House dilemma (with diagram)

[OneGreyBiscuit]

Need some quick thoughts for this please as I'm on a timer. I went to look at a house through social housing yesterday, it's mine if I want it. There's a new bathroom and kitchen although everywhere else needs tlc. My main issue is that the next door neighbours have access to the back garden from their property, would this put anyone off? Diagram for looking at below. The arrows is where next door can walk through.

I'd take it and look at swapping maybe in the future if it was a real problem. Housing association or council houses are like rocking horse shit. Could be years before you get another offer.

Would it be possible, and would you be allowed, to move the gate to the far end of the garden? In my first house, which was a centre terrace, I had a right of access through my neighbour's garden but that was at the far end from the house, so far less intrusive. My neighbour had a row of hedging plants to screen the path, so I doubt they really noticed when we were there.

Do you have dogs? That might make a difference. I would be inclined to take it, and implement some of the clever ideas above, if not. Most people are decent at heart and if you had knobhead neighbours I think a HA would be better to deal with than a LA.

PS If you want loads of traffic on your post, mention that the diagram includes nakedness..... 😂

Do you have young children? If so, it might be a no from me because you could never leave your kids in the garden and pop in for the loo/to get a drink in case neighbours wandered through and left the gate to the road open.

If you turn this house down you might have to wait a while before getting another offer (check this, the rules vary, some take you off the list if you turn down a place they deem suitable) and the next one they offer you may have other compromises. If you're happy with all the other aspects of this house I'd take it.

Can you ask the Housing Officer exactly what the right of way is?
If it is an access for bins only then you can try and enforce that and the neighbour should be using their own front door for coming and going.
But depends how reasonable they are.
If it is just for bin access and garden maintenance you could put a combination lock on both gates and share that combination with the neighbour. Then it would inconvenience them greatly but not stop them and their habit of using that pathway might reduce significantly.

But I would hate hate hate this setup. Not knowing if someone would be outside my window.

We had this with the first house we bought, we were end terrace and our next door neighbours had right of access through our back garden and round the side to take their bins out. It. Was. Awful. They were such dicks about it all the time, would knock on the door to tell us to move our car (which was parked on our own driveway) if they felt it was too close to the wall and they would do it any time, not even on bin day. We couldn’t wait to get out of there and we would never do it again.

I'd weigh up:

1. How much did you like the rest of the house?
2. How many other offers do you get as eg if you only get one more that place could be terrible
3. How desperate are you for somewhere, if you fell off the list due to not accepting this or the next offer and went back to the bottom of the list what would this mean?

I had a similar right of access situation in a rented terraced house but it was that the neighbour could use the driveway of our house to exit his (so basically your situation but walking instead of driving). He used to drive his car right past our kitchen window and deliberately peer in (he was having a dispute with our landlady over the access so he was deliberately aggressive in asserting his right to go through and harrass us at all times). It was awful, I hated it and felt so overlooked. I probably wouldn't take it. But as I say above it is weighing it all up as if the rest of it is great and you won't have much chance for a better offer then hopefully it will just be a minor inconvenience.

Unless you can live in detached house with some land on all sides you will always be at risk of annoying neighbours (and their visitors).

That's what next door to me have done (they are Number One, so the other three go through their garden. I am Number Two, so only three and four go through mine). They've put a gate on the garden that lies beyond the right of way, so it's enclosed away from the path. Their dogs (who are big) can then go out in the garden but be shut away from anyone coming through.

Speak to the neighbour and ask how often they actually use it! If it's only for bins and occasional in and out for eg new garden furniture then it won't be an issue

No doggies

If it otherwise seems ok, I would accept it. As others have said, you can out privacy screening on your window. If you find it really uncomfortable sitting in your garden if someone might come through, then just don't use your garden too much if the neighbour is about. Then it is no worse than having a flat without a garden, but you can use it when they are at work for example.

Do you have children? I wouldn't be happy with it if I had young children and people were going through the garden, possibly leaving the gate open. It wouldn't be secure enough.
If you don't have children or dogs then it depends on how desperately you need the social housing/how quickly you need to move out of wherever you are/the likelihood of being offered another place soon. Also, I don't know how this works but do you maintain your place in the list if you refuse the property or are you moved down the list again and have to wait even longer?

Could you leave a walkway and put a fence somehow.. So they can access their property but without being in your useable part of the garden? .. I’m not sure, it would cut off a chunk of your garden though but it would mean you could put a fence or hedges for privacy without restricting access? It’s a difficult one as I know social housing is in high demand and if it means secure tenancy and affordable rent for you and your family.. I’m not sure tbh. I’ve shown when I would maybe fence and the dots would be where they could walk round?

I wouldn’t because your garden won’t ever feel like yours.

Everytime they go though you will watch because you’ll always wonder why they are going that way. If you have children you won’t ever be able to let them play alone outside as the neighbours or anyone since you won’t be able to lock your gate can come and go.

Just because most people use it only for bins there is always people who will use it everyday, get a bad neighbour and they will use it just to annoy you.

No young children

@OneGreyBiscuit are you clear on the impact of turning it down? I can see it's not a great layout but my advice is to ensure that you fully understand (and get in writing) how that will impact your place on the list/ bid process.

This is a good idea. Can you speak to your housing officer check you can do it?

I asked yesterday and she said I wouldn't go to the bottom of the list but band a and b would be more important (which they are anyway)

I guess you're in a lower band (rather than a/b).
I think you've been offered it because it's been rejected by others higher on the list.
I'd be worried if you rejected it that you won't be offered another for a very long time, and another rejected property at that.

I'd accept and try to do a house swap if you're unhappy later down the line.

Ok. But it could still mean quite a long time waiting for another house. As you've said no young children and no dogs I'd be inclined to take it and then swap at a later date if you're not happy with it.
I'm assuming that's the only problem with it? It's got a new bathroom and kitchen so that's good. Is it in the area you want etc?

I would take it if you like the property. You may have lovely neighbours who hardly use it. You could wait for something better but then have awful neighbours! It’s always a risk.

I Lived for 20 years in a mid terrace with a right of way past my back window. The neighbours used it about once every 5 years so it really wasn’t an issue. It was worse though for the people at the start of the right of way as they had 6 houses that used it, but it was really only gardeners and builders that used it. We all kept our bins around the front. So, it wouldn’t be a problem to me and if the rest of the house is fine I’d go for it.

I live in a row of 4 terraced house and I need access through my neighbours garden. It's fine, we only use it for bin day really. Our fence and gate is double slatted so we don't see through to their garden and aren't invading their privacy.
My neighbour at other side has access through the other end neighbour though and doesn't like it so she keeps her bins out front and never walks through their garden.
We don't have any choice as our house backs onto other houses