Shit neighbours v WFH

[Midsommar]

Sorry for the grumpy post - might be due to a bad night's sleep! But I need to rant and I think this is the best place for it!

I am currently on what feels like day 1034 of working from home and my neighbours are driving me INSANE.

Having friends over and loudly jabbering away on the garden and drinking, playing crap music and leaving dogs to bark all day. Our neighbours across from us (their back garden faces our front - strange I know) lock their demon dog out all day and I swear its bark makes my house shake it's so god damn loud! Well, may be a slight overrexaggeration...but it's so annoying when I'm on a work call and have to keep asking them to speak louder as the barking drowns them out.

I get people are bored but why can't they be a little more considerate? How are other people getting on? Anyone else got shitty neighbours?

I think I need a nap.

I don't think you're alone. There's been so many threads on here recently about people's neighbours.

I know you shouldn't have to, but can you get yourself a headset with noise cancelling headphones and a microphone? It will make the world of difference to your calls. And do tell the neighbours the constant barking is too much.

Odd neighbours here too who keep staring out the window at me while I’m wfh. If I’m putting washing out, they’re there staring, watching tv, there, eating dinner - there. Beginning to feel as though I’m in a zoo or circus and I’m the act that’s being watched. It’s quite unnerving.
They’re new neighbours and also keep disappearing half the week, which is a blessing but also odd given the current circumstances. The whole thing is odd!!

I used to have crap neighbours that either caused upset by demanding they had upto 5 of the spaces in the street for the fleet of cars each family member had and then another neighbour had her beak over the fence asking what we are doing every day, awful... her husband used to smoke weed on the front step daily too, i hated it, i didnt want my son growing up thinking that was a normal smell..

the day i moved was so satisfying to leave them all behind.. now live in a close with 6 other neighbours, your lucky to see them twice a year and the eldery indian lady next door is away 6 months of the year so no more nosey neighbour problems..

@TheGlitterFairy snap! I'm in a zoo too then. My neighbours (with the devil dog) are starers too. They stare at me when I go out to the bin or to my car. My NDNs have commented on this pre-lockdown too. It's like they're fascinated by our movements. Creepy.

@isitsummertimeyet can I come live on your street please

Crap neighbours here too. My NDN is aggressive, nasty, has a drink problem, loud, encourages her awful kids to be as loud as possible and constantly has a string of people round.
So far during lockdown we've had to threaten to call police to get her off my property, been screamed at, threatened, had rubbish and old food thrown into our garden, get 'bitch' screamed at me every time I leave the house, had people trying to intimidate me from the edge of my property and had constant noise coming through the walls from kids and dogs running round.

It's an absolute nightmare. She knows we have an ill newborn and thinks it's funny to make my life a misery. It's all caused by her thinking we called police about one of the many incidents she's caused - we didn't!

I'm being pushed out of a lovely property I've lived in for many years. I just dread to think what could come back on me in the future after I sell, if she continues to be a massive twat with the buyers.

I have shit neighbours too! We have ongoing issue with them as it is due to them being entitled to parking and keep blocking me and my partner in on our drive.

Their dog constantly barks in the garden and in the house, I'm a carer working long hours and the barking drives me insane. On Saturday it was scorching where we are, had all the windows open and back door open. They decided to light a fire. Our back gardens are small as we are in new builds and we were only about 30 ft from them, and because I closed all my daughter's windows, they came round to start kicking off at me and my partner because it seemed like we had a problem with them burning household waste. I said fires during lockdown were banned at the moment and that I have asthma and my daughter has breathing issues. Did get through to them that it is causing a nuisance. They are only early 20s and think that they are entitled to do what they like regardless of anyone else

Hello! Our neighbours have been weirdly quiet for the last few days which puts me on edge but Friday/Saturday/Sunday we were treated to music for on average 8 hours each day in the garden, so no respite. Also around 8 of them sunbathing/talking and yelling incessantly and the barbecue being fired up. My partner had to basically tell them to go inside at around 3am on Sunday morning, music still playing, albeit quietly but the dull thud thud music which seeps into your soul and
makes you feel ike you are going insane. Don't worry, most of them went inside but the older couple who live there decided to have muffled sex in the garden while my partner went outside to get some fresh air at around 4am as he couldn't sleep after getting cross with them for the third time that day. We only recently moved her but i'm getting the house valued again. At 9 months pregnant. Delight.

Shitty neighbours here too. Since Saturday they've started throwing lit cigarettes into my garden.

Lockdown is sending many crazy in unkind ways

Oh, god, it's like a three-ring circus around here and not just during lockdown! I work from home and home school normally. We've had loud DIY from both sides. We have the mad guy two doors down who plays loud grime and shouts at his neighbours ALL THE TIME! He also has an electric bike which he circles the block on and he rides with a portable speaker around his neck playing said grime. We have the drug dealer at the end who has never been busier and is definitely not socially distancing whose 'clients' spend hours outside shouting loudly. The Roma opposite open their door and have loud parties in which they dance outside said house to the music, somewhat odd too. Next door appear to be nocturnal and allow their children to run madly around the house late at night. House alarm going off repeatedly for the best part of a week 24 hours a day. Bonfires in gardens. Parking on the street preventing the rubbish lorry from collecting so we now have a months worth of recycling. Constant fly-tipping, overrun with rats. Dreading the hot weather because of the flies and smell. The hot weather will also bring out the 'fighters' so summer will be a joy! And we cannot escape well only to Sainsbury's!

I sooooo want to move!

I have missed my quiet classroom and drama studio so much! Rather 30 teenagers than next door.
He conducts every conversation on his phone outside, passively aggressively moaning about kids playing 2 doors down.
He has a wooden decking area he jet washes in the morning.
He plays loud old house music randomly for 30 minutes here and there.
It s not as bad as yours by any means but it s rage inducing.
Also he burnt old shoes in his garden and had a woman round in lockdown who he argued with.
I laughed next morning when i put the rubbish out and saw she had written TINY COCK in the dust on his white car.
We now refer to him amongst ourselves as TC .
For context he s early 60s so not young!
I did a few days in school this week. Lovely and quiet.

Wow. These stories make me so mad, especially about neighbours being aggressive and chucking lit cigarettes in gardens and generally anti-social behaviour. It's disgusting my heart goes out to you all. Let's hope lockdown is lifted soon...

@Midsommar agree - it's a bit creepy. I think the woman and children (who are the ones staring) have recently moved in with the chap who lives there as it's only become a "thing" recently. I did wonder whether all was ok with them all as the whole set up seems strange. Creepy indeed!

the older couple who live there decided to have muffled sex in the garden while my partner went outside to get some fresh air at around 4am

Ummm this sounds a little bit nuts tho... The 'muffled' sounds like you would have had to actively listen to hear them. I'm not sure having quiet sex in one's garden at 4am is grounds for complaint

I feel particularly happier after reading these , especially the post from @sportinguista .

My new neighbour is loud . She might just be like that naturally . Oh and music is blared out on occasions but not unbearable . I wasn't keen on her but now I think it could be a whole lot worse.

I feel the same, my neighbour let their kids scream out in the backyard, stick their dogs outside whilst trying to homeschool their kids which then the dogs bark at everything, her partner lifts weights outside and grunts loudly whilst doing that all during working hours. I get it that everyone is in the same boat but I'm quiet in the morning when I go out for my workout as it's early and they know that I am WFH and my made up office (spare room) is based at the back off the house. Top that off with the kids running up and down their stairs, banging on the walls and playing music loud.

Sorry, I've been waiting for this post for a while.

Shitty neighbours here too and I am left quietly raging at their selfish antics day in day out. Just when we thought they couldn't irritate us anymore they have now added playing loud dance music to the mix. We can hear it thumping through the house even when the windows and doors are closed. The new boyfriend has moved in so I'm thinking it must be him with the music as it was never an issue before. This used to be such a quiet street and these neighbours have really lowered the tone. We havent lived in our house for long but we are already planning our next house move. It makes me so angry as we had no plans to move for another few years but I just cant face the daily shit from next door. Our garden is out of bounds for us now because their dogs bark at our every move and now we have them playing their loud shitty music aswell. It puzzles me how others can be so selfish and inconsiderate. I hate these people!!!!!!!

My DM is 83 and her NDN has a screw loose. He harasses her because he wanted her to put a new wall up between their gardens (it's DM's wall). There's an old one there at the moment but he wanted it moved over a bit too so that it made DMs garden smaller and gave him more room to park two cars instead of one. This would mean DMs garden would then be barely big enough for one car and it's already a tight fit. Naturally she refused. He does lots of little things like regularly throwing over cigarette ends and chewed gum, 'accidentally' spraying her windows when he washes his car with the hose. The old wall in between is not in the best condition so he tries to push odd bricks here and there out of alignment. Mum won't get it rebuilt out of principle to annoy him back.

@NotWantingToOffend do you live on my road!? We have neighbours who work out on the garden making loads of noise, and a dog that barks loud!

We are all going to end up hating our neighbours at this rate!

We've got neighbours that row from about 9am until 2pm daily, we can only assume they are exhausted at that point and have a nap! They row again between 4&7ish then the only sounds is their tv (not loud admittedly). It's pretty abusive from him and I wanted to try to speak to her alone to tell her to come around if she needs a safe space. Other side are lovely and also wfh - looking forward to being able to have a bbq with them soon (we didn't know them before the clapping)

@SkyDragon oh I don’t care if they want to do it in their garden, it was the 15 solid hours of music beforehand that was the point! My partner had just reached the end of his tether and told me the next day. Plus, go inside!

Our neighbour has his tuneless brat of a child over bashing the fuck out of the drums daddy bought him to seem cool and now allows him to knock fuck into them every hour or so all day everyday in the year he has had them he has become no better and it would honestly be better and more tuneful if they were demolishing the roof. Considering its flats the blokes a total cunt, trying to deal with clients and work its a nightmare

Mine are paid to shift rubbish by other people, then burn it on the land behind our houses.
Fire brigade have been called out 3 times in 2 weeks because they've left it unattended & it's got a bit out of hand.

I wfh as the norm. So over the years, my suggestions to try are:
-Don't open windows in the house unti you really have to
-if there are less disturbances earlier in the day, could you try starting say at 7or730am so that you've already done a good chunk of your hours before the disturbances start.
-time meetings for the timings that your neighbours tend to be quieter.
-If the dog is at the front, try working in a room at the back, shutting internal doors.
-Having low level classical music in the background may distract from neighbours noises but not be too distracting for conference calls