Have you ever lived next door to someone much richer or poorer than you?

[ColdcoffeeHotface]

As I posted on another thread, my neighbour had an extended rant at me today. He kept repeating that I was 'in a bubble' and didn't understand 'real life' and also that I 'flaunted my wealth.' We live in a house identical to his, my children have a second hand trampoline and swing set. We sometimes buy them toys for their birthday. I have a ten year old car.
But it made me think, is there anyway of not 'flaunting your wealth' or lack of it? People earn varying degrees of money, yet in many areas we all live side by side (especially in cities.) Can you really not show in any way that you have £500 more disposable income per month than your neighbours? And what would flashy look like? My relatives just bought a hot tub but I would be mortified to put it up in my area, especially after today, same with getting an Ocado delivery. Is this why people move to 'naice' areas?

[Namechanger4dis]

We live in a flat in a small market town. The flats are all above shops but are different sizes and levels of finish. All are rented but cost vastly different amounts. Everyone is friendly and wouldn’t discuss money. However, I can extrapolate from conversations about jobs/holidays etc that we have more disposable income that other people in the flats around us. It doesn’t matter and I’ve only really thought about it because of this thread.

[formerbabe]

This is why I have as little to do with my neighbours as possible.

[Pipandmum]

My parents lived in a flat next to a multi millionaire TV chef. His was a huge detached seven bedroom house, theirs was a one bedroom flat (identical house but divided up). Only annoyance was the occasional paparazzi in an otherwise family neighbourhood.
I owned my own (ex council) house and lived next to a council tenant who had raised her five children in hers - I thought the size was perfect for two and amazed she survived! But that's life there was no resentment.
I currently have the only whole house amongst several that have all been divided up, then a terrace of small two beds. I have the only in and out drive and a big garden with a pool. There are other houses like mine but several blocks up the street, I'm the anomaly down my end (which is how I could afford it). My kids also go to a private school rather than the two state schools a block away. Maybe my neighbours resent me, maybe not. I don't think anyone would say anything to my face. And my neighbours could be millionaires with second homes and a yacht for all I know. Couldn't care less.

[LaCroixStOuen]

Ooh Xenia do you live in Hounslow (or rather a naice house near Osterley park?)

[Lepetitpiggy]

Our neighbours are a young couple with two lovely small children. A few years ago, after a huge amount of hard work, he started a computer thingy ( that's how much I know about it!) This has made him a literal multi millionaire.
They have the same small car, the kids go to the local school and all they've really done is add a very nice extension to the house. The road is a normal M/C road with people like us (public sector) living here. They are still exactly the same, useless with anything practical, which dh is always being asked to help with and stay very quiet about it!

[Coffeecak3]

Where I live now I have a neighbour who has just bought a third property and another neighbour who Is probably not very well off. We’re all really good friends and never discuss money, I only know about the property because we keep an eye on neighbour’s house when he goes to other home.
I have a sil who is jealous of anyone with money even though she is v. comfortably off. I always say if she had 90% of the worlds resources and her neighbour only had the other 10% she would think it unfair that her neighbour had something she didn’t.

[Notcontent]

Loving the idea of an Ocado delivery being a sign of wealth. This thread has made me feel quite prosperous.

But on a serious note, I live in quite a nice part of London but the houses in my street used to be a lot cheaper than they are now, so there is quite a mix of people, including many who are very well off, but I certainly don’t think anyone is “flaunting their wealth”.

[StopMakingATitOfUrselfNPissOff]

How bizarre!

We own our house but 4/6 close neighbours are HA rented. It's never really concerned me how they feel about us in the same way I haven't about them. We are all polite enough and look out for each others houses/cars.

[CHIRIBAYA]

I don't notice what my neighbours have or haven't got; I'm just not interested. Sounds like yours has got a great big greasy fat chip on his shoulder.

[TwoZeroTwoZero]

Considering that I live in a housing association house and all my closest neighbours own theirs then yes, I'm the poorer neighbour. You can't tell though, really, because they're all ex-council. As far as I can tell no-one judges us for renting.

[dottiedodah]

I find this genuinely bizarre! Surely if you live in the same street ,then you must have similar income surely? We have very similar cars to our neighbours .Most of us have put in new kitchens and bathrooms and so on .I think NDN is a bit out of order TBH!

[AnnaMagnani]

He's bonkers.

I used to live in London opposite Matt Dawson when he was on Strictly. Never met, only found out when I saw him going in his house when I was moving out

My house was not like his house

I now live in a village where I have Russian oligarchs up the road, a family who have a professional fireworks show every Nov 5th - it's great, we can see it from our window, and people with giant duckponds with duckponds and everything. All the way down to those who still have outside toilets.

Everyone gets on, if you have an issue it's your own inverse snobbery.

[Teddy1970]

checkingforballoons you're not in Oxshott by any chance?

[AnnaMagnani]

Duckhouses in the duckponds. Obvs.

[NoProblem123]

Buy a hot tub, the electric they go through will sort out your disposable income.
Invite CF neighbour round to apologise for being rich

[coronabeer23]

I don’t have the first clue about my neighbours finances. How do people know?

[sweeneytoddsrazor]

I have absolutely no idea what my neighbours incomes are. Don't even know half of their names although most say hello and exchange a few pleasantries if we happen to see each other.

[EL8888]

Your neighbour sounds rude and mental. “Flaunting your wealth” does he know how bitter and jealous that sounds? Plus your “behaviour” way of living sounds pretty normal to me

We are not one of the wealthiest on our road by any means! Most are houses worth about half a million, we live in a flat. No one ever comments on it or how we spend our money! My neighbours are probably more sane and have better manners than your neighbour

[overtly]

We live in an area where house prices shot up 50% plus in recent years. Lots of younger families like us have moved into the street when the elderly have died. We now live alongside people who by their own admission couldn't afford their own house - though those people are often retired with no mortgage so I imagine a decent amount of disposable income. We all have very similar cars, RRs, BMW etc. Only difference is those of us who have purchased within the past few years tend to have given our houses a facelift. We all live alongside each other very happily, quiet street and no drama as far as I'm aware. Your neighbour is very rude.

[Bluntness100]

My neighbours are very wealthy, think houses worth several million, multilple cars, inc Ferrari’s and astons etc. And very serious jobs or had very serious jobs. We socialise together and it isn’t an issue, I think we would be described as comfortable and no more. A long way away from their financial status.

I also grew up in a council estate. We had poverty at times, but nothing like some of what I saw and witnessed, people on the bones of their arse and turning to crime. Again it made no difference in how I interacted. You just learn not to judge or be intimidated. I honestly don’t givr it any thought.

The problem here is your neighbour not you. But many people are like this. You see multiple threads on here where people are asking how folks afford stuff and people saying oh it’s debt and parents, when often it’s no such thing, or people proclaiming everyone is lying about a high salary, or The other way, looking down on those with less, but that is rarer as is often about rental v ownership of houses.

[SimonJT]

I lived in a HMO in Hoxton with eight bedrooms, the townhouse nextdoor was a single dwelling, it would have been worth at least £1 million. They had a holiday home and were often gone for weeks at a time, when they were gone they used to let us use their garden.

[Pixiefringe]

I lived next door to an extremely wealthy family who all drove expensive cars and had masses of land. We rented the other half of the converted cottage (well I say half but their house was double ours in size). They were absolutely lovely but it did sting a bit when they saw our (extremely cherished, expensive to us) buggy and exclaimed 'oh that's the one we bought for our holiday!'. In other words cheap enough they don't mind if it gets damaged on the flight 😅

[SnugglySnerd]

I think our neighbours just spend money on different things to us e.g. they get a lot of take aways and have flashy new cars on the drive. We can't afford those things and car don't interest us anyway but we have twins in nursery which takes up a massive chunk of our salary and have annual membership to a couple of places we like to go with the dcs. Outwardly they would appear better off but I would imagine our actual incomes are similar.

[Iwalkinmyclothing]

I've lived next door to people much richer than me. I didn't care. They didn't seem to care. I was envious of some of their stuff but not to the extent it changed how I felt about them. They had a lovely dog and I am not a dog person at all but for some reason really liked him, he was soppy and daft.

[Zaphodsotherhead]

When I lived in my wreck of a huge house my next door neighbour was a judge overseas. He only used the place next door for holidays. I could barely pay the rent and the electricity bill.

Should I have gone round and accused him of 'flaunting his wealth' by only needing to use his house for five weeks a year? (He was lovely by the way).

Now I live in a terraced cottage where all my neighbours are very young couples, pre children. I am probably better off than most of them (most are renting and I own outright), but we all get on. Why wouldn't we? They don't ask to see my bank statement and I don't ask how they manage to afford to run two cars.