Would you buy a house next to 'dodgy' neighbours?

[susie100]

Right, we have managed to sell our flat and are now on major househunting mode.

We saw our DREAM house on Saturday, could not be more perfect. It will be a stretch but we have done the sums and we could do it. All poised to put a serious offer in but I was a bit concerned about the house next door that is in really poor state of repair on a road that is otherwise in very good nick.

Investigation on the land registry shows it is housing association owned and divided into 3 flats. So far no problems but I have checked with the neighbours on the other side and with the council and there have been many complaints about the top floor flat about noise and general anti social behaviour. The housing association have a female tenant registered in each flat but in reality there is a family of 6 living in the top floor flat!

I am not concerned about shabbiness etc but my biggest fear is noisy neighbours and not being able to sleep at night.

We should just walk away shouldn't we?

Yes, I'm afraid you should.

The worst depression I have ever suffered was caused by problems with my neighbour.

Sorry for you, but well done on doing your research properly.

Oh dear- your home is supposed to be your sanctuary, your place of peace and not a warzone. I know it sucks but I would walk away.

Thanks Mintty, I suspect you are right. It seemed too perfect there had to be something!

As you say, at least we found out now, feel sorry for the vendors they have only been there 2 years I wonder if that is why they are moving.

And shootfromthehip - thanks for the reply, that is what my gut is saying. Was just worried I was being prejudiced or something.

Walk away. It's nothing to do with prejudice - you can get bad neighbours anywhere - with private/HA/council, the whole lot.

But once you have bad neighbours, it makes life very very very miserable. Round here I know someone who bags up cat poo from their garden and puts it on the doorstep of the cat owner every day. I know someone else who tries to plant things to prevent their neighbour parking on their own land (trying to make it impossible for them to open the car door). This person also sits at the window and every time the neighbour comes back, she turns a light on to annoy them. It all sounds total petty nonsence but is horrible to live with. Fortunately I am round the corner, but still share part of a garden fence with one of these nutters. There have been numerous reports to the council for imagined problems, sniping about cats, dogs and children in gardens. Just don't go there!

Nope, don't do it.
Neighbours from hell are the worst nightmare.
Sorry- but you've done a great job of researching before you part with any money so no harm done (excpet heartbreak- which doesn't cost money!)

bad neighbours is one thing you cant change. if i had a dollar for every person that has said to me if we knew we wouldnt have moved.... well you know, count yourself lucky.

i'd echo the others. i've had the misfortune to have three sets of undesirable neighbours, once before i had my son and then after. Different types of nuisance both times but the stress is just not worth it.
Every time these people moved into their properties after i had moved into mine, so there was little i could do about it, but i would never knowingly move into a property with difficult neighbours.

Walk away.

Yep walk away. You will be legally obliged to inform any new buyers of the house about your neighbours in the future.

Well that looks fairly unanimous!

I know you are all right, it would be miserable to have noise and disturbance.

Sorry for all those that have or have had noisy neighbours, I can imagine how miserable and stressful that would be.

Right, going to call the agent now.

It's such a shame.

We have shitty neighbours on one side. We've been here for 11 years and I love the house but we will be selling up and moving.

They grow their bushes so high, it blocks our light. They smoke non-stop in the garden so we can't open our windows and doors. Their dog wakes DD with it's barking most mornigns.

In 11 years I cannot think of a single nuisnace we have caused to them - nothing.

I hope you tell the agent your reasons, BTW.

Don't buy it, rubbish neighbours can make your life a living hell. I have lived in two houses with these problems.

In my last house I actually sold up and moved 150 yards away just to get away from them.. Cost a small fortune to do, but worth it for the quality of life.

Wow - so many people with problem neighbours!

Hope the situation improves for you Mogwai.

I told the agent our reasons, they were a bit patronising and glossed over it. Banged on about how nice the house is (there is no doubt on that, it is gorgeous)

Anyway, looks like we had a lucky escape, back to the drawing board!

I would have to walk away.

Who ever is selling the house MUST tell you about any problems they have ad with the neighbours. It is one of the obligations on sellers.

Also this meas that should you own the house, if you have prblems with the neighbours you would also be obliged to inform potential buyers should you decide to sell er. And, as you are seeing yourself, this would put doubt into the minds of your potential buyers and restrict your own market in the future.

No way. Walk away now.
You can be in the most beautiful house in the world and bad neighbours will still make you want to die.

Hmmm... I would buy it. THey could move on in a few months - anything could happen. But then I have a high tolerance level with noise etc, doesn't bother me

We walked away from a really nice house because next door was a house of horrors. The vendor said that his neighbour was really nice, just rather eccentric. The house had old bits of motorbike in the front and back gardens, and was decorated with skulls and other unusual things. We felt that we probably would have problems selling it if we needed to move, so we chose a "safer" house, which was actually too small for our needs, so we only stayed there for two years.

If we had chosen the other house, we would have been in the catchment area of the best primary school in the LEA. However, this was long before children were even thought of. Come to think of it, maybe the house would have been much more saleable than we realised!

I would walk away. Awful neighbours could well make your life so miserable and stressful.

The last 3 times we moved it was to get away from noisy and anti-social neighbours. In the last house I used to dread my neighbours coming home from work and their regular Friday and Saturday nights out. They'd turn the music up loud then have it on until 3/4am, and have huge rows with plate throwing etc. And that was in a 'nice' street in a nice city.

Absolutely walk away.

The one and only time I suffered from depression is when we had anti social neighbours. Never again. (I hope!)

Walk away. Vile neighbours will invade your every thought whilst you live next to them

When I was younger and working full-time, I didn't know any neighbours except our immediate ones, and we had no trouble at all. Infact , up until my husband died 15 years ago, my neighbours were lovely and kind. But after losing my husband, I moved back to England from abroad, and my neighbour here is a nasty piece of work, and has become worse over the years. The other neighbours are somewhat to be desired as well and cannot call any of them really good friends or friends at all, despite me always being very friendly. The other neighbours do not speak to my other male neighbour, I am the only one who does. The 4 female neighbours on my right are in a clique, and just keep my nasty neighbour sweet and humour her as she is a pain in the neck otherwise. There is one other house which is part-time lived in - weekend house- that they have owned for decades, and due to a new neighbour who moved in when I did who must have written that book " How to win friends and influence people" as she is a wizard at doing just that, but only with people she regards as useful or important to her, which does not include me, she has alienated all the others against that couple as twice the police were called by that couple as charismatic's daughters car was blocking access to his driveway, and refused to move it. Her cronies put all the blame on that part-time couple who had been friends with them all until the new charismatic neighbour moved in, who can't do anything wrong. We are all semi detached bungalows - 8- in a cul-de-sac backing onto a canal, and most of us are 68-83, charismatic is 58. It is a beautiful location, pity about the residents. But they are not as bad as the neighbours in these forums, thank goodness

We have got students next door to us, we live in a student city and there seems to be a smattering of them in all of the 'naice' areas TBH. I rationalised that even if we didn't have students when we moved in, we could well do at any stage. And I loved the house.

Only two months in and I am trying to kill them with kindness. We've had a couple of late nights (woken up at 5am with ppl saying goodbye) but so far it's been OK. I am just SUPER friendly to them, to the point that they've asked me to sya if they're being too noisy. Also befriended the landlord.

Once term starts I am going ot be dropping cookies over and will continue this charm offensive throughout the first term. As I know from experience that this is when you razz it up the most!

I agree- dont think about the property anymore. It is a nightmare feeling on edge about what neighbours will do next etc. Too much stress. So sorry and you will find somewhere soon.

Oh horrid neighbours are the most stressful thing ever. You get no sanctuary from the stress of it, I too have had horrid neighbours and it affected me in a major way. Much happier now in a nice street with nice quiet neighbours.