would never do it again.

Can you ask the Housing Officer exactly what the right of way is?
If it is an access for bins only then you can try and enforce that and the neighbour should be using their own front door for coming and going.
But depends how reasonable they are.
If it is just for bin access and garden maintenance you could put a combination lock on both gates and share that combination with the neighbour. Then it would inconvenience them greatly but not stop them and their habit of using that pathway might reduce significantly.

But I would hate hate hate this setup. Not knowing if someone would be outside my window.

If you turn this house down you might have to wait a while before getting another offer (check this, the rules vary, some take you off the list if you turn down a place they deem suitable) and the next one they offer you may have other compromises. If you're happy with all the other aspects of this house I'd take it.

Do you have young children? If so, it might be a no from me because you could never leave your kids in the garden and pop in for the loo/to get a drink in case neighbours wandered through and left the gate to the road open.

Do you have dogs? That might make a difference. I would be inclined to take it, and implement some of the clever ideas above, if not. Most people are decent at heart and if you had knobhead neighbours I think a HA would be better to deal with than a LA.

PS If you want loads of traffic on your post, mention that the diagram includes nakedness..... 😂

Would it be possible, and would you be allowed, to move the gate to the far end of the garden? In my first house, which was a centre terrace, I had a right of access through my neighbour's garden but that was at the far end from the house, so far less intrusive. My neighbour had a row of hedging plants to screen the path, so I doubt they really noticed when we were there.

I'd take it and look at swapping maybe in the future if it was a real problem. Housing association or council houses are like rocking horse shit. Could be years before you get another offer.

We rented a house with this sort of access for entire block in an area it was common.

It wasn't great TBH as going to back doors not front was also common etiquette - so got sale/religious people using paths to go to back doors - and mid block they left all the gates open which with young kids was a pain. I expected it to be for bin access though most kept those in front garden but it was constant due to back door being favoured.

Where we are now it's very rare - but there is a row of cottages - what they've done though is small gardens/patio near house back doors - gates then communal path then fences and rest of garden. House I grew up in mid terrace - next door they'd fenced off back part of next door garden - right at back - to make alley way - entire block did that.

I wouldn't like it but will depend on how it used by others TBH how much of a pain it is.

I would grab this house with both hands and look to transfer to another property in due course if it was a problem. I'd go down the privacy film or a blind route without a doubt, probably be more comfortable for all concerned.

And I'd resist the temptation to stand by the window in the nip.

If you turn this one down there's no guarantee that you'll be offered anything better. I'd accept it and work with the privacy problem. Both my DDs were so happy to get an offer, that they jumped straight in and no regrets.

You could put privacy film , where you still see out but they can't see in . For me it would be the location , where I am living at the moment and the likelyhood of getting somewhere more suitable if I waited . Only a crystal ball can tell you the right thing to do and sadly they don't exist .

No useful thoughts from me, but that diagram … 🤣🤣🤣

(laughing in a good way!)

I live in a tiny terrace of four with right of access across in front of the back doors. It's a VERY old house... when I bought, my solicitor kept on saying 'you know there's a right of way through your garden..' And my neighbours go through literally only to put out their bins once a fortnight. We all avert our eyes, nobody has ever looked in my window - the only problem comes if I've left the back door open (I've got a very barky dog). But the neighbours all know her and just say hello to her if she rushes out, and everyone is VERY careful about closing gates (we've all got dogs). So it works for us and it wouldn't put me off at all.

I'd do this before accepting. It will be down to whever is the landlord and if they say no after you have accepted the place they you are stuffed.

I don't have an answer but this is what went through my mind.
What would other option(s) be?
Would living there be long term with no exit plan?
Would you be allowed to move the path and the gate away from the house?
Is it massively better than where you are living now?

I am well aware that social housing rental is a different setup and issue from buying your own home so I am not going to say what I would do.

What did you decide, OP?

Second one way privacy film

Would there be any way to move the gate to the end of the garden and fence off a walkway so they go around your garden rather than through it?

This. Maybe once you've lived thereafter while you could suggest a change?

Neighbours are always a risk. But secure social housing is worth the risk imo.

Is there any way of finding out if there have been complaints about neighbours over the last year, why the previous tennant moved out ???