DH and I have been trying to sell our house for some months. All the other houses on our street have sold within days this year, except ours. We are consistently getting feedback that one reason people decided not to buy is that the neighbour’s house looks derelict. One couple even said they would’ve put an offer in if it wasn’t for the neighbour.
The neighbour - it’s not a derelict house, the guy who lives there is nice enough. But he is a hoarder who never cleans, never redecorates etc. The window frames and front door are all badly peeling (have been for the last 10 years), the front yard is totally overgrown, the curtains you can see through the windows are hanging off etc.
A couple of weeks back I went round, explained the situation and asked him to clear it up. He agreed that he would. But all he has done is cut down one large, overgrown buddleia that was hanging half way across the pavement. The yard is still covered in weeds, the doors and windows still need painting, etc. It still looks derelict.
Not really sure what to do next. The council won’t do anything because it’s private property. Offer to clean it up for him?! I really don’t want to offend/upset him (any more than I already have) but it’s stopping us from moving on with our lives and potentially costing us thousands of pounds as we’ll have to bring the price down. Any advice welcome!