Putting house up for sale - potential problem with neighbours

[Sylvana]

We are getting our house ready to put on the market. The only problem on the horizon is our neighbours. The house is rented by 5-6 Eastern European people in their mid to late 20's. They are nice enough, quiet, hard working - they never have parties and keep the house in relatively good condition BUT they smoke weed in their car in the driveway.

They obviously smoke in the car to keep the smell out of the house but the smell is really strong. They don't do it constantly but I'm worried incase they light up just before a viewing

I don't know how to approach it, should I say something ? We don't know them very well and their English isn't great but I don't want this jeopardizing the sale.

All advice welcomed!

Can you find out who they rent it through and approach them - they are breaking the law after all!

I wouldnt say anything and even assuming you can trace the landlord is it worth it ?

Can of worms springs to mind

Thanks everyone. My instinct is telling me to do nothing - for fear of making things worse, especially as I have no problems with them in any other respect.

We live in Dublin, so we don't have the declaration of any disputes/problems rule here. As a matter of interest, what happens in the UK if you sell your house and don't declare any disputes to the buyer of your old home ?

I would say you don't actually have a dispute with - surely a dispute is a kind of ongoing argument, and no-one's started arguing with them yet?

As you say they're nice enough people why not go round with some home made cakes or something and just ask them nicely if they might abstain from doing it if they see anyone looking around your house?

Surely you don't have to declare at sale every single time you go round to your neighbours with a minor issue?! My neighbour raises moans at us about various minor niggles quite regularly, but on the other hand also comes round for tea now and again and we cooperate about all sorts of issues, there's no bad feeling at all. Surely that's just give and take between neighbours?

Politely asking if they'd mind not smoking weed during house-viewing hours comes well under that heading imo - it's hardly starting up world war III, even if they refuse. Which in any case seems unlikely if they are quiet and friendly. Also, dope-smokers are not usually known for their unusual levels of aggression:) Go for it!

I'd actually say something and declare it. Imagine if it was you buying this property and ending up next door to these people?!

I'm sure that you wouldn't like it, so why should your prospective buyer end up next to these dopeheads? Especially if the buyer has children.

Sorry if I come on strong but I am actually in the process of buying a house. And I would absolutley hate it if ended next door to your neighbours only beacuse you hid this so that you can sell your house.

Difficult one. You're not actually having a dispute/argument with them are you? Maybe do what others have suggested and talk to them. Or even a polite note through the door.

tbh I would just talk to them and say we selling our house, is it ok if I tell you when the buyers are coming round and you try not to smoke outside at that time?

I am sure you will find away to communicate, like pointing at the for sale time, miming etc,

the worst they can do is ignore you, they sound like ok people, I doubt they going to get aggressive or anything.

You only have to declare a "dispute" not that you don't like your neighbours or their habits.

Clearly you should have dealt with this when you first noticed it, it is only a problem now because you are worried it will put off a buyer.

London they hardly sound like particularly problem neighbours. It is unrealistic to expect 'full disclosure' of all the possible minor nuisances of living in a particular place, and a bit odd too. As a potential buyer, if a seller started saying to me 'well there are noisy parties every 4 months 10 doors down, and every 6 weeks the drunk from across town sometimes sits on the bench down there, and oh we had the police visit once because a wing mirror got smashed across the road' - I'd think they were bonkers. The OP is not moving because of the neighbours, she's said they are quiet and friendly!

libelulle so you wouldn't mind moving next door and exposing your children to people who smoke dope?

Granted that they are not problem neighbours. Nonetheless, I think it would be awful if a family moved next door and their children witnessed that behaviour. Maybe I just lead a very sheltered life!

Well, we used to live next to just such a man in fact. Occasionally there was a waft of smoke into our garden, which was certainly annoying. But he was also helpful, pleasant and neighbourly, so we made the best of it. If you live in a town, a bit of dope smoke wafting from next door is really a minor annoyance in the grand scheme of neighbourly problems.

Why don't you go round and explain to them that soon you're going to be having viewings- which means that agents and members of the public are going to be looking around the front of the house... which means that if they're smoking in the car at that time, they run the risk of the agent/viewers smelling it and reporting them.

Put it like that and you sound like you're doing THEM a favour - advise them to not smoke if they see agents/viewers around, you'd hate to see them get into trouble

Might work?

Bribe them with huge quantities of crisps and chocolate

Just let them know when you have viewings. Presumably they know it's illegal, and won't want to risk strangers reporting them. Perhaps they don't realise that you can smell it at all?