Bad Neighbors

We have been lucky so far, but I know that derelict neighboring properties have an impact on the selling price as well as the days on market. Sellers should start the conversation with the problem neighbor before they list the home.

Most homes in that category are from tenants and not homeowners, regardless, the best solution is to contact the city enforcement code department and report any issues as "safety and health" concerns.

Every homeowner has a stake in maintaining their neighborhood as a desirable place to live and a 5% reduction in selling price could be as much as $25k or even more. So, is it too much trouble to make that phone call and file a report?

Great post! Love the part, that you actually need to learn some by-laws before making a complaint to the local authorities or even approaching your neighbor. I am actually a lucky owner of a big ferocious dog, you know, cocker-spaniels, they are all like that :)

I am not surprised by this statistic...at first I was surprised but after I thought about it, everyone today is so particular as lot sizes shrink...if average lot sizes were half an acre or more, there would probably be fewer complaints

We had neighbors who lived cat-a-corner from us and their kids were always out front hanging on the curb and many neighbors were complaining. Some of the neighbors were complaining to me about them and all I said was I was more concerned about the way some people were always running the stop sign and someone was going to get hurt. I saw one day when the very same neighbor came home and discovered her dog got out of the yard. While we were talking, I saw over her shoulder "Spike" (neighbors nicknamed him because of his hair) come walking up behind her. He was carrying her dog. This was like 10 minutes after she got home.  Little Kirby was very happy to see his "Mama".  Kirby almost got hit by a car and "Spike and his friends rescued and took care of Kirby til Mama got home, about 5 hours. She decided the kids weren't so bad and suggested to them not to sit on the curb.  It was arental property and they moved after a year and never really gave us a problem. The next tenants were gone after 5 months because of a shoot out/drive by. We got together and contacted the owner/landlord and told him to get rid of them. They were a bad set of "Section 8' tenants. I say that because I have met with some Section 8s who cared an were trying to get out of that hole. Eventually the house sold in "06" and just sold again. So far good people.

Rick #71 The problem is that dog may have become "only your best friend" and no one else's.

Michael #76, Unfortunately, there are many "piggies" with college degrees and high income that are among the many bad neighbors. I've dealt with these kinds of people before and talk about a mess. Found out where the smell was coming from, inside the house, they were PIGS. not hoarders. Just down right lazy.

Oh yes we all have had these types of problems in our history. So frustrating! 

Loved the pics! LOL!  We currently have an issue with a dog who barks incessantly that lives on the other side of the canyon...just haven't been able to pinpoint who he/she belongs to.

Great post!  I would agree that neighbors can be a problem.  I had a buyer come through an open house once and claim that she would not buy a house if the houses on either side had a dog.  When I replied that just because there is not a dog at the time that you purchase a home, that doesn't mean the neighbor could not be thinking of getting a dog in the near future or perhaps sell their home to someone who has two dogs a few months from now.  She didn't much like my answer.  :)

I'm with Derrik (#85).  While I certainly wouldn't choose to have the neighbours described, I've had far more issues with what I like to term the self-appointed "Mayor of the Neighbourhood."  The last place I lived had a private drive and our Mayor pretended to be very pleasant while being extremely condescending and setting all sorts of rules for the neighbourhood.  It was a gorgeous rural setting but I often thought of leaving solely because of our self-appointed Mayor.

That said, nobody wants loud or messy neighbours, but I'd really rather have that than my former Mayor.  To put it in perspective, anyone who ever visited me more than 3 or 4 times had had an encounter with her (have to drive by her place on our private drive to get to mine) and been told the neighbourhood rules.  My home was on 29 acres and I moved there in part because I'd rather not deal with neighbours.  Maybe 150 acres for my next home - fronting onto a highway!

It's to bad there is not really much you can do about it other than hope they move but that probably won't happen. This is why it is so important to research well a place you are considering moving to. 

Lost a sale due to this type of neighbor. Old school-bus full of stuff in the yard was a major red-flag. Checked with other neighbors - MAJOR issues!!!

Neighbors definitely can have a great effect on the saleability of a home.

Good neighbors today can become bad neighbors tomorrow, and vice versa. This is one of the hazards of home ownership as it is harder to move out of an home you own than it is to move out of a home you only rent.

I do not see any way to protect yourself completely from this risk.

You definitely got us commenting on this topic! - Good one!

Our area attracts many unique individuals, so we typically have different types of people and homes of vastly different values on the same street.      Because our valley is a collection of small towns in the mountains, most people are relaxed and nice to each other.    You just never know when you're going to need to borrow your neighbor's chain saw :)

Recently someone wanted to list their home for sale and was nervous about the neighbor down the block who was a "collector."   That's my euphamism for people who buy more stuff than can fit in their house.     Kind of like the wealthy West Virginians in #79.     Anyway, the seller approached the neighbor and offered them a few hundred dollars to help with front yard clean up.    The neighbor was a little embarrassed, and cleaned it up right away.    Wish all our real estate / neighbor stories had this happy outcome!

Great photos Wayne and Jean.  Some of them made us laugh but definately made their point!

I'm probably the bad neighbor.  I rescue dogs and sometimes it gets noisy here.  I work very hard a keeping it down to a low roar but....Sometimes it's me.  

I always check with my neighbors to make sure the dogs aren't disturbing them.  I have a new neighbor who is an insomniac.  Things had been going swimmingly until this new dog got here.  He's just got a lot to say.  And I get up at 4:30am every day.  Her husband came over about two months ago and asked if I could keep him quiet until 7am.  He's such a pain I didn't even notice he was waking her up.  I apologized profusely, thanked him for letting me know and have kept them all in until 7:30am every day since.  That's how a bad neighbor acts like a good one!

We have been lucky so far to have had decent neighbors. We did have one neighbor that was vindictive and called on the slightest things and to harrass people, they moved!

Yup, we all have a neighbors either we love or can't agree with.  My neighbor was complaining that he can't sleep cause bird made a nest on my house.  Told him are you kidding???

Great advice Wayne and Jean, this seems to be such a growing problem as we become more isolated from the people around us.

Especially like the idea of inviting them over for coffee so that they can see your perspective and learn to treat each other better.

I would however never call the authorities, this will only serve to destroy all hope of future harmony.

I love your pictures   The first one with the junk in the yard is one that I see so often.  Would hate to look at that everyday :(