difficulty selling our house because we are so overlooked

[ajuba]

we are overlooked in the back garden by two buildings. Its really putting off buyers! don't know what to do. there's not much we can do about one building apart from putting up higher fences. With the other one we can block it out with trees but they will take ages to grow.Will these measures actually make a difference though?

can you post a picture on your profile so we can see??

Sorry don't want to post a pic. Estate agent pics don't show the overlooking anyway, which is why we are getting lots of viewings but people get put off once they see the overlooking. Don't know what type of trees to plant either. Was thinking lylandi but if we do end up staying here and they get really big that might be a turn off as well.....why did we buy this house!
Was also thinking of getting planning permission for a two and half metre brick wall to block off the building where we can't grow trees but that will be expensive too and would block sunlight. sorry for rambling.

When we were selling our last house, quite a few viewers commented that we were overlooked and in an area surrounded by houses. We couldn't do anything to disguise the fact that we were overlooked.

However we had offers any way. It will bother some people but others won't mind.

Sushiqueen, how bad was the overlooking? and what price bracket were you in?

We lived in an estate so had a garden only about 40ft long with a pair of town house semis backing on to us. So from their first and top floors, they could see into part of our garden. They couldn't see into the rooms much due to the angle. We also had other houses close to the front and side of us.

We were selling for just over £ 400k and were the largest house in the immediate area as they mix up all the size of houses.

I wonder if you can deal with this through some slightly more creative ways?

Do you have a typical plain garden so that when you step out of the back door, you basically see a stretch of flat grass and then your eye is drawn immediately to the houses around you? If so, one design trick is not to try to conceal the houses by putting a barrier at the edge of the garden, but instead to put something that draws the eye lower to the ground and keeps people looking within the garden, not at the houses. If you do this well, it can be amazingly successful.

The other thing you could do is to put up a pergola to give a sense of protection from overhead.

Grendelsmum. Thanks for your reply. What exactly do you mean by having something that draws the eye lower to the ground? the garden is quite wide and 90ft long. the overlooking is the side rather than the back. At the moment there is a large patio area and then just grass.

Trellis and fast growing Russian vine?

Bamboo?

Make a shelter with a pergola so people feel they can still sit out with privacy?

Put up a big sail or canopy?

god this is a nightmare.

At our last house we made an archway/arbour thingy, put a mirror in it and then grew clematis over the sides so that when you looked down the garden your eye was drawn to that. You could plant a few things up over the fence, but will probably just have to wait until you find someone who doesn't mind.

What bothers some people is utterly irrelevant to others!

Thanks frostyfingers.

Sorry, I'm despairng because the last viewers were so rude! they couldn't even wait to get outside before expressing their dissappointment!

Why did you buy the house if it was so over looked? Assuming the overlooking properties weren't built afterwards. There was a reason you bought it- focus on those positives.

The actual house itself is very nice and very close to an outstanding school and the road is nice plus close to the train station (but not too close so can't hear the trains or anything). Actually one of the buildings wasn't there when we bought it.........

If you are doing viewings yourself, start with the garden and finish in what you feel is the best room to end on a positive note. Remember to point out all the positives in conversation as you wander round.

Okay, this one is way over the top, but it shows the technique very well.

www.channel4.com/4homes/rooms/outdoors/garden-makeovers/the-courtyard-garden-makeover

The key idea is that there is so much to look at at in the garden, that your eye never gets round to looking at the buildings to either side.

It sounds like you've actually got a garden with great potential, but that you don't make the most of it at the moment.

It's like Smalltown says - if you step into the garden and you see a path running towards a seating area with some plants around it, that's what you'd look at.

you could get a large pergola built alongside the overlooked boundary, with either a seating area, or raised vegetable beds (or combination) underneath - something like this or this but longer and thinner.

That would draw the eyes away from the overlooking and give an impression of more privacy when you are in the garden.

Do you feel overlooked as you step out the back door?

Is there a patio/ sitting area there?

If yes to the above could you focus on creating a private area out of the door, it's that first impression of the garden that's critical.

As others have suggested this could be instantly created by a pergola with trellis side or bamboo screening.

My parents brought over a section of their bamboo for my garden yesterday it's gone from around 6ft to over 12ft in a couple of years, it makes lovely screening as it still allows some light to filter through, makes a nice sound in the breeze and this variety is evergreen.

Ajuba, it's really depressing when people are like that - we've had a few (one lot said they didn't realise it was fairly modern even though a) there's a sodding great picture and b) in the description it says built in the 80's). It amazes me how rude some people can be, you just have to grit your teeth and smile grimly. All the ones we had who were rude, and there were several I just put behind me as soon as possible. It is very hard not to take it personally though.

Ajuba. Some very good suggestions re hiding adjoining buildings. And I second bamboo. You can buy fairly large arrow bamboo(big leaf ones) and they look great.

Also if viewers comments are upsetting then let the estate agents do the viewings while you are out.

good suggestion about being out when viewings take place. Does anyone know how close to buildings bamboo can be grown and whether it would grow ok in partial shade? thanks

Well, bamboo can also put people off, as it has a reputation for spreading uncontrollably (true of some varieties but not others). You'd really want to plant it pretty thickly in some raised planters to have a good screening effect. You'll be fine growing it in the shade. It does take a little while to start growing fast, though, so you might not get much growth in the first year.

Here's some recommended varieties www.junglegiants.co.uk/Bamboo_for_screening_and_hedging.htm

I have mine in a giant pot so spreading isn't an issue nor is distance to the house.

It has many varietys and some like the one I have, I think it's called black bamboo are less invasive and very shallow routed.

Even though the bottom of the plant is potted because their are so many stems the top is quite spread out so three big pots would easily create a 10ft wide/ 12ft+ high hedge.

Bamboos are very hardy and happy in shade.

Their roots can run over ground so not a problem for house but they will try to take over your garden so plant into a heavy duty plastic container buried in the ground or get some nice very large pots and plant in those. This will make them instantly taller.