Parking one! Pic included. Am I being petty?

[Larafromthe80s]

We have a drive which can fit 2 cars 1 infront of the other and a space on the road outside our house.
Next door have the exact same.
Both houses have 2 cars and neither of us double park on the drive unless someone random has used our road spot. We never take each others road spot out of courtesy.

Anyway a few weeks ago a family moved in on the street next to us, they have 3 cars. They also have 2 spaces on their drive but only use 1, then their other cars keep parking outside ours and our neighbours houses.
It wouldnt be such an issue but my husband's job means he's often called out to work throughout the night so we dont like playing car jenga, hence the fact for 7 years hes always parked on the street outside our house.
Anyway today the son's been parked there, hes gone out tonight so I've moved my car into the spot so my husband can have our drive when home.
However the family have just literally came and stood outside my house smirking and shaking their heads and now I'm really worried I've started a war but also conscious that I may have been really petty!
AIBU to be getting annoyed by this?

I'd keep parking in the spot & let your DH park in the driveway

I'm loving these people defending like it's the OPs right to park in front of their house.

Its a public road you should be happy you can park at all.

Let me break it down.

1. Many are saying the OP is not entitled to think of that as her space.

2. However, new neighbours behaviour suggests they feel they are entitled to that space.

3. But, by this general 'logic', they are not entitled to that space.

4. Normal neighbourly unwritten rules going back to the time of when cars were called horseless carriages suggest that most people do feel the area in front of their dwellings are, in a suburban setting, 'their' parking places; and usually that is respected. This is news to many on this thread! Why they are so belligerent in saying the opposite is quite confusing...

5. Similarly, it is customary that one does not break wind on public transport, wear white to a wedding unless told to on the invitation, steal the milk or newspaper of your neighbour, or set up a picnic in someone's front garden. Manners maketh man.

It's not petty. You've used a space that they want to use and they're annoyed but they've got no right to it either so you're free to park there

To confuse matter, I don’t think the neighbours think they’re entitled to the space, I think they think that OP thinks SHE is.
She moved out of the driveway into the space. She did nothing wrong but without the background about the job, it looks like she’s making a point. That’s what they are shaking their heads at.

As an asides the OP does kind of think it’s ‘her’ space…but they don’t know her like we do.

Change your mindset
'We've been lucky to have free run of the public space for seven years.'
Rather than
'Someone is taking our space'

Also it's likely that you are paranoid about the new family shaking their heads at you. Because you know you are petty

Understand the inconvenience but you don't own it

I hope none of you park on the actual pavement. Massive bugbear of mine. Live on a street where everyone has a drive big enough for 2 big cars or 3 small yet everyone still parks on the fucking pavement. It’s just pure laziness and I have to walk in the road with my toddlers as a result.

Slight off-piste but just saying you have a drive big enough for both so use it?

*4) Normal neighbourly unwritten rules going back to the time of when cars were called horseless carriages suggest that most people do feel the area in front of their dwellings are, in a suburban setting, 'their' parking places; and usually that is respected. This is news to many on this thread! Why they are so belligerent in saying the opposite is quite confusing...

5. Similarly, it is customary that one does not break wind on public transport, wear white to a wedding unless told to on the invitation, steal the milk or newspaper of your neighbour, or set up a picnic in someone's front garden. Manners maketh man.*

That's a bonkers comparison. The idea that the space outside your house is somehow yours only works in an era when there are much fewer cars. Nowadays it's much more of a free for all as everyone tries to find somewhere to park.

Those who feel the space is somehow yours - do you only ever drive to friends who either have a driveway or don't have a car? Have you seriously never parked outside someone else's house???

Which is fine only I use the car to take my sons to their clubs of an evening / go food shopping etc.

Can't you just arrange it so that the last time you come back you move your husband's vehicle so that it's behind yours? I know it would be a bit of a pain but presumably it doesn't have to happen every night - you could just as easily go food shopping during the day or at weekends.

I've voted YANBU only because you haven't said anything to them about them being in "your space" and waited until there was a space free before you took the space.

First come first served, it's a public road ANYONE can park there.

You would be unreasonable to ask/insist they move and vice versa.

I don’t see the issue tbh. If the space is empty, park there. If it isn’t, you and your husband have to figure it out. I don’t see anything wrong with moving your car into the space on the road because as soon many pps have pointed out, it doesn’t belong to either you or the adult son. He just has to find an alternative too, if it’s taken.

@DoleWhipFloat

I think that when the space belongs to no one, it’s first come first served…so if you moved your car into it when neighbour moved, so be it. You have as much right to park there as they do. So they came to see you moved your car? So what. Not their space either. Forget about it.

This.

Parking wars have begun but I suspect there is more to it.
Yes, if they have been round to look at your car and shake their heads while tutting that is petty but OP also seems to have a lot of knowledge about their car:person:space ratios which suggests they have been deliberately gathering information about that household which is a bit odd too. Especially as they live on an entirely separate road.

Anyone can park on the road if the space is free, sometimes the parking gods work in your favour and sometimes they don’t. If I saw my neighbour rushing out to take a road space in lieu of their own private space I would think they were being slightly selfish but it’s not against the rules.

@NiceTwin

You need to change your mindset, you have no legal right to the spot outside your house.

If you bag it, all well and good, if not, park on your drive.
I can't get excited about the space outside my house unless they block the driveway.

She has bagged it, so it is all well and good, and the neighbours therefore have no business standing shaking their heads do they? Because they also have no legal right to it.

Tempted to crowdfund for a cheap taxed MOTd car that I can leave in that space indefinitely, who's in?

Not only as said earlier is my fil neighbours twats who do this but ive jsut remember my dsis road-some hosues have drives some dont

the twats with drives put their car on the road outside their house so their partner can drive in first later-they dont give a crap about the people without drives that have to park elsewhere because theyre too lazy to swap their cars round

I must say, if my neighbours ever tried to intimidate me by shaking their heads at me, I'd laugh at them, ostentatiously film them, and close my curtains.

I must say, if my neighbours ever tried to intimidate me by shaking their heads at me, I'd laugh at them, ostentatiously film them, and close my curtains.

The thing is it doesn't seem that way, they were walking past.

@Againstmachine

I must say, if my neighbours ever tried to intimidate me by shaking their heads at me, I'd laugh at them, ostentatiously film them, and close my curtains.

The thing is it doesn't seem that way, they were walking past.

And they were probably shaking their head at OP’s pettiness, as they knew exactly what she did…quickly moved her car to reserve “her” space.

So those who say the space outside OP’s house, on the road, is hers, where are people without a drive meant to park?

I had a neighbour just like you and I hated him. He had about 5 cars and still used the company car to go to work. Every time we moved our cars in a very busy street you could see him taking his cars out and taking all the spaces in the street. Petty and selfish to be honest.
Reading your message I can see that you are in the house and already have your car in the garage, therefore your husband is always back after you and he can park the car behind yours, safely being able to leave in an emergency.
So I don’t really get the parking your car outside the house to save him a space ?

Honestly…. The street is public and I would also be hating a neighbour like you. It doesn’t kill walking a few more steps and blocks to park else where rather than your self proclaimed own “street” parking. People like you are horrible ! :(
Don’t do it, just don’t do it.

@ginforever

I had a neighbour just like you and I hated him. He had about 5 cars and still used the company car to go to work. Every time we moved our cars in a very busy street you could see him taking his cars out and taking all the spaces in the street. Petty and selfish to be honest. Reading your message I can see that you are in the house and already have your car in the garage, therefore your husband is always back after you and he can park the car behind yours, safely being able to leave in an emergency. So I don’t really get the parking your car outside the house to save him a space ?

Honestly…. The street is public and I would also be hating a neighbour like you. It doesn’t kill walking a few more steps and blocks to park else where rather than your self proclaimed own “street” parking. People like you are horrible ! :(
Don’t do it, just don’t do it.

You seem to have misunderstood.

It’s the wanky neighbour who has 3 cars but chooses to only park 1 on his drive even though he has space for 2.

OP only has 2 cars.

Spaces are first come first served, OP is perfectly entitled to park outside her own home.

Re-read @Arabellla. It’s OP who has enough space for cars on their drive way but wanting the road. It’s the neighbour who has not enough space for the cars.

@Hshuznw

Re-read *@Arabellla*. It’s OP who has enough space for cars on their drive way but wanting the road. It’s the neighbour who has not enough space for the cars.

What are you on about?

Op says:

Anyway a few weeks ago a family moved in on the street next to us, they have 3 cars. They also have 2 spaces on their drive but only use 1, then their other cars keep parking outside ours and our neighbours houses.

As I said, they have 3 cars and space cor 2 on their drive.

@Arabellla OP has two cars and her drive has space for 2 cars