would you buy a house next to questionable neighbors?

meichler85 · November 2013

Hi all,

H and I checked out a house this weekend. It needs a little bit of updating but we really liked the property otherwise and it's been difficult finding something we like within our limited price range.

Anyways, one of the cons is the neighbors to the right. They have a similar house with a little bit of land between us but they have several old run down cars parked on their lawn and their house is in somewhat shabby condition. If we were to go forward with the property, we would want to put a fence up, but other than that, would that seem like a red flag to you for any reason?

G2SoccerTaz · November 2013

No that is not a red flag for any reason. We have trailers and tractors on our land. We have no rules like if one lived in the city. If you drive around our road you will see all kinds of houses that have cars/trailers/motor homes in their front yard. Some look like they have not moved in a while. It is a part of living out in the country with some land.

Don't let that stop you from putting in an offer for the house. Just continue forth with the idea of a fence if you move forward with the offer.

jessica490 · November 2013

I'm not too sure, but you may want to drive by the house at a few different times throughout the week/weekend and just see what the activity is like if you are questioning them. In regards to value, is it just the one house that is crappy looking? If the whole neighborhood looks like that then that may be a problem if you are wanting to re-sell in the future. If you can deal with the eye-sore than go for it!

vpine · November 2013

Is there not a HOA? If so, the run down cars parked on lawn would have to be removed. I personally wouldn't buy next to neighbors like that if no HOA. They could decide to have toilets in lawn too one day and you couldn't say a word.

SmrBrd2012 · November 2013

Its not a condo so no HOA. The whole street is single family homes. Its just that house that's questionable. Rest if the neighborhood seems OK. Maybe it would be a good idea to do a few drivebys. Thanks everyone.

Janessadawn · November 2013

It's a personal choice, I think. When H and I were looking for a house, any time we saw the wrecking-yard-backyard it gave us pause. It depends on how much time you plan on spending in the area where you can see it from, and how much it bugs you. My mom bought a house recently that had a few broken down cars in the back yard and she wasn't phased, so aesthetically it all comes down to how you feel about it. It could indicate that they aren't very respectful neighbors, but it may just mean that they don't have pride of ownership.

Dreamergirl8812 · November 2013

You should ask your Realtor to ask about the neighbors. The seller's Realtor has a fiduciary obligation to report any red flags, even concerning the neighbors. If they know it they have to tell you (or you can sue them later).

If it's just aesthetic, then it's all personal choice.

moonprincessd · November 2013

It really depends. I remember reading that in some cases it's harder to sell a house if your neighborhood looks like crap. You can have a perfectly fine house, but if your neighbors don't, then it's out. It's a "look" thing.

Also I'd be wary. My husband's family moved when he was 4 because they had a "mental" neighbor. Apparently there were a lot of issues with police and the guy was on meds, but it wasn't till he walked into their house one day to use the phone that my husband's mother decided it was time to move.

emily1004 · November 2013

Personally, it would be a huge red flag. I would never buy that property. Messy neighbors that look like what the OP described would drastically bring down the property value here. Talk to you realtor and find out if that is the case in your area. Also, it doesn't have to be a condo to have a HOA.

jtmh2012 · November 2013

meichler85 said:

Anyways, one of the cons is the neighbors to the right. They have a similar house with a little bit of land between us but they have several old run down cars parked on their lawn and their house is in somewhat shabby condition. If we were to go forward with the property, we would want to put a fence up, but other than that, would that seem like a red flag to you for any reason?

If this is what you consider "questionable" neighbors, go find a house with a HOA. We used to have druggies and drunks on our street. Fortunately, the druggies cleaned themselves up and the drunks were evicted. That's what I'd call questionable....

meichler85 · November 2013

Thanks everyone. We probably won't end up pursuing it. I am surprised by how many people mention houses with HOAs. I haven't come across any like that in my state other than townhomes and condos. All of their HOAs are almost half of the mortgage payment though so I'm not really interested in those.

meichler85 · November 2013

meichler85 said:

Anyways, one of the cons is the neighbors to the right. They have a similar house with a little bit of land between us but they have several old run down cars parked on their lawn and their house is in somewhat shabby condition. If we were to go forward with the property, we would want to put a fence up, but other than that, would that seem like a red flag to you for any reason?
If this is what you consider "questionable" neighbors, go find a house with a HOA. We used to have druggies and drunks on our street. Fortunately, the druggies cleaned themselves up and the drunks were evicted. That's what I'd call questionable....

I wasn't sure if it was questionable or not....that's why I asked the question...Lack of caring in ones property could certainly have neighbors such as the ones you consider questionable. But it also might not.

Disneygeek77 · November 2013

HOA for townhouses and condos usually are high, however the HOA for SFH are a lot less. We actually have a nice one and the fee is $275 a year. Our HOA mostly has rules such as no chain link fences etc.

Sillygirl45 · November 2013

HOAs aren't common where I live either. There are city and township ordinances regarding non functional or unlicensed vehicles though.

I wouldn't not buy a house because of it, but I would do some serious drive bys and investigating. My ex's house looked like a mess. The neighbors even asked him to build a fence to block the view of his crap when they listed their house, which he did. He was also the best, most helpful neighbor you could ask for, so looks can be deceiving.

AndysKandi · November 2013

No, no and no. This is not to say that anyone with old cars on their property or a shabby-condition house is bad, but I have been tainted by a terrible experience. We noticed an old car in the beginning but figured, no biggie. Some (okay, a lot of) junk in their front porch. No biggie. Somewhat overgrown weeds right by the house, eh whatever.

They turned into the neighbors from hell. The first official sign was when they decided to park a new crappy car partially on our lot. We asked nicely about moving it and pointed out that it was well onto our lot, they insisted it was not but that it didn't matter since it wouldn't be there long. 4 months later, it was still there and after asking about it nicely for the 5th time, their son (whose girlfriend was the owner of the car) decided to jump up and down on the roof of the car like a maniac while screaming F YOU and flicking us off. The car was gone about a month later, although the property line dispute never did get resolved until not long before we moved out (they paid to have it surveyed because they disagreed with our fence....turns out we were right all along, in fact we were quite conservative is our estimation of where the property line fell).

Oh, and they had 3 small, yappy dogs which they let out onto their back deck to do their business. Not the yard, or onto any grass...their back deck. Which they rarely cleaned. And we had to walk RIGHT by to get to our off-street parking. Let me tell you, NOT pleasant in the summer.

Anyhow...those are just 2 of MANY stories I could tell. And although I know not everyone with those supposed "red flags" really will be trouble, my experience will forever force me to err on the side of caution.

hersheykiss21 · December 2013

If you're seriously considering this house do the physical research. Pick 4 different times this weekend to park the car and take a walk around the neighborhood. You will get a gauge on what it's really like to live there. It could be that an elderly person lives alone in the home and can't upkeep it but would never cause a problem. However, you also don't want my past experience. Neighbor basically lived in his backyard- played music all night outside my window, I got startled all night as he threw beer cans in his recycling, and had a dog that constantly barked and escaped into my backyard. We even had our strawberry plants stolen over night before we were able to plant them. It was terrible! If you decide you are absolutely serious about the house then go knock on the door and introduce yourself. Approach neighbors who are out and about being active and engage with them. This helped us tremendously when we purchased our new home in NC. Good luck!

Mom987 · December 2013

I would also drive by often throughout the day/night.

would you buy a house next to questionable neighbors?

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