Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask for revenge ideas on the sodding students next door

268 replies

HomeIsWhereTheGinisNow · 25/09/2016 15:03

At the end of my tether. Group of students have just moved into the terraced house next door, and had a 21st birthday last night. It was ludicrous, music pounding until 3am when the police finally shut them down. Desperate requests for the music to be turned down (not off...) at 8pm and midnight were met with serious attitudes and an expectation that as it was a birthday party we should just deal with it ("it's not Sen midnight...!"). The London council in charge of the borough has helpfully closed down their noise officer service, and as we're London we're bottom of the list for the police. So basically we're stuck. Begging them to turn it down so our two year old could get some sleep didn't work as they literally told me that they couldn't imagine what it'd be like to be a parent, it must be hard etc.

So here's the rub. Their landlord is gong to have a word but I'm not sure what he can do. The authorities won't help. So I suspect we're in for an academic year of misery, what would you do?

OP posts:
Humidseptember · 26/09/2016 13:11

Their landlord is gong to have a word but I'm not sure what he can do. The authorities won't help. So I suspect we're in for an academic year of misery, what would you do?

they will have a tennancy agreement I assume which must have some sort of clause in it and you keep on at the landlord he is MAKING MONEY FROM YOUR MISERY . And you keep on at the UNI as well, they are their students who are making your life a misery! They need to get them in line.

You keep on at these people until you get relief.

Humidseptember · 26/09/2016 13:14

Not sensible at all to wash your hands of students REPRESENTING YOUR UNIVERSITY running riot causing major issues to the community!

Ohlalala · 26/09/2016 13:35

That sounds absolutely horrible, OP. I have been through something similar (noisy professionals, not students) and ended up moving out after everything I tried (nice chat to them, mediation, police,...) failed. And I can't believe posters think it is fine to play loud music at any time of day or night. You are defo not unreasonable.
I'd say though to try and keep things as friendly as you can with your neighbours as it could escalate really badly. I mean, they haven't come across as particularly mature and responsible so far so it could end up tit-for-tat and you will be the one suffering from stress/anxiety/... while they won't be caring less and thinking it is all a joke.
I'd go and see them once they have recovered from their hungover and woken up (around 3pm?!) and explain why you asked for the music to be turned down. I have a feeling it won't work but at least you will have tried, then move things up on a notch (police, landlord, etc?).
If nothing works and you decide to leave....don't sell your house, start letting it out to students. It will pay off your mortgage soon enough looking at the profits landlords make. So it'll be your form of revenge against the system, admittedly against the wrong students but oh hey...

WanderingNotLost · 26/09/2016 13:38

It's fresher's week, it'll die down soon enough once the work starts.

RiverTam · 26/09/2016 13:49

But if it's a 21st they're unlikely to be freshers, they'll be 3rd years. So they'll be working much harder than first years, so much less to be worried about, they're not going to be partying all year or even all term.

Floisme · 26/09/2016 14:20

I can understand being unhappy about the noise and anxious about whether it might become a regular thing. But the reference to 'sodding students' - because yeah, students are just a single amorphous group - plus the playground-ish request for 'revenge ideas', pretty much annulled any sympathy I would otherwise have had.

Good luck when your two-year old starts annoying people.

PerspicaciaTick · 26/09/2016 15:07

OP appears to have a remarkably short tether.
One night, one party an she's lost it.

UsernameHistory · 26/09/2016 15:27

I know that when I was a student, the idea of waging war on a neighbour who liked to ring our doorbell early in the morning (or whatever other ideas have been suggested) would have been amazing. I think we'd have won.

Try talking to them like adults. It's what they are. The policy from the uni is almost unenforceable. The LL will have no real interest in evicting them. Besides the issues mentioned above, they're unlikely to rent it quickly or easily mid-semester.

I agree that complaining at 8pm probably made you seem like an idiot.

Asking them nicely to think about your family when they're sober mid-week, mid-afternoon is likely to get you much further.

Funnyface1 · 26/09/2016 15:35

I don't think it's unreasonable to ask them to turn it down to a respectable level at 8pm if you have a small child that needs to sleep. People should respect their neighbours at night! A party is not a get out of jail free to be shit to people.

Gini99 · 26/09/2016 15:57

The LL will have no real interest in evicting them

I am no expert on this but can't the LL have the HMO licence revoked if there are serious anti-social behaviour problems? I imagine it would have to be pretty bad before that happened but it would give the LL a strong incentive to deal with complaints.

CalmYaTits · 26/09/2016 16:06

Mackerel I like your style Grin

CarrotVan · 26/09/2016 16:16

Margaret I know of several universities who have suspended or excluded students because of their behaviour in private accommodation and the impact on the community. The policy of the University is fully enforceable (if drafted and enacted properly) and has been enforced in a variety of places.

The council have also revoked HMO licenses from landlords for repeated failure to manage their tenants.

sashh · 26/09/2016 16:53

Really not sure the LL can do much. Even if making too much noise and receiving complaints from neighbours about it is an evictable offence in their tenancy agreement, eviction will cost the LL time and effort

But there can be other penalties, not just eviction.

In student halls students loose part of their deposit if the fire alarm is being set off when there is no fire and for other things.

A LL turning up and saying another party and £100 of your deposit is gone might do wonders.

MargaretCavendish · 26/09/2016 17:14

Carrotvan I can accept that's true; I still think it's completely wrong and if any of those students were on my modules or one of my pastoral students I would be prepared to fight tooth and nail for them. They're there to study, not to be good people: I fundamentally believe that the only reason someone should be dismissed from an academic course is poor performance, academic malpractice (cheating) or if they pose an actual danger to staff or students.

A LL turning up and saying another party and £100 of your deposit is gone might do wonders.
It would also be illegal. The deposit is for damage, and it's not the LL's money: they can't just confiscate it on a whim. That's why it has to go into a deposit scheme.

OurBlanche · 26/09/2016 17:26

There are lots more rues and regs in Uni Lets nowadays and the antisocial behaviour ones are being more and more rigourously applied.

It is not the LL that levies fines but the Uni via their behaviour policy.

Ketchuponpizza · 26/09/2016 17:44

Hrft

Gospel music. From 6:30 am.
VERY LOUDLY

Shona52 · 26/09/2016 17:54

Go to their university see if they can help

MrsSparkles · 26/09/2016 18:11

I think on the basis of one night and one party you are being a bit unreasonable. Try having a chat with them during the day when you're not feeling quite so stressed (and they haven't had so much to drink).

I see it from both sides - as a young professional in London we had parties in our terraced house, probably 2/3 times a year, we'd always be out of the garden and music turned down a reasonable level by 12, and we'd warn/invite the neighbours.

In the same house (after we'd had DD1) the tenants from hell moved in next door - parties all night several times a week, shrieking in the garden all summer. We regularly called the landlord to complain, they finally got evicted after we called at 11pm on a Sunday after a 3 days party and he heard the noisy. So def complain to landlord/letting agent/uni as it will have an effect.

CarrotVan · 26/09/2016 18:24

I agree margaret. I also have massive issues with students trying to use Dignity at Work policies to resolve their housemate rows and relationship breakdowns.

jellybeans · 26/09/2016 18:33

The landlord is hugely unlikely to evict as the odds of getting a group of students in this late is nil. Therefor he would lose a year's rental.

I have had hell ish neighbours so sympathise. Luckily they moved on although it was about a year. The landlord didn't care and let dreadful people rent in a quiet area with lots of elderly.

goose1964 · 26/09/2016 18:36

This happened to us the next morning I took DS who was about 6 months old and let him scream his head off ( colicky baby) outside their windows. Never happened again

chazf09 · 26/09/2016 18:53

If its a one of let them be. If it happens on a school night or every weekend then complain. We r all allowed a blow out now n then

Notquitewhatiexpected · 26/09/2016 19:07

Call the police as soon as the noise starts to annoy, saying that your husband/partner is so angry he's going to go round there and beat someone up. The police will then turn up asap,as they have to respond to any threat of violence, and will understand when you explain you have kids and need the noise to stop. Also, contact the university directly, as they hate conflict between town and gown, even if the landlord doesn't do much. Yes, we had about 6 years of living next door to students.

embo1 · 26/09/2016 19:28

Phone the landlord every single time and every half hour until it stops. 8pm may be a bit early, but it is after kid's bedtimes, so I would be annoyed of it kept my son up. To go on to 3am however, is not on. They live in a residential area, not halls of residence and should act accordingly.
Call the neighbourhood police to see if anything can be done.

Gini99 · 26/09/2016 19:28

We r all allowed a blow out now n then

I'm really perplexed by the attitude that it is OK to inflict that 'blow out' on neighbours in a residential area. There are plenty of clubs etc that people can go to if they want to party with loud music. If you can't afford/don't want to do that then have a party at home but turn the music down so that your neighbours aren't affected. I can't imagine how people get so self-centred that they think their wish to listen to music at a particular volume is more important than the peace and quiet of everyone around them.