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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Would you buy a house if the neighbours were a bit weird?

171 replies

blueberrybluey · 12/09/2025 16:04

We went to view a house today, as we pulled up there was a car behind us who revved and hovered in the road looking at us, my husband wound down the window and asked what was wrong and the man said that was his house and he parks there so humouring him we apologise and park further along.

The house we viewed was next door to him and it really was lovely and ticks all the boxes other than having a drive so is on-street parking only, which I thought we could live with but I can’t help wondering if the parking incident is a sign of what’s to come.
Would this put you off an otherwise perfect home?

OP posts:
Fizzyfish67 · 13/09/2025 18:18

No that would put me off. I wouldn’t buy. I’d rather have a house will a union flag on the front 🤣

Single50something · 13/09/2025 18:26

Nope I wouldn't want that.. have you seen the viral tiktok re on street parking battles..I cant remember her name..but bloody nightmare
We have just moved away from nightmare neighbours .relief is huge
If delivery came and neighbour had masses of room to get out...they would ask my delivery to move...if delivery reversed into their bit of road they would ask me to contact company to not do again. Bloody nightmare.

Berks21 · 13/09/2025 18:37

Avoid. We had a similar situation recently when viewing a house. We stopped our car outside the neighbour’s as we weren’t sure which house we were viewing and immediately she was outside telling us to move. Then she came knocking on the door while we were viewing to tell us off again. She was tightly wound and a curtain twitching oddball. Life is too short - trust your gut. We found another house.

BettysRoasties · 13/09/2025 18:50

Fizzyfish67 · 13/09/2025 18:18

No that would put me off. I wouldn’t buy. I’d rather have a house will a union flag on the front 🤣

A house further down our street has just gone up for sale. The neighbour suddenly put up a load of flags when the sale sign went up 😂🫣

Askingforafriendtoday · 13/09/2025 19:10

It's a no from me

Lurkermumofadults · 13/09/2025 19:28

Likely other people in the road are the same in my experience in both the north and south of England. Will be constant parking wars so think carefully if you want to live with that.

whattheysay · 13/09/2025 19:41

If you have visitors where will they park as he won’t like them parking outside his house. How many cars do you have?
If it’s one car and you don’t have guests ever it will be fine.

Roseshavethorns · 13/09/2025 19:50

It would totally put me off.
If that's how he treats complete strangers I can only imagine how he will behave when issues arise.

Stargazingstargazer · 13/09/2025 21:13

No, I would not risk it. Definitely not

Pres11 · 13/09/2025 22:06

This would put me off 100%

LoyalPlumOtter · 13/09/2025 22:49

No do not buy the house. Neighbours can make your life hell and you can be trapped.
Please take notice - we suffered for a long long time. The freedom after leaving is real!!

ellyeth · 14/09/2025 00:31

It would definitely put me off. There is nothing worse than having difficult neighbours.

We have moved a few times, though have stayed put for the last 30+ years. We have only ever had relatively minor problems with one neighbour but it was unsettling. This incident suggests a neighbour who is going to be very difficult. Steer clear.

changeme4this · 14/09/2025 00:39

It’s a bullying tactic and if you were to buy the neighbouring house, he won’t stop.

we are rural and have someone like him in our road. For some reason he seems to think he has lived here longer than anyone else (he hasn’t), and has threatened, abused and bullied nearly everyone in the road and in the wider area.

several complaints have been made to the police and they visit him every now and then. Some even have trespass orders against him.

you could ask your agent to ask the vendors what the deal is with him, but I would put money in it that he may be part of their decision to leave. I know some of ours have considered it.

Iwishthiswasnottrue · 14/09/2025 03:48

No way. Think of it as a lucky escape.

Whatinthedoopla · 14/09/2025 06:22

When we had a removal van for my mum, next door neighbour came out and gave us the 'law of the land'. Turns out that she is actually a lovely lady.

When I first moved into my home, we parked in front of front door neighbour, and said we can't park there. Even though this is public parking...?
Lovely lady, but because she was actually so nosy, I stopped talking to her, this doesn't bother me though.

I would recommend going over and apologising, like others have suggested here. That way you see them and how they react.

I would also go and visit the house maybe every night? Especially on the weekend? If they are this noisy when parking, maybe they like to have parties on the weekend.

Neighbours can make a great home not very nice, so definitely worth looking into more

CloddHoppers · 14/09/2025 07:00

Absolutely no way would I buy a house where someone was insane about parking.

Twitch1994 · 14/09/2025 07:49

No on both counts. I would personally never live anywhere with no parking and the neighbour sounds like a red flag. I have the misfortune of having dreadful neighbours (they moved in after us), and as much as I love my house, I find myself counting down the days till we can move.

Rounder888 · 14/09/2025 08:01

We live in a lovely house without off street parking. NEVER AGAIN. Two of our neighbours are nightmares, park numerous vans and vehicles right out the front, around 5-6 per household, one left their caravan blocking our kitchen window for a couple of weeks until we had to go and ask them if they would be moving it. They also regularly block the only actual spaces available (we have three for residents) and will then swap vehicles around to ensure they aren’t available. I have a toddler and pregnant with our second and it gives me such anxiety now that I’ll sometimes choose not to go out in the car just in case! We aren’t able to request a driveway as there is a green in front our our house, which someone applied for parking for the 6 houses in our row, but was denied. So now neighbours just park all across this green 🤪

legsekeven · 14/09/2025 08:20

I wouldn’t buy it. Trust your instincts. That said my greatest entertainment is watching my neighbours across the road in their parking war. I’ve watched both run out in pjs and in the rain to move their car a foot forward or back. Cones and clamps have been been involved. It’s ridiculous

LoafofSellotape · 14/09/2025 08:33

I'm surprised at these replies, was he aggressive as it doesn't sound like it from your OP, he was just waiting to park? Is there lots of parking otherwise . I'd just laugh at anyone like that .

HelloHattie · 14/09/2025 08:38

Hell no. Don’t buy that.

LivGo · 14/09/2025 08:39

No, don't do it. Run in the opposite direction at full pace, and never look back.

I went through three years of hell living next door to vile neighbours. In the end, the only option we had was to sell because it was relentless.

whimsicallyprickly · 14/09/2025 08:48

blueberrybluey · 12/09/2025 16:20

No it was just the road outside, there was a car directly outside the property so we parked as close as we could and it just happened to be outside his house as he was returning home, annoying yes, but enough to kick up a fuss?
There were other spaces.
He probably didn’t know we were considering the house.

Show quote history

You were potentially going to park in "his" parking space
I dont think it's unreasonable of him to question why. Was he rude?

If you really like the house which is for sale, I'd knock on his door and explain that you're thinking of buying next door and ask him about the area.

You'll get a much better idea of whether he's odd by doing this, than by thinking he's odd because he questioned why you were in his parking spot.

PS I detest people parking outside my house, just a little bit across my driveway. 😁

Dimdam · 14/09/2025 09:49

I don’t know where people get this idea that they own the road outside their house, they don’t, I could not give a monkeys if I can’t park outside my house.

what next, he’ll be poking his head over the garden fence telling you about plants over hanging his garden. Sounds like trouble is if your not the confrontational type email out him in his place don’t move there, he’s sounds like a bully

Sassylovesbooks · 14/09/2025 10:47

Personally, I wouldn't consider any house that didn't have off-street parking. I appreciate that in some areas (London especially), this isn't always an option. Like it or not, the neighbour doesn't own the road, and therefore can't dictate who parks outside his house. Of course it's annoying, to come home and find someone else parked outside your house. I would be concerned that this person would cause issues if you had to park outside his house or a visitor to your home did so. He might out of spite, start parking outside yours! In these circumstances, be grateful this man did show up, and you've now seen what life next door to him could be like! Don't purchase the house.