Page 14 | To be worried about buying a semi attached to a council owned house?

mumyes · 2023-08-30T13:48:33+00:00

I'm about to spend nearly £500k on a semi that is attached to a 4-bed house owned by a housing-association...the one I'm buying used to be a council house. I'm nervous. The little estate it's on is still partly (maybe 50/50) 'council' owned. Should I be worried? The house I'm buying is lovely, and well kept. Next door less so...but not as bad as some.

BMW6 · 31/08/2023 10:44

Hubblebubble · 31/08/2023 10:06

My neighbour is a lovely retired lady who adores and is adored by my DS.

How nice for you, but is she living in the house next door to the one the OP is considering buying??

Of course MOST social housing tenants are lovely, law abiding people who look after their homes.

But it is a truth that there are a lot of problematic tenants who have to be housed as there are children, who cause endless stress and grief to their neighbours.

It is an inescapable fact that you have much more chance of getting a really bad neighbour in social housing.

It's not snobbery or fear of "catching poorness" as one puerile poster has put it.

I had 25 years experience living in social housing. I know. And drugs weren't anything like as common then as now.

Hubblebubble · 31/08/2023 11:14

The only for sure negative is that the OP will be responsible for the upkeep of any shared entries/exits/paths/gates. Everything else is speculation.

Hubblebubble · 31/08/2023 11:15

@BMW6 a lot will also depend on the demographic of the community too. Not all areas with a mix of social and private housing are rough.

user1471517095 · 31/08/2023 11:20

Well I wouldn't. My uncle bought a house adjoining a Council Property. He had a lovely old neighbour. Unfortunately she died and a new family were moved in. They threw their dog poop over the hedge into his garden. And one day when he came home they'd actually torn his hedge out. They were your typical nightmare neighbours and very confrontational.

frazzledasarock · 31/08/2023 12:20

user1471517095 · 31/08/2023 11:20

Well I wouldn't. My uncle bought a house adjoining a Council Property. He had a lovely old neighbour. Unfortunately she died and a new family were moved in. They threw their dog poop over the hedge into his garden. And one day when he came home they'd actually torn his hedge out. They were your typical nightmare neighbours and very confrontational.

That could happen with any neighbours though couldn’t it.

jc12689 · 31/08/2023 12:39

But is less likely when someone has invested a huge amount of time and money into a property the own.

BeachHutCornwall · 02/09/2023 15:07

I have known three separate families who have had to move away from nightmarish (council) tenants. One ended up losing the sight in one eye after being attacked on his own doorstep

If I had that kind of money, there is no way on earth I would buy it. I have had too many bad council estate experiences myself and know too many people who have

Mumofsend · 03/09/2023 07:24

jc12689 · 31/08/2023 12:39

But is less likely when someone has invested a huge amount of time and money into a property the own.

I don't know about that. My parents live in very expensive cul-de-sac of 6 houses. One house the police are actively involved after substantial threats to kill and abuse after about 3 years of harassment. The one the other side of my parents think that because theirs is worth more they get the right to dictate who parks where on the road. They also seem to think they can do absolutely what they want, when they want. One next to them is okay but has lived there 40 years. One then next to them is rented out on air b'n'b. The final one is a second home that effectively sits empty.

We had the shock of our lives with how horrific the neighbours are considering how expensive the houses are and quickly learnt money doesn't make you a decent person or nice to next to.

Hibiscrubbed · 03/09/2023 08:04

Mumofsend · 03/09/2023 07:24

I don't know about that. My parents live in very expensive cul-de-sac of 6 houses. One house the police are actively involved after substantial threats to kill and abuse after about 3 years of harassment. The one the other side of my parents think that because theirs is worth more they get the right to dictate who parks where on the road. They also seem to think they can do absolutely what they want, when they want. One next to them is okay but has lived there 40 years. One then next to them is rented out on air b'n'b. The final one is a second home that effectively sits empty.

We had the shock of our lives with how horrific the neighbours are considering how expensive the houses are and quickly learnt money doesn't make you a decent person or nice to next to.

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Sure, but you probably won’t be adjoined to their house. I would always rather a smaller detached house, than a larger semi.

Mumofsend · 03/09/2023 08:06

Hibiscrubbed · 03/09/2023 08:04

Sure, but you probably won’t be adjoined to their house. I would always rather a smaller detached house, than a larger semi.

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Nightmare neighbours are nightmare neighbours whether they are physically joined or not. We've learnt that one too. Unless you happen to have huge amounts of space, a detached with limited space makes no difference.

Royalbloo · 03/09/2023 11:30

Ooh what does that make me? I bought a £500k shared ownership house.

Which camp am I in?

Am I good or bad? Can anyone help?! Lol

BMW6 · 03/09/2023 11:42

Neither, just puerile 🙄

whyisitallsohard · 09/09/2023 12:58

private rental market is actually worse than the social housing/rental market, youre better off with a housing association rental next door as the council are obliged to make fixes that could affect your home too. i'm sure it'll just be a family living there, no different from a large family who could have bought it rather than rent it. private landlords are some of the worse people on this earth - those are the places you need to be aware of

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7328/