New neighbours Screaming abuse and Smoking weed

[teacatsandababy]

I live in a lovely area- small three bed houses but saved for years and finally we own our own. I moved in two years ago and we've put every penny and spare second we earned the last two years into the house and garden so it's finally our dream home ready for our new family. The gardens have low fences (part of the agreement for the leasehold- it's got a social feel to the back garden areas). The house next door to me was sold to a landlord and my new neighbours moved in last week. I was so excited to meet them- now I want to cry.

There's a Mum/Dad and 5 children, three older teenagers two younger children. Instead of the social family atmosphere we used to have now I have constant and I mean constant screaming- the kids screaming at each other, the Mum screaming at the kids, every third word is a curse word. The younger kids have turned the small back garden into a football pitch/racetrack and have so far broken my fence panels by smashing into them, the roof on my pergola with the football, my tomato plants with the football and my fairy lights by pulling them off the fence.
The adults two older kids and 14 year old teenager smoke tobacco all day, I'm pregnant so trying to avoid it anyway but even lying in the bath now, or in the kitchen with the doors and windows shut I can smell it.
Worst bit- the weed. Every morning without fail the two older teenagers are out there smoking a joint, a couple of times in the day and every night. Again- my house smells of it never mind being able to sit in my garden.

I don't know what to do. I'm at the point of tears everyday. Talking to them doesn't help, I'm trying not to get on their bad side so I'm being nicey nice (don't want a brick through my window) but my entire life has changed since they came and I'm heartbroken.

I don't have the landlord's number or I'd call him, and pretty sure the police aren't interested in any of this. Any ideas? Besides moving. Or am I being unreasonable.. should I just put up with it all.

The police will be interested as it's still a crime. Could you look up the house deeds for the landlords information?

You can find out an address of the landlord online. I wish there was more advice I could give, couldn't just read and run.

Apart from reporting to the landlord I dont think theres a lot more you can do.

Police won't knock on their door to arrest them for smoking joints.

The process is long to evict people so best case scenario is you make some complaints and they are removed after a few months but I doubt that would happen so smoothly. And even then..someone worse could move it after.

I understand how disheartening it must be after investing time and money Into your home but unfortunately unless you live detached and away from people this is always a possibility.

Move in*

But it's true there is a way to find the landlord online, they all registered.

Someone much more helpful will be along shortly I'm sure ,who can tell you exactly how to find it op

Move, I’m sorry, but the landlord won’t be able to help unless he threatens kick them out. My tenants got as far as mediation with their neighbour who apparently has mh issues and was told I couldn’t help.

Move.
Can you rent out your house and rent something smaller elsewhere whilst you decide what to do, OP? Maybe the cunts will
move on and you could move back at some point?
I hate nuisance neighbours. I put up with a couple (in their 70s, believe it or not) who would wind up my dog, play loud opera last thing at night (blasting it to upset me) and slagged me off to others. They also kept recordings of me eating in my car (I am obese and it was to humiliate me).
Sadly, people like this won’t change and life is too short to put up with it.

If they are smashing your fence etc up the chances are they are doing the same to the landlords and hell want them out.

I feel for you I had new neighbours move in recently, I'd reported them to the NSPCC within 2 weeks as I could hear them smacking the children and calling their disabled 6 year old a "fucking retard". My old neighbours kept to themselves and I only ever heard them singing along to music whilst they cleaned on a Saturday.

We had this and our only option was to move. I also had to phone social services and the police many times during the year we were living there. I contacted the landlord and he was pretty useless. I really feel for you OP, the anxiety and stress that comes with such awful neighbours can be all encompassing. Your home us the onle place you should feel safe and happy and when you don't it can have a huge effect.

My worst nightmare would be that a near-neighbour’s house was sold to a landlord. This has happened to my friend and she’s had various tenants living next door, from weed-smokers to a Dj playing ear-shattering music every day. Fortunately they don’t stay long and right now there’s no one renting the place but she’s always on edge, wondering what the next set of tenants will be like

I can only offer you my utmost sympathy but no advice. I feel your pain

I am SO sorry @teacatsandababy and as someone who has had bloody awful neighbours - as well as great ones - I sympathise, I truly do. As has been said, call the police 101, and report them, and thank GOD they are only tenants and not the owners! Try and find out if you can - maybe from land registry, who owns it, and put in a complaint to the landlord.

GOOD LUCK. Some people are such cunts. WHY?!!! Why are people like this?! Hope this shit ends for you soon.

A family member is in a similar situation having bought a flat and lived happily alongside quiet neighbours for a couple of years until a neighbouring flat owned by a housing association changed tenants. They now have continual smell of weed on their landing and inside their flat. The people are in and out all day and possibly drug dealing. Neither of the couple seem to work but have had several blazing rows. They have heard the flat being smashed and threats to kill and have called the police in fear someone will be murdered in there. However as is often the case with abuse they deny it to police and don't press charges. They also leave litter and furniture dumped outside. They have reported to housing association. They are keeping a diary of all events including recordings as evidence.
It may be worth you keeping note of all your evidence, and damage.

You can contact your local environmental health team. They have a noise team & also contact the community police about the anti social, which the swearing etc would come under.

We have something similar going on here, but only 1 nasty, bigoted, misogynistic man making the noise. It's taken a long time as EHL here are very short staffed, so it's been hard to get their attention, hopefully better where you are, but they now have enough evidence to put a noise abatement order on him, we can see a light at the end of the tunnel.

Ours has been extremely that he's ignored lots of warnings from EHL & made it clear he's no intention of stopping, but most people comply pretty quickly

It's draining though. I really feel for you. I'm at the end of my tether with our situation & it's making struggle much more with dealing with other stresses & strains. So take time out & look after yourself too.

Really, really sorry that this is happening to you, OP. We have gone through similar recently, expect we accidentally moved next door to feral weed-smokers.

You can find out who the landlord is through the land registry website (it will cost you £3): www.gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry

Police were definitely interested in our case. Community policing is data-driven - if you are consistently reporting a crime, the police are duty bound to investigate it. (You will need to report more that once to generate enough data).

However, ultimately you will have to 'prove' beyond all reasonable doubt that your neighbours are smoking weed - this is super difficult to do, as you can't photograph it, film it or record it in any way.

After we'd made at least three reports, police visited our neighbours. Whole house stunk of weed at that point, so police were able to officially 'evidence' that there was a problem. After a second visit from police neighbours were given a written warning. This was followed by a second written warning, and finally a Community Protection Notice. They broke the CPN and were called in for questioning, on the basis of that they were given a fine and the whole slate was wiped clean. We're now in an ongoing situation where we have to keep proving that our neighbours is still smoking weed, which is really tricky. Basically, even with a massive body of official evidence, we haven't been able to pursued the Council to push for eviction (they are council tenants).

You might have more luck with a private landlord, especially if there is a high demand for rental properties in the area.

It's been really emotionally exhausting dealing with the problem - contestant record keeping, and our neighbours have been really abusive to us in response.

You're going to have to ask yourself which is worse? - living with the smell of skunk as a permanent fixture in your life, or embarking on potentially years worth of reporting and bad feelings from your scary-sounding neighbours. It sucks that you have to make this choice. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

However, ultimately you will have to 'prove' beyond all reasonable doubt that your neighbours are smoking weed - this is super difficult to do, as you can't photograph it, film it or record it in any way.

That's not correct. You are allowed to record evidence of a crime. If they're using illegal substances, that's a crime, and therefore can be recorded.

What the OP can't do is set up a camera trained on the garden 24/7 so that they capture it when it happens. If the OP notices them committing an offence and sticks a camera out of the window, that's fine as long as they're committing an offence at the time.

@HarrietsChariot

However, ultimately you will have to 'prove' beyond all reasonable doubt that your neighbours are smoking weed - this is super difficult to do, as you can't photograph it, film it or record it in any way.

That's not correct. You are allowed to record evidence of a crime. If they're using illegal substances, that's a crime, and therefore can be recorded.

What the OP can't do is set up a camera trained on the garden 24/7 so that they capture it when it happens. If the OP notices them committing an offence and sticks a camera out of the window, that's fine as long as they're committing an offence at the time.

HarrietsChariot - I meant that for the Council to push for eviction, we have to prove a crime is continuing to take place - we have solid evidence up to June of this year, but apparently that's not good enough. Basically the burden of proof is so high that we have no chance of ever gathering sufficient evidence.

Obviously OP could record other forms of antisocial behaviour (like the damage to her fence) using a video camera as and when it happens, but marijuana use is notoriously difficult to 'evidence' in this way.

The problem us, once you've begun officially complaining and contacted the landlord, that all legally needs to be declared if you give up and decide to sell.

@ThreeLittleDots

The problem us, once you've begun officially complaining and contacted the landlord, that all legally needs to be declared if you give up and decide to sell.

Only while the shits still live there.

If/once they move out you do not need to declare it.

*Only while the shits still live there.

If/once they move out you do not need to declare it*

Of course, but then no need to move if they've pissed off.