AIBU to resent holiday-home neighbours taking our usual parking space?

[Chipsanddipsforlunch]

First of all to say, no one on the road has their ‘Own’ parking space, however it’s sort of an unspoken thing that you park on the road outside your own house.
Have owned our home here for fifteen or so years, we live in a beach type place. The immediate next door neighbours have their house as a holiday home, thankfully they don’t rent it out, they come to stay maybe four times a year, usually for a month or two in summer.
Every time they come, they immediately park where we park daily all year round opposite our house. It has a large tree and shade (we live in a hot place) so i’m guessing that’s part of the reason.
Everyone else parks in front of their own houses, it ends up that we have to park in the sun in front of their home, if space or round the corner/far up the road. I have a young Dd, ddog, it’s just the two of them. I’m often struggling walking up the road with bags of shopping from the big shop, my dd etc
They don’t go out that much, so the car is just sat there.
Dh has noticed that sometimes if we’ve managed to park there, opposite our own house and I for example nip out to the shop, the guy next door will come out of the house and move his car into that spot 😂

Honestly, I know it’s so petty, but it’s starting to piss me off recently as it’s hot and more tourists/second home owners parking on the road

Aibu??

Nice….

Wild bird seed sprinkled over intruding car at dead of night. Pay particular attention to the windscreen where something sticky sprayed on will ensure the seeds adhere. Birds come at first light and crap as they eat. It should have hardened nicely by the time they want to go out. Getting hardened bird crap off your car when you want to go out is damned frustrating. Trees attract birds so its an act of god. Oh dear ....

So there is only one other family following this rule of parking outside their house

I don’t think you are BU at all OP.

I see it like if you went to the cinema on your own and didn’t get allocated a seat but you got there early and found a good place and got settled.
Then it got busier and seats filled up and every time you got up for a drink or to go to the toilet someone else had rushed and sat in your seat.

Or on a train…
This happened to me recently, I had got on when it was quiet and was sat in the seat for an hour until I needed the toilet. It was really full when I got up but I was with DP so had left my bag on the seat and my unfinished food and drink were on the table when a man tried to take my seat when I was in the toilet!
He literally got on the train and without asking tried to move my bag and lunch, my DP was so surprised he was just sat staring when I was walking back over and I had to be the one to tell the man someone was obviously sat there!

There are constant threads on here about people trying to move plane seats when they haven’t booked and they are accused of being rude and entitled.

No one owns a public parking space or the plane, train or cinema seat but there is an etiquette that if someone is using something and vacates temporarily that it’s just not cricket (I love an excuse to use that phrase 🤣) to jump in and try to take it.
It reminds me of the episode of Joey and Chandler fighting over the chair on friends.

I bet most people who voted you are BU wouldn’t be impressed in your situation but a lot of people can’t place themselves in a scenario that hasn’t happened to them.

If I was in your shoes I would be petty and do what a PP suggested and keep finding reasons to go and sit in your car like you are about to leave so your neighbour prepares to rush to take your space.
It might make him less vigilant if his plans keep getting thwarted!

I think it’s clear, OP. Everyone parks on one side of the road only (let’s call it side A), either directly in front of their house (if their house is on side A) or directly across the road from it (if their house is on side B). Some posters just like to create issues because they can…

I agree. The shaded spot is fair game IMO, all this nonsense about unspoken rules is ridiculous too. The Doctor might have got wind of how irate it's making OP, and is passing his time amusing himself..

The entitlement though is too much. Anyone who wants access to a specific parking space needs to buy a property with one, otherwise accept that spots outside are for anyone to use, anytime they want - even if that means taking it once it becomes empty.

OP get a motion sensor light and attach it to the part of your car that has to be directly across from the neighbours house so it shines brightly everytime anyone walks past your car directly into their window. Tell them its for safety as you can only be sure your car is safe when you can park it directly outside your own home.

It is petty enough to get upset that someone else parks where you want to park. Causing a nuisance for neighbours is hardly going to calm things down.

Yes and the op has to park across from the neighbour who is taking her space so the light would annoy only that neighbour is my point.

Why do you think it is reasonable to annoy anyone just because you don’t get to park on a public road in your preferred space?

you're being perjorative towards the 'second home owners' but surely if they all lived there full time the parking and the noise would be far worse! if anything they are doing you a favour! If the person living opposite you was a full time resident you would lose your magic favoured space completely if you adhered to the same rules as you're expecting your neighbour to, as just one example!

Not to mention if it's anything like most of the coastal areas here, likely subsidising your council tax (or the equivalent) by paying full rates for just 1/2 months of service.

(not a second home owner by the way, just someone who understands logic)

But they're not doing that out of etiquette or some unspoken rule. They are doing it because it's convenient for them to be as close to their house as possible. This particular person has decided it's more convenient for him to be in the shade. Neither is wrong and neither preferences more important, the spaces aren't allocated.

🤣🤣🤣

No the others going the other way

😅

Yes I think you’re right…

You're not really explaining. How many houses are there on each side of the road and how many are able to park either directly outside or directly opposite? Does each house on the parking side only have one space, so then what happens when houses on both sides are occupied? I'm trying to get a picture as it sounds like there are far less spaces that houses which makes every space fair game.

Ok so it’s a street with houses on both sides but parking places are all on one side?

How’s that supposed to work… sounds like there isn’t enough street parking for all the houses?

Did you not anticipate parking issues when you bought a house without off street parking and without any parking spaces on your side of the road? Seems to me like you should be thankful that you get to use the opposite parking space most of the year, rather than peeved about the few times someone else uses it.

I don’t think you can claim that a parking place outside another house is “yours” just because it’s opposite your house. TBH there isn’t much difference between walking to a space directly opposite your house vs the space next to it - either way you still have to cross the road. If they were parking directly outside your house I’d agree with you but they aren’t.

I was attempting humour.

Something no one else has asked, it sounds like there's quite a few holiday homes, but there must be some instances, where there is a permanent resident on both sides of the road. Also, does no one own more than one car? If yes to any of these, then your rule that everyone, apart from this one specific (Dr) neighbour parks outside their own home (or opposite), can't work.
You also said in your first post that if he was parked under the tree, you had to struggle up walking up the road with shopping, your child and dog. But if you park across from his house, it's literally an extra couple of feet.

There's probably another post on here from someone who says they visit their holiday home barely twice a year and, each time they visit, some pesky neighbour parks in their spot and swans around with their daughter, their dog and their shopping. They have wondered whether to have a word with the neighbour especially as they park in the shade provided by the tree planted by great uncle Albert so it's all a bit of a cheek really and they wonder what to do about it.⁷

You could get a clapped out motorbike. Something cheap to insure, and tax. It could be the ‘bagsie’ bike. To hold your place when your car has to be moved. Otherwise, they are the only one’s able to play draughts. They’re doing it quite openly too, so what’s good for the goose… .

I don't think it's petty.. they obviously know you park there so it's inconsiderate. Selfish.

Sorry I’ve said this all a few times, cba to say again

OMG your patience on this thread OP with the professional contrarians has been exemplary. As a result of this, I am going to doff my cap to you. On the other thread about second home owners it was accepted that they are selfish and need to show deference to the permanent residents. But here you are the unreasonable twat because you dare to state that the arrogant interloper who immediately drives into the vacant space left by your car (as the permanent resident) is not a paragon of virtue!! In fact if he states his preference is to be addressed as the King of England you should oblige whilst offering to shine his shoes and bring him round freshly baked bread.