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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to dread new neighbours moving in....

44 replies

yawningprincess · 23/09/2010 10:38

we own our house and either side (we're a mid terrace) are privately rented properties. In 5 years we have had a total of 8 new neighbours...

we have new ones moving in next door in a couple of weeks, i've not met them, but the (noisy) kind lady over the road said they had a boy and and girl aged about 7 and ten and they were behaving like wild dogs - her words not mine- now i'm terrified.

It is a new build property and we have had to put up with two young lads for the last 18 months, they shut slam doors up until 11pm at night, and they usually come in fri and sat night at 3am waking my two children with the shrieks of the birds they have brought back!

Previously to them we had a lovely couple, who unbeknown to us were actually operating a large scale cannabis factory!

previous to them we had a scarey man in a balaclava nearly knock my husband out because he got the two houses mixed up and it was actually the next door neighbour he was after for money... i could go on!

the thing is our area is very sought after not like you'd think for the likes of our previous neighbours.

i am being selfish but my girls are 1 and 2.5 and i'm dreading the sleepless nights if the neighbours turn out to be noisy- is there anything you wise mumsnetters can advise?

other than moving and soundproofing!

OP posts:

emptyshell · 23/09/2010 12:13

Nah seriously - I used to work prepayment meter accounts and you could see these people putting £30, £40 a DAY onto their meter in credit... absolutely insane levels of consumption!

Did find one guy who was running a heated indoor swimming pool on a prepayment meter as well at one point - that was a brutal bill too!

stillfrazzled · 23/09/2010 12:31

I don't know (hope not, anyway) that it's a general prejudice against renters. My last neighbours (renters) were the best neighbours I've ever had - friendly people with two lovely young daughters, and crucially, once in their house I would never have known they were there.

They moved out a couple of months ago and my new neighbours moved in two weeks ago.

Four students.

Now that is a piece of news you really don't want to come home to.

In their defence, they could be a lot worse (after DH had a little chat with them at 11pm on the second night) but the squealing and running and jumping and slamming doors sound like DS (aged 3) and his little mates on a playdate. Only much bigger, louder and - sadly - later...

mamatomany · 23/09/2010 12:45

At least with renters you know at some point they'll leave, we had the twats from hell who's bought next door and had builders there every day until the day they left.
They claimed to live there but the truth was every the popped in every now and then and occasionally slept there.
I gritted my teeth and said nothing until the day they sold it for £200k more than they paid for it and then announced all the hard work had been worth it, then I could have taken her head off.

ratspeaker · 23/09/2010 14:04

We had a neighbour who owned his place.
He'd come in at 2 or 3am put his stereo on then go to another room!
he later moved and rented it out to a lovely quiet man

ratspeaker · 23/09/2010 14:16

A family with 2 kids might be quieter than 2 lads sharing

emptyshell · 23/09/2010 14:18

Might be noiser too if one of them takes up the trombone :D

expatinscotland · 23/09/2010 14:19

I'd love to have a cannabis factory as a neighbour. Plants don't throw parties, blast loud music, get into drunken arguments, swear, smoke ciggies like chimneys or trash the place.

Much better than that meth lab the neighbours upstairs were running that could have blown up the entire building.

MissMarjoribanks · 23/09/2010 14:43

This thread has reminded me of our shagging neighbour from hell. He and his girlfriend used to get back from work at 3am then shag really loudly, with squealing, whooping, heavy breathing and everything, right next to the party wall, which we were directly the other side of. Every single bloody night.

We put a note through the door telling them that their impressive sex life was putting paid to ours as we were knackered being woken up every night. It worked. For about a week.

The bloke also played the drums, but only in the day / early evening so we were fine about that.

BIL has moved into that house and although he's a terrible prude and wouldn't say they are waking him up by shagging, he's intimated (no pun intended) as much.

Now I think we're probably the neighbours from hell, though our neighbour always brushes off any apologies. We have a 9mo who has just stopped screaming several times a night, and I play the cello.

LadyBiscuit · 23/09/2010 15:38

Your neighbours had a meth lab in a flat expat??

Jesus.

I can hear my neighbours upstairs having sex and him weeing.

I cannot wait until we move into a detached house which is completely private. I shall sing loudly and be naked at all times

expatinscotland · 23/09/2010 15:41

Oh yes they did!

This was in Denver.

I came home from work to find hazmat crews and police swarming the place.

Asked place may I get into my apartment only to be told no, it wasn't safe yet and why.

expatinscotland · 23/09/2010 15:45

I later lived in an older building in an apartment whose windows faced an alley. There were many other small apartment building and converted Victorian houses which also did, so it was noisy and, as none of these old places had air-conditioning, you had to keep teh windows open at night or roast.

One night, my heavy sleep was broken by the sound of shagging wafting out into the alley.

This dozy bam began shrieking, 'Oh, yes! Yes, I'm gonna cum! I'm gonna cum!'

Until finally another loud male voice screamed, 'Then fucking cum already and shut up so the rest of us can get some fucking sleep!' followed by applause rippling out from other buildings and whoops.

We didn't hear a peep for the rest of the night.

chandellina · 23/09/2010 16:05

YABU and I'd advise you to wait and meet them before being so judgemental. We are a renting family with one child and I can assure you we are the perfect neighbours.

They'll probably have the bigger burden, listening to your little ones.

EldritchCleavage · 23/09/2010 16:50

OP, we put soundproofing in and it is bliss. I thoroughly recommend it.

Original poster

yawningprincess · 23/09/2010 16:57

eldritch how much did that cost??? i have rented previously so i am not against it all, but i have had some shocking experience chandellina

OP posts:

EldritchCleavage · 23/09/2010 17:32

I'll have to check as it was part of larger building works for us, but it should not be all that bad.

There are panels that you buy which are fixed onto wooden battens screwed into the wall, or you make a frame of battens and fill it with stuff a bit like loft insulation, so I think it could conceivably be a DIY job or something a carpenter could do.

The main drawback is that you lose a few centimetres off your room, but that is a price worth paying for peace and quiet.

mintyfresh · 23/09/2010 21:11

I thought all newbuild houses had to be really well soundproofed these days?? At least that's what the Barratt estate agent told me

YANBU and I understand your anxiety OP - new neighbours whether tenants or owners always take some adjusting to!

Original poster

yawningprincess · 23/09/2010 21:41

our house is 13 years old so that might be the year they cut back! Our neighbours sound like they are currently throwing each other against the party wall bless them, love thy neighbour and all that!

OP posts:

BonniePrinceBilly · 23/09/2010 22:26

I really hate when women call other women "birds".

elterwater · 23/09/2010 22:29

Isnt it men that call women birds? Ive never heard a woman call other women birds.

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