Drying washing on our balcony

[Emmabryant123]

We private rent in a block of 16 flats
The flats vary from rented to owned .
We put our washing on two airers today on our balcony
No offensive clothing etc on show
We came down to this message on the main front door
Are we being unreasonable!? Or is this person who wrote this note being unreasonable?

Even if it's not allowed in your tenancy agreement, it's not for your neighbours to police it with passive aggressive notes!

I actually think it is madness that washing is held to such contempt. Broken down cars = agree. Fly tipping = agree. Clothing = bonkers

And the council estate reference is disgusting

ignore it and bring it up with the residents association if you have meetings, check with the "chairman" if there is anything that forbids putting washing out, we weren't allowed to in our flats. agree that the council flat reference is really snotty and unneccessary.

Imagine if every apartment in your block put washing out - it would look awful

God who cares?

I think that the whole ‘doesn’t look nice’ is rather petty bourgeoisie. Drying washing in fresh air is sensible.

On what planet are freshly washed pieces of fabric offensive?

Especially in newer builds, a bit of washing to break up the identikit orange bricks would be a nice change imho.

Imagine if every apartment in your block put washing out - it would look awful.

It would look like real life and people drying their washing in a sensible way.

YANBU that note was disgusting.

And it's not like you'll be drying washing every day with UK weather!!

OP, are your balcony walls made of glass or iron railings?

I only ask because if balconies are made of brick or painted concrete or whatever, then there should be NO rule against drying racks, provided they do not protrude above the parapet of the wall. I think that's reasonable. That would not impede on the visual aspect from outside if that's what the management company is concerned about.

Friends of ours have a nice apartment in Girona Spain, and the non protruding rule applies (no clothes lines or expandable upwards clothes horses) Works fine. Everywhere looks good from outside, and everyone gets their washing dry outdoors. Give and take I suppose.

Wish you well. I think you are right to get a steer from your LL first and see what they say.

How are people supposed to dry their clothes? I would carry on op and remove the note.

My Mother and I argue about this when she comes to stay with me. She doesn't like washing outside because "it isn't nice", I disagree. I have never understood why clothing hanging outside looks so awful. Does it not just look like some clothing hanging there? Maybe someone here can explain exactly why it looks so awful?

I have let some of the comments on this thread really wind me up

People who do hang their washing out are not automatically the type of people who have a rotting caravan and a sofa in their garden! Not everyone wants to run a tumble dryer - I don’t. They are expensive to run and someone I used to know theirs caught fire so I hang mine in my garden and I have a heated airer for the indoors. Indoor washing causes damp too

Pin up a new sign that says :

"No pinning up signs that reek of snobbery when a simple link to the deeds-clause will suffice"

I really think people need to get out more if they think a bit of washing looks awful. I understand broken cars/rubbish, although it would really effect me in any way. Don't care about trade vans either, people have to work and park their vans somewhere.
That is quite blatant snobbery if you don't like trade vans, its because you don't want the area to seem working class, where are people supposed to park their work vehicles? That's the nib and jist of the issue, people saying washing looks bad have the same opinion as the writer of the note. It's snobbery and makes you look a bit sad

Houses are for living and people need to dry their clothes, you go to cities in Europe and everyone has washing on their balconies! Think of Barcelona, venice etc. washing left right and centre. Because these people care about living their lives more than they care about what people think or how the outside of their building looks. And that's how we should live

pookie I know! I put out a couple of t-shirts on the line and automatically a load or rusting fridges and rotting sofas appears as well! Magic

I actually don't have any outside space this year and am really missing my line dried sheets, maybe that's why I'm so passionate about this issue

tbh I'd let them take legal action against me to enforce that clause, if they wished to make everyone pay for that.

And put a sign up saying "please do not place scruffy notices on communal entrance doors".

I had a neighbour like that once. I used to get lots of little notes when I first moved into my property. About things such as hoovering noise, getting furniture delivered, a new bathroom installed, etc.. One of them said "this is a private block of flats in a prime residential area". I sent a recorded delivery letter back pointing out that I would take legal action against future harassment, that I now had a little collection of evidence of the former, and that X town was so cheap that anyone with any semblance of employment could afford a flat in said supposed prime residential area.

The actual problem is that the neighbour was running an Air B&B and used to try and intimidate neighbours into not complaining about the stream of often rather odd men who stayed there and invited ladies of the night back with them by being aggressive.

I would find out who the note is from, keep an eye on the neighbour who sent it and find out something they are doing wrong.

I live in a Grade 2* listed building and no one has ever objected to me drying laundry on my balcony, including unmentionables.

Personally I wouldn’t like to hang my drying in a communal area. What’s to stop someone walking off with it?

Using your own balcony would be much more secure.

Where are the balconies facing that the washing might be seen by someone it shouldn't be??!!

I agree that of more concern is the encouragement to use tumble driers/have heating on & windows open!

The note is ridiculous also with the mention of council estates & no mention of a rule being broken.

I used to live in Japan, and everyone dries their washing on their balcony. It looks fine.

I would personally just ignore the note. Why care about what rude, snotty people think about you?

Do you have any neighbours who look like this?

Technically we are not supposed have anyone park vans or vehicles with logos and all sorts of other things, but the builders only care until everything has been sold and then people do what they want. Someone on ours has painted all their wood trim lemon yellow, looks shit and is probably against the rules, but meh, would anyone actually complain? and would the builders care? I'm guessing "no" on both counts.

Get the washing back out - snobby feckers.

If you hear back from your landlord and there is no clause forbidding drying washing on the balcony, write something on the back of the original note saying something along the lines of

“ Good news for residents: I have had it confirmed that there is no clause in the leasehold saying washing can’t be dried on balconies. Let’s do our bit for the environment and dry our washing outdoors ”

Only one thing to do here is start putting your underwear out there too

We have some weird covenants on our present property, which are mostly ignored looking around. We cannot keep hens for instance