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Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 10:18 PM Jul 2013

List your neighbor nightmare.

I don't think anyone can top my experience. I have neighbors who colluded with city officials in 1998 to defraud us of our rightful ownership of our Association. Fourteen years later, instead of new homeowners raising the ethical standards, they embrace the darkside. I guess the benefits are better. Currently we have a registered agent that claims he doesn't know anything about the Association's common grounds, which would make great recreational grounds for the kids. I suspect someone is extending a favor to the homeowners who live near those grounds. One of them is the man who withheld critical information from us in 1998, which denied us valuable negotiating power when the plans for the development we lived in was being reviewed by the city.

And what looks like a quid pro quo, the current registered agent is citing an ARB rule that does not exist--but the improper citing is one in which he would personally benefit from.

What happened to the normal neighbor problems? I mean, really, there should be a special corruption unit in some law enforcement agency that just takes care of HOA crime. Fraud, conspiracy, defamation and any host of criminal behavior.

39 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
List your neighbor nightmare. (Original Post) Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 OP
Can't top that but town house politics get stupidly petty... Locut0s Jul 2013 #1
They would fit in my neighborhood. Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #2
Something about small petty amounts of power brings out the worst in people... Locut0s Jul 2013 #3
In my case, I think where they derive their power is due to their connection to the city. Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #4
We have junky neighbors on both sides Blue_In_AK Jul 2013 #5
Are any of the cars classics? Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #9
No, the cars are just junk. Blue_In_AK Jul 2013 #30
Noisy kids. ananda Jul 2013 #6
I bet the mom was suffering from depression. Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #10
Or she was overwhelmed. blueamy66 Jul 2013 #19
Meth dealer on one side, and woman with Borderline Per. D/o on the other dixiegrrrrl Jul 2013 #7
Why the hell are we paying taxes? Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #11
It was pretty evident the cops were not interested. dixiegrrrrl Jul 2013 #15
That I have any . . . ConcernedCanuk Jul 2013 #8
I have a fiction story I hope to be getting back to soon. Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #12
. . . ConcernedCanuk Jul 2013 #13
well RILib Jul 2013 #14
Hi, RILib Bertha Venation Jul 2013 #16
no recourse RILib Jul 2013 #31
Mine are pretty mellow Bertha Venation Jul 2013 #17
mellow RILib Jul 2013 #33
Seems like I always get the crazy ones. femmocrat Jul 2013 #18
I already have one. He and his wife only communicate by screaming - and that includes the kids. EdwardSmith74 Jul 2013 #20
I'll take your challenge of a neighbor nightmare. mnhtnbb Jul 2013 #21
Good to see that there is a recovery after such a bad issue. Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #23
We had a lot less of it (money) thanks to the neighbors. At least we had the satisfaction mnhtnbb Jul 2013 #27
LOL! Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #28
Dogs running loose, noise, burning thrash illegally, and just nasty. sinkingfeeling Jul 2013 #22
I'll take your problems over mine. Baitball Blogger Jul 2013 #24
The daughter and her friends of a former neighbor avebury Jul 2013 #25
Sad mentally ill man next door Spike89 Jul 2013 #26
It doesn't sound harmless RILib Jul 2013 #34
Yeah, thus the call to the police Spike89 Jul 2013 #37
the Tropicana Sun Tan Lotion Bikini Team.... NM_Birder Jul 2013 #29
A new gasoline powered leaf/clippings blower Populist_Prole Jul 2013 #32
This thread is actually making me feel better :-) RILib Jul 2013 #35
Neighbors that call the cops when you have loud parties past 3 am. Incitatus Jul 2013 #36
turn the sound down RILib Jul 2013 #38
Religious Nut with Anti-Abortion stickers on her car.. HipChick Jul 2013 #39

Locut0s

(6,154 posts)
1. Can't top that but town house politics get stupidly petty...
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 10:34 PM
Jul 2013

We live in a small 7 unit town house complex. Over the years it has gotten much better but when we moved in we were basically the only liberal family among the 7 units. All the others were petty conservative vultures. A single mother moved in to the house next to us and she was not treated well at all by several of the neighbours. One of the MOST annoying things was that we were not allowed to do ANYTHING to our property that changed the look of the units in even the smallest way because it would ruin the look of the units as a whole, yet the people who were most in arms about it had the largest, most showy garden of the 7 of us. They even cut down a tree on their property, siting it was rotten (hard to say if it was or not). At any rate this single mother wanted to put in a safety door in her front yard to protect her daughter. Well one of the other neighbours had the gall to say "honestly the safety of your daughter is none of my concern". She was a real witch and we had fights with her over many other issues over the years. Luckily they are now gone too.

I can even remember her telling me once about poisonous flowers in her flower bed and how she should remove them because she was worried the daughter of the single mother could get at them. But the way she said it was more like, I hope she get's poisoned.

Locut0s

(6,154 posts)
3. Something about small petty amounts of power brings out the worst in people...
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 10:46 PM
Jul 2013

Power corrupts absolute power corrupts absolutely, so goes the saying I believe. But in my experience some of the very worst behaviour is exhibited by people with just the smallest bit of power over others.

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
4. In my case, I think where they derive their power is due to their connection to the city.
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 10:55 PM
Jul 2013

They know the incompetence and malfeasance of a past city attorney who still holds power in the Central Florida area. They can always call him out, but they don't because of the benefits they receive with their cooperation. The city needs that cooperation so they help them where they can. This has created a divided society. It's no surprise that they take over our boards and lie and cheat to benefit others in their inner circle at the expense of everyone else.

It's not a life they're going to give up easily.

Blue_In_AK

(46,436 posts)
5. We have junky neighbors on both sides
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 11:04 PM
Jul 2013

but the one on the west HAS to be a hoarder. He's constantly "building" outbuildings in his back yard ( with blue tarp roofs ) and it's full of old clunker cars, trucks and parts. He apparently does some mechanic work and has been known to burn his garage sweepings which smell horrible. Whenever we step out on our deck we have to see that mess over there. I've come so close to calling the city on him, but I'm just not prepared for the blow-back. We used to have good neighbors over there, but this guy is THE WORST.

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
9. Are any of the cars classics?
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 07:35 AM
Jul 2013

We once lived in an area where the go-to mechanic lived in a wooded area where we parked our cars under the trees and left them with the ignition keys in the front seat. He was great. He fixed the cars for next to nothing.

It sounds like in your case, you could do well with a hedge of viburnum. They grow to thirty feet.

Blue_In_AK

(46,436 posts)
30. No, the cars are just junk.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 04:30 PM
Jul 2013

He's worked on ours a little bit, but the last time, he just made things worse, so we haven't been back.

ananda

(28,783 posts)
6. Noisy kids.
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 11:10 PM
Jul 2013

Six months after I moved a foreign family with four little boys age
seven and under moved right above me. It was hell for a year and
a half till they finally got evicted. They were going to move into a
house anyway.

The mother was very very lazy. The father did everything with
those kids, but he wasn't around that much, and when he was, he
couldn't control them. They all shared one room right above mine,
and they'd be up till all hours because they ate a terrible diet full
of junk food and caffeine.

Early on I told the dad to stop feeding them Mountain Dew and junk
food. He said their school told him the same thing, but.... He was
nice but ineffective.

That was my nightmare, but everything's fine now.

 

blueamy66

(6,795 posts)
19. Or she was overwhelmed.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 09:59 AM
Jul 2013

My niece has 3 boys, 5 and under. She is a single parent.

She is not lazy. She works hard. She takes good care of those boys.

But they are rambunctious and loud and love to play.

Boys are boys....and when there are 3 of them together, it can get rough.

dixiegrrrrl

(60,010 posts)
7. Meth dealer on one side, and woman with Borderline Per. D/o on the other
Mon Jul 1, 2013, 11:26 PM
Jul 2013

This was in SF Bay area where the house are less than 20 feet apart.
The Borderline symtoms were obvious.
She moved in a few months before I moved away, and turns out she knew the meth dealer woman on the OTHER side of me,
would go over and taunt her about selling drugs, they would argue and fight and end up in my front yard trying to scratch each other's eyes out.
The meth dealer had traffic at all hours coming and going, 24/7.
Called the police, nothing ever happened.

Before either of them moved in, it was a very pleasant area.

Where i live now, police show up 3 minutes after I call about a pack of loose dogs!

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
11. Why the hell are we paying taxes?
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 07:38 AM
Jul 2013

The law enforcement agencies are so selective about who they decide to give a hard time.

I have a theory that it comes down to who is running the local government.

dixiegrrrrl

(60,010 posts)
15. It was pretty evident the cops were not interested.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 08:59 AM
Jul 2013

They WERE interested in the Bayview neighborhood couple of miles away, which is pretty much minority, has reputation for being dangerous to drive thru.

Ironically, few months after I moved from the area, both women also moved away, friends there tell me it is very peaceful now.

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
12. I have a fiction story I hope to be getting back to soon.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 07:40 AM
Jul 2013

And you described one of the places that popped up in my head.

Wonder where I got the inspiration.

 

RILib

(862 posts)
14. well
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 08:59 AM
Jul 2013

Mine put me in the ER because they leave a firepit burning, sometimes all night, and I have a form of asthma. Now I'm on a daily steroid inhaler.

They built a dock and use jetskis in a formerly quiet natural cove that used to have egrets, swans, etc.

They leave trash out, like plastic bags that blow around, so I do trash patrol to try and get some of the stuff before it blows into the cove and then into the ocean.

They play music loud enough to be heard a block away.

 

RILib

(862 posts)
31. no recourse
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 05:20 PM
Jul 2013

No. If I complain to the town about the firepit (it violates regulations being unattended and in use late), I'm sure they would move it over next to the property line, closer to my house in the daytime. Ditto complaining about the loud music, since they know the firepit is a problem for me, they can really retaliate.

They are very nasty types, the kind of people who are so wealthy (this is a spare house to them, which they and various relatives use), that they never consider others.

The jet skis are legal, it's just that no one else has ever had them before.

The town tried to stop the dock, but the state coastal commission gets to overrule localities.

Bertha Venation

(21,484 posts)
17. Mine are pretty mellow
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 09:12 AM
Jul 2013

We live in a very small subdivision; 90% of the houses are on the street that I live on; there are two very small, short cul de sacs too. We have a little over an acre; it seems most of the houses are on similarly-sized lots. Our place is pretty well located for privacy: to our east is a heavily wooded gully with a little stream flowing; to our north are trees, and to our west, right next door, is the well/pump house.

On the other side are the first problem neighbors. About seven-eight months of the year, every time the weather is wonderful, they're outside and they play their music. It's not overly loud, just loud enough to ruin whatever we want to have going on our deck, or to ruin the lovely chances to have all the windows open. It really, really sucks.

The other one is the party house. They never notify anyone when they're having a party, and never ask permission to park on our grass. Their guests just go ahead and park on my lawn and everyone else's lawn (we have no curbs or sidewalks). Often they dump old fast food trash or beer bottles and cans out of their cars and onto my lawn. It is the height of rudeness and it fucking bugs the shit out of me.

Like I said. Pretty mellow.

 

RILib

(862 posts)
33. mellow
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 05:38 PM
Jul 2013

Time for a fence? You can get very open fences, the kind that are three or two logs horizontally. I have one like this.

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Or if you are in New England, boulders at the border are commonly used, close enough together, say four feet, so that a car can't get between them.

femmocrat

(28,394 posts)
18. Seems like I always get the crazy ones.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 09:49 AM
Jul 2013

We had to move from our old house because the psycho next door would try to run me over when he saw me walking my dog.

We moved next to a mean drunk and put up with his sh*t for 17 years before he finally moved. He has been replaced by a clone who is not a drunk (that I know of) but is just as noisy and obnoxious. For some reason, they both seem to love loud tractors, quads, revving pick up trucks, weed-wackers at all hours, and barking dogs that run loose. And fireworks. What is it with fireworks that gets these a-holes all fired up?

Why me, Lord? I just want to live in peace and be left alone.

 

EdwardSmith74

(282 posts)
20. I already have one. He and his wife only communicate by screaming - and that includes the kids.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 10:45 AM
Jul 2013

The kids are old enough now that all they do is scream back. Headphones and an iPod are a good filter.

mnhtnbb

(31,320 posts)
21. I'll take your challenge of a neighbor nightmare.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 11:10 AM
Jul 2013

In 2000 we were living in Lincoln, NE. My hubby (a psychiatrist) was losing his
office in a medical office building (owned by the attached private hospital) that was requiring all MD tenants to be on-call
at the OTHER hospital in town, which they had just bought, which had been a public hospital. He did not want
to be on-call--after 30 some years in practice--so decided to build a small, detached home office adjacent to our
house on our property. The city gave us a permit. We hired a contractor and he began construction, which required
tearing down a little brick playhouse (that had been built by previous owners) in the spot where the office would
be located. Everything was above board (permit) and according to city regs (no employees).

The neighbors--both sides--and one other down the street (an attorney) got together and filed a lawsuit to prevent
us from building the office. They claimed home based 'businesses' were prevented by restrictions in the deeds for
all the houses on the street. There was no homeowners association and our house had been built in 1924. One other
neighbor--who no longer lived there--had run a home based high end clothing business out of her house for several years and everyone
in the neighborhood attended her 'showings' and bought from her. One of the next door neighbors--party to the suit--was also running a home based property management business out of their home--as well as leasing a garage apartment on their property (and had for several years).

It was clear during the trial that the neighbors were simply discriminating against people with mental health problems.
They were such bigots. One street over was a psychologist who had a home based practice.

The court ruled against us--frontier justice--since the judge was buddies with the attorney.
They had no legal basis for the ruling. Our attorney presented evidence that the 'regulations' that were cited
running with the deed expired after 75 years.

I convinced hubby that if the ruling was against us we'd list the house and move to Chapel Hill. And we did.
But not before it cost us about $25,000. in payment to the contractor for his services...plus attorney's fees,
plus moving costs (about $12,000, I think), plus costs associated with selling the house and buying another one.

Yet, if those neighbors hadn't been such a$$holes, we probably never would have moved to Chapel Hill. I love it here--
although I'm very disturbed by the right wing takeover of the state government--but can't imagine living anywhere else
now.

When our house here burned down in 2007, our neighbors took us in, helped us salvage photos and other items from
the debris, and basically behaved the way neighbors should. They also have never objected to hubby having his
private office in the house where he sees patients.

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
23. Good to see that there is a recovery after such a bad issue.
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 12:55 PM
Jul 2013

I say, it's always good to have money. Lots of it. If you have it, at least you have options.

mnhtnbb

(31,320 posts)
27. We had a lot less of it (money) thanks to the neighbors. At least we had the satisfaction
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 02:09 PM
Jul 2013

of considering the money well spent to get out of town.

And it was great fun flipping off the Nebraska sign as we drove out of state.

avebury

(10,946 posts)
25. The daughter and her friends of a former neighbor
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 01:30 PM
Jul 2013

caused the death of one of my dogs. I had a new fence installed and the only way that any of the dogs could have gotten out is if someone opened the gate. I came home one day and found one of my dogs had been hit by a car. The kids were outside in the yard next door and I asked them what happened (I also found kids juice boxes in my back yard that were not there before). Of course they denied any involvement and even had the gaul to ask me if I was sure that it was my dog. This particular dog was really shy and if they had tried to chase her she would have run away from them.

A few weeks later I adopted a dog from one of the Animal Shelters. The dogs were in the backyard (as was I). I watched from a place that the kids could not see me and saw one of the kids take off his shoe and go to hit my new dog. I stepped into view and put a quick halt to it. Luckily the Mother and daughter moved soon after that.

Now I have a neighbor who is nosy beyond belief. She watches everything going on around are area (even who the girl on the otherside of her house is dating). It will be interesting.

Spike89

(1,569 posts)
26. Sad mentally ill man next door
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 01:51 PM
Jul 2013

When he moved in, my wife and I were actually relieved, his recently deceased mother had used the house as a rental and the tenants were very loud (a son played the trumpet, poorly) and high maintenance (lots of late night police and ambulance visits). At first the new guy was pretty OK for a neighbor, he kept to himself mostly, but he did drink a lot.

After about 6 months, he went into rehab for his drinking. He returned about 6 weeks later looking 10 years older. He began hanging out in his front yard loudly asking no one in particular where his truck keys were, then coming over and asking my wife (who works as a writer in our home) for help finding his keys. A caseworker had taken the keys--he'd lost his license (the reason he went to rehab), but he refused to listen/believe it.

Within a few more weeks, he began loudly conversing/wailing/crying in his front yard (right outside my wife's office) that someone had kidnapped his daughter (she was grown and in the military). He also would loudly chant the status of the neighbors on the other side of him, as well as our status "Bill and Jan are home. Spike89 is at work. EugeneLiberal is at home." He also began coming to our door and asking for rides up to the store, to a bar, to the bank, etc. I took him to the store and the bank a few times, but the caseworker asked me not to do it because he was on a tight budget and was buying beer and overdrawing his accounts.

Annoying so far, then he began peeking into the neighbor's windows, chanting about what they were doing "Bill is watching TV! Jan is sweeping!" and would repeat this for hours. Eventually, they filed a complaint and the police finally convinced him to stay away from their windows. He immediately began peering in our windows when I was at work, telling the world whatever my wife was doing--we had to call the police also.

It all sounds so harmless, but none of us could go out our front door without the guy making a beeline for us to tell us about his missing keys, kidnapped daughter, or the latest domestic chores being done in our houses. This went on for a couple years. Then, he died--choked on a banana while drunk on some beer he'd somehow scored.

His caseworker was in despair, she'd been trying to get him into state-sponsored care, but there was no money/space available. I felt immense relief and guilt for that relief. He has a pain-in-the-ass, but basically a harmless old man. His ex-wife and her husband came a few weeks later to fix up and sell the house for the daughter. They basically told us he was a horribly violent and abusive drunk who'd lost all visitation rights with his daughter decades before and had alienated every family member long ago (turns out he had a brother and father both living within a mile who never visited him).

Spike89

(1,569 posts)
37. Yeah, thus the call to the police
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 07:21 PM
Jul 2013

It was mentally wearing, but he never implicitly threatened us. More than anything, it was being put into the position of being a de facto caretaker that was so horrible. The state (Oregon) acknowledged that he should be institutionalized, but didn't have a bed available--they couldn't/wouldn't do more than send a caseworker by for an hour in the morning and another hour in the afternoon.

Maybe if all the people who balk at paying taxes to support social programs had a neighbor like him we'd be able to take care of people.

 

NM_Birder

(1,591 posts)
29. the Tropicana Sun Tan Lotion Bikini Team....
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 02:41 PM
Jul 2013


Took me seriously when I told them they were "welcome anytime".

Now my bathroom always looks like a graveyard for tiny shrunken underwear,....the nightly pillow fights are exhausting, and if the vitamin B12 doesn't last I have NO idea what I'm going to do, PLUS I haven't been able to control the TV remote since they arrived !

my life is hell,.... but I'm surviving .....best I can




Populist_Prole

(5,364 posts)
32. A new gasoline powered leaf/clippings blower
Tue Jul 2, 2013, 05:34 PM
Jul 2013

I've also seen where one will try to cut his lawn just with a weed whacker; basically trying to hit the high spots to avoid a full mow, but what an annoyance: 30 to 40 minutes of Braaaaappp! Braaaaaappp! Braaaaapp!

 

RILib

(862 posts)
38. turn the sound down
Wed Jul 3, 2013, 02:53 AM
Jul 2013

If it can be heard blocks away, you can still hear it if you turn it down. Some of us have lives, jobs to go to, kids to get to school, and why should we have to be up at 3 am? Do we wake you up at 6am?

HipChick

(25,485 posts)
39. Religious Nut with Anti-Abortion stickers on her car..
Wed Jul 3, 2013, 02:58 AM
Jul 2013

one one side...

A 6ft 5 red headed Irish woman on the other works for HomeLand Security

Somekinda Intelligence type on the other..Investigators dropped by my house to do a background investigation on her..
Actually there are no men on this corner of the cul-de-sac...all single women with multi family size homes
Bunch of spooks if you ask me..

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