To hate student neighbours?

[LittleMilla]

We moved in to our first home in June 2012 and have painstakingly renovated it. We love it. But there's one small problem: the house next door (not attached to us) houses 8 students.

First year was fine as we hadn't done the garden and the students were relatively quiet and not really much bother (big stoners). This year has been much harder - 8 hard-partying boys.

Weekend saw 4 of them come back at 6.30am with mates and they were then in the garden all day drinking/popping pills. Cue lots of wide-eyed individuals and a dealer coming at about 4pm to provide more drugs.

Weve got two little boys, love to use our garden with friends/family but this is all upsetting me so much. I am contemplating just moving as I cannot handle another shit summer if the next lot are like this. When they're all out there 'on it' it is hard to relax and the garden wall is so close - they may as well be in our garden.

The boys individually are OK and I've been in at various times since last June to chat about bins and few noise whinges. I just don't know what to do. The music is at a reasonable level, so I can't complain about noise.

During my rational moments I tell myself that living in a city with two universities students are an inevitable part of life. And crap neighbours can happen to anyone - at least I know that this lot are going in June.

BUT I HATE HAVING THEM NEXT DOOR TO ME!!!!!!!!!!

AIBU and WWYD - move or adopt more coping strategies?

Hovis

Completely normal. That was £320 per month, 7 students, half rent for two months of the summer. So, £24,640 for a house that the landlord clearly didn't want to spend any money on if he didn't have to. Bearing in mind that Zoopla says he'd bought the house 9 years earlier for £350k, he wasn't doing too badly for himself (NB when looking at these prices, this is pretty recent)

The following year we counted ourselves extremely lucky to only be paying £270 each per month for a pokey 3 bed terrace. So, £8910 per year for a house worth about £100k.

NB this is all in the less fashionable end of a northern city.

Still wouldn't have changed the moving out for uni experience for anything!

Yeah, I paid £320 a month for a room in a four-bed house about five years ago in Canterbury, Kent - which also has two universities (University of Kent and Christchurch), plus an art school. I believe Canterbury has the highest population of students than any other town in Britain with over 50%. (Or ar least that was the case when I was there.)

Born free, why do I sound ignorant? Or did you just fancy putting an unnecessary snippet of insult in with no justification?

My rent was 75 per week no matter where I lived. UNi halls, posh suburban estate opposite UNi or town centre

Am I the only one who thinks they actually don't sound too bad, as student neighbours go? They keep the noise down, respond to reasonable requests to stop swearing and are polite to you.

I'd rather a lot like this, than hard drinking types who will engage in much more antisocial behaviour (vomiting, urinating, vandalism).

I think you and your DH have to have a long hard think about whether you are willing to put up with these guys, and potentially much worse neighbours in years to come.

I'm listening right now to Foghorn Leghorn next door who rolled in at 5am and hasn't shut up. He doesn't even live there!!

I have noisy and inconsiderate neighbours on both sides and feel your pain. One side is a student house and at the very least I know holidays will be quieter and if it's a bad lot they are likely to move on.

University's are much better with dealing with noise complaints so don't be afraid to contact them in the first instance.

As for the other side I can only hope for divine intervention

A friend had this problem. He managed to get the landlord's home number (before the days of mobiles) and every time he was disturbed by the students, no matter what time of day, he phoned the LL to complain. After he had called a couple of times at 2am the LL warned all the student tenants that he would take action against them. Made a huge difference.

Call the police about the dealer visiting next door.

If you are in Scotland, every landlord must be registered but similar plans for England and Wales were abandoned. Ask Shelter, the housing charity, for advice.

Bypass the agent and see if you can get the contact details of the landlord him/herself. See if the LL belongs to either the National Landlords Association or the Residential LL Association & if so make contact and say the LL refuses to take action against the tenants, thus bringing the "profession" into disrepute. (I have nothing against landlords per se and am one myself)

I read this suggestion somewhere...If you have or can get an old sound system with speakers, put them right against the party wall and have Radio 3 on as loud as it will go. Then go away for the weekend. Putting the speakers on top of an empty box would make the sound resonate even more! (Tongue in cheek here)

Try telling the university (not sure exactly who but have a Google around the website)

Contact the local Council's Anti Social Behaviour Unit.

Can't link from this wretched device, but try Googling 'antisocial student behaviour in Lincoln' - I read about a particular problem there.

1. Speak to the letting agent

2 Speak to the university

3. Call the police every time noise/disruption/drug dealing occurs

Oh yes, and I'm sure I was an ignorant, noisy student-arse myself. But things are different now and I like peace and quiet! .

Don't feel bad about complaining. We all have a right to peaceful enjoyment of our homes and that involves compromise on both sides.

£350 each per month for a 5 bedroom student flat in Glasgow. I am very glad DD is in her final year.

My DD has been in the same flat for 3 years so they may not move on next year. Best nip it in the bud now.

Just remembered, all my landlords charged half rent over the summer as long as you weren't actually staying there so that takes some off his profit. Just thought that might make you happier.

£320 is pretty standard in my two-university city.

If the LLs aren't bothered (which they should be), uni about the behaviour and police about the drugs.

I'm a student (sorry everyone ) and living in a shared house on a residential street at the moment (until next week!). We have a family with young children on one side of us, and a family on the other side. On our street there's probably six or seven out of the 40 houses as student houses, all owned by the same landlord.

Right at the start we were warned in our contracts that the landlords have good relationships with our neighbours, and all neighbours have been provided with their numbers so that if they have any complaints, they know to call the landlord and the landlord will come over - whatever time, day or night - to sort us out and tell us to get our act together.

The problem is, if you don't nip it in the bud now, they may not leave over the summer (many of my friends aren't leaving their student houses because they've got work here and can't go home), and they may be here next year too. Next year you could get lucky and end up with a bunch of students like us - or you could be even worse off and end up with a group like the ones down the road from us who, as well as drugs, party hard constantly, come home late and drunk, scream and shout and swear all the way down the street and other cuntish behaviour.

Whereas my housemate has had two parties since September, very civilised French 'dos, and the rest of us go to the student bar and if they're pre-drinking (I don't drink right now) we'll go to someone else's house or a flat in Halls. We've been considerate, quiet, and seem to be playing frisbee with their kids - every other day we'll find their frisbee in our garden and chuck it back for them only for it to reappear two days later

The problem with student houses is that you can't predict what sort of lot you'll get next year - and striking up a good relationship with the LL seems essential, but if they don't want to know, university is probably your best place to start, followed by the police regarding the drugs.

Please don't feel bad about complaining, because these idiots make it hard for the rest of us to find shared accommodation, and bump the prices up too - our landlord had to bump their prices up after having some disgusting students in because the insurance cost them a fortune and it's so risky.

Oh and while we're talking rent prices, £95 a week for a room in a shared house here. £130 a week for me and my boyfriend because we're sharing a room.

EVES

Yes you sound ignorant, because your like I was a student I have the greatest authority to talk about this.

How many people on here do you think were also students living in accmd somewhere?

They dont need to plaster their student living credentials anywhere. Just because you were a student once, ( whoopppeeee) does not mean that this poor lady has to live with this hideous mess next door.

I know she does not because I have been there and lived it, and eventually got it stopped.

The problem is, if you don't nip it in the bud now, they may not leave over the summer (many of my friends aren't leaving their student houses because they've got work here and can't go home), and they may be here next year too

Totally agree, you have some good advice there from moomin, if you don't nip it in the bud you are enabling them to have a nice and peaceful safe house for them to do drugs in.

I paid £400 a month for my portion in our student rental which was normal for my area. It was just an average flat, nothing fancy or particularly nice actually.

Personally I would speak to the boys themselves. You can't control what other people do, they are perfectly entitled to have a drink and a laugh in their half of the garden. However drugs is not acceptable or loud noise. I don't really see what contacting the university is going to do apart from get them in crap with their course tutors. They are boys at uni, they aren't just going to stop partying, drinking and staying up late because someone tells them too. With any luck they will be gone in the summer!

I think talking to them, as they sound like nice lads, is a good start. I would make it clear that dealers coming to the house is an absolute no-no and you will involve the police if that happens again. And it's perfectly reasonable to ask them to keep drug-taking in the house, though once they've taken them you can't stop them being in the garden.

Could you plant some bamboo along that fence?

I would also speak to their uni if things don't improve, they'll all have personal tutors who could deal with this kind of thing? It certainly isn't in the university's interests to have their students upsetting the locals.

They're probably all naice, home-counties boys who would run for the hills as soon as you mention the police!

OP, I'd move.

Even if you could talk to these boys and make them see sense (unlikely), they will be gone in the Summer and a new bunch will move in.

And on and on ad infinitum...

I look back now to our student houses and cringe for the neighbours. It must have been awful...

Thank you all for the replies.

I'm going to knock on the door later and try to chat to main party boy. Explain that they're fully entitled to go out, get wasted etc but when he's in the garden with a load of mates all off their tits it's not very pleasant for us and actually means we CANNOT use our garden. I'll say that a dealer rocking up at 4pm whilst all of the children were playing out (our roads get shut once a month for this) is just wrong on so many levels - and very subtely say that I'll call police should this happen again. I'm also going to contact their uni and ask for pointers. We've got the LL's number as we are hoping to extend our side porch and we share a wall. I just know he doesn't give a sh1t about 'relations' or their behaviour.

I've already said to DH that I won't tolerate another lot like this. We've had lots of these 'gatherings', problems with their rubbish mounting up in the garden, climbing in to our garden to break in to theirs when they've forgotten keys, noisy comings and goings late at night, loud music late at night. So for those that've said they're OK and normal, I'm afraid to say I've endured a reasonable amount!

I know they're not staying which is good. I'm also happy to build bridges every year with the next lot that come in - I just think I'm going to have to print out the 'ground rules' so they can stick it on the wall!

DH and I decided early on that I'd be the main contact as I'm quite short (hence name!) and hopefully less threatening. The couple of times that he's got ape at them I've always been worried that they might kick off.

I talked to mine, AND I rewarded them with beer and chocolates for being quieter ( for one week), some more mates moved in and it was worse than before. it prolonged the whole process....because I was sensible and reasonable and rational, they were young, selfish and just wanted to party with their mates.

Born free, you misunderstand. I was talking about the tenancy agreement that I signed. Not saying I have authority, just saying I remember from the contract.

Other people have mentioned being a student without the same stupid comment from you and I never said she HAD to put up with it.

what the landlord is charging is utterly irrelevant. Students are a high risk for destroying properties and so will pay more.

as it sounds like they are just spoilt kids (with the Kevin and Perry behaviour) it may be worth doing what the parents didn't and scaring the shit out of them. A deep adult male voice yelling quite often does the trick - doesn't need to be swearing. This could also be a 'once more and we get in touch with the university'.

but their contract will ban illegal behaviour so they need to stop bringing the dealer round.

oh, and no-one of any age is entitled to party constantly unless they live out of earshot of all neighbours.

I think you need to go round and be straight with them. Explain that you want to live and let live, but some of their behaviour (drug taking etc) in the view of your children is unacceptable. The chances are that they will take it on board and be a bit more considerate.

LittleMilla, your last post mentions more behaviour than OP. If you feel uncomfortable, that's the important thing, rather than what they are actually doing to upset you.

It does sound like you need to take firm action, if the talking you have planned doesn't work.