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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To be suspicious of somebody taking a photo of my house?

80 replies

Sixisthemagicnumber · 06/02/2017 13:41

I was sitting in the living rom when I noticed a car drive up, stop outside my house, the passenger window wound down and the passenger took a photo of my house using a phone camera. I don't recognise these people and couldn't get outside quick enough to ask them what the hell they were doing as they drove off straight after taking the photo and I had a toddler under my feet. There were two women in the car - fairly young. I did manage to read the number plate and wrote it down as soon as I could. We are a small street - only 20 houses and they didn't take a picture of any other house.
Why would somebody do this?
I can only think they were up to no good.

OP posts:

MyCatIsTryingToKillMe · 06/02/2017 14:11

I'm an architect and I'm always taking photos of houses, most often it's to provide evidence of precedent when making a planning application or appeal. You say you have a double storey side extension, maybe they wanted a pic of that to justify their own development?

FireInTheHead · 06/02/2017 14:15

I always assumed they did the same, drspouse, in fact the listing of our house pre-sale with all the photos is still on zillow and Redfin so they could have used those but, apparently, some agents like to drive around and get their own up to date exterior shots of similar properties to the ones they're selling.

NarkyMcDinkyChops · 06/02/2017 14:16

Why is everyone so bloody paranoid? What could they possibly have been doing?
And if you had got there quicker, what would you have said to people behaving perfectly legally and doing no harm to anyone?

Original poster

Sixisthemagicnumber · 06/02/2017 14:18

I thought about that mycat but there are 4 houses in the street with double storey side extensions and they didn't take pictures of any of the others.
I am coming around to the idea that there is an innocent explanation. I previously lived in an area of high burglary (I personally witnessed three take place in broad daylight in neighbouring houses) and my current neighbour had her car broken into 3 days ago so I think my paranoia radar is on overdrive.

OP posts:

TinselTwins · 06/02/2017 14:20

How old is your house? maybe they grew up there?

My (awful) mother took me on a tour of her previous homes once, it was the most cringeful thing ever!

She took photos and even knocked on doors inviting herself in due to having lived there before and proceeded to ask to show me around even though the occupiers were clearly uncomfortable with the whole thing and were too surprised/ambused to say "no! get out!"

I was only a kid but told her that the people clearly were not happy with her behaviour - she insisted that the owners were as interested to meet her as she was to see what her previous houses look like now

She is a bit crazy though..

Original poster

Sixisthemagicnumber · 06/02/2017 14:20

I would have asked hem why they were taking pictures of my house narky. I just don't think it is the norm to go around taking pictures of houses which are not for sale.

OP posts:

rjay123 · 06/02/2017 14:22

Google will have a photo of your house on street view.

I wouldn't worry too much about it as a one off. If it happens again, then I'd consider popping into your local police station for advice.

MyCatIsTryingToKillMe · 06/02/2017 14:22

Maybe they liked yours best? Or couldn't see the others as clearly? I'm sure it's perfectly innocent, you are just getting worried due to the recent break in.

NarkyMcDinkyChops · 06/02/2017 14:26

I would have asked hem why they were taking pictures of my house narky

And they could have said "none of your business". Anyone can take a picture of a house , or a car, or a person. Anything they want, pretty much. Anyone can look at the pictures of your house on Google anyway.

Burglars don't announce themselves by letting you see them take pics of the front of a house that would not in anyway help them to burgle your house, and get their car reg.

NarkyMcDinkyChops · 06/02/2017 14:27

If it happens again, then I'd consider popping into your local police station for advice

Please don't. They are busy dealing with actual crimes, as well as all the other ephemera that MN'ers advise each other they should go to the police about!

Sundance01 · 06/02/2017 14:29

I moved around a lot as a child and did this a few years ago - drove to all my old houses and took a photo - we were spotted at one and drove off quickly - really should have just said what we were doing.

They may have liked your door/garden/curtains and wanted to take a photo to look for something similar

TinselTwins · 06/02/2017 14:30

Nobody said call 999
There's nothing wrong with calling 111 with something that could be something or could be nothing.. it might be relevant to something else that's going on in the area that you don't know about, and 111 isn't taking police away from "real crimes" - it's just logging something irregular so that if it does turn out to be related to a real crime, the police can re-visit it

MadHattersTea · 06/02/2017 14:33

Maybe they are film producers looking for new locations....

They have identified your home as their ideal and will come back mext week with the offer of £10000 per week to use it. :)

NarkyMcDinkyChops · 06/02/2017 14:34

There really is. Calling the police to report somebody doing something you know to be not a crime in any way is wasting police time.
Police do not "log" peoples fears of other people doing non-crime things.

needapaddle · 06/02/2017 14:38

If it happens again, then I'd consider popping into your local police station for advice

Or don't - because they will laugh and then hopefully get on with solving actual crimes! We had our car stolen last year & I get the paranoia (I leap up in the night every time I hear a car start or a door slam, it is exhausting). The police had very little interest in our missing car and when it did turn up still showed very little interest, so I can't imagine 'women taking photos, possibly playing pokemon go, possibly reminicing about childhood home but possibly 'casing the joint' would feature very far up the list!

Also I am another one who recently took a photo of the front door of my best friends childhood home (arty b&w one for him to frame, sounds lame but actually turned out well). Not sure what the residents would have thought - it is communal door to a large townhouse split into flats, but hopefully didn't think I was 'casing the joint'!

RainyDayBear · 06/02/2017 14:39

I've taken pictures of houses that I used to live in and houses that my family used to live in. It's most likely something innocent along those lines!

NetballHoop · 06/02/2017 14:39

Are any of your neighbours about to do building work? When our neighbours built their extension, a chap from their surveyors came and took photos of our house as proof of the condition before the work started - they sent us copies of them too. I think it was down to the Party Wall Act.

Willowwisp23 · 06/02/2017 14:39

Ive taken photos on my phone of front doors I like as inspiration for my own house. Nothing dodgy!

GwenStaceyRocks · 06/02/2017 14:44

You don't need to be a pokestop to have pokemon in your garden.
Our house has an actual pokestop on it - I can't decide if that will help us when we come to sell or hinder us. I can see a Pokemon Go fanatic liking the fact they can collect pokestop items from the comfort of the couch.

SuperMoonIsKeepingMeUpToo · 06/02/2017 14:45

You're right to be suspicious. When I was a teenager I remember walking up to the road via the alley way that ran alongside our house ie unanticipated by anyone outside. There was a car parked just over the road with a couple of blokes in it which speed off when they saw me. We were burgled that night. Sorry. Hope there's a more innocent explanation.

shovetheholly · 06/02/2017 14:47

I think they are members of a cult who are looking for a place for their evil black magic rituals.

Be really careful if you find dead chicken heads outside your house. Or unexplained amounts of blood on the pavement. Or strange chalk hieroglyphics.

SallyLeStrange · 06/02/2017 14:48

Oh my god. I have heard of this. People taking pictures of houses than inflicting the occupants with leprosy

MrsEricBana · 06/02/2017 14:50

Honestly wouldn't think anything alarming - prob just something you've done to the house that they love (or want to avoid!).

FireInTheHead · 06/02/2017 14:52

Madhatters We have friends this happened to for a biopic about a very famous person. They live on the street where he grew up, it's a fairly ordinary street, but I've seen car loads of tourists pull up outside their house which is on the corner and take pics of the street sign outside then move down the street to get pics of his former home. My own ds may have been guilty of doing the same thing the first time we took him to visit our friends when he was on vacation here

tootsietoo · 06/02/2017 14:55

I used to do property valuations and would take pictures of comparable properties. DH does this too, for commercial properties. He once got hauled into a civic centre by the town centre security! They didn't believe him when he told them what he was doing

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