Browse Forums General Discussion Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 21Nov 08, 2010 8:55 pm paddyandbeau, I too have a similar problem with my new neighbours. They wind my dogs up in any way possible then say they are phoning the council etc. Shout at my kids (2+3 years old). The list goes on. As it turns out they have been doing this and other things in the neighbourhood for years and are well know to council and police. My advise is log every event. Get cameras (even fake would do). Speak to other neighbours, see if they can side with you etc. Find out if they own or rent and if they do rent you can make complaints to the real estate or owners. Let them know you own the property. Just keep phoning the police. The last time the police were at my house I asked them to go around and talk to my lunatic neighbours (brother and sister if you know what I mean), they returned saying mediation is out of the question due to there mental state, but there is a law stating you have the right to enjoy your own property. I will be looking into this and will keep you posted. Jack. Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 22Nov 08, 2010 9:02 pm I really sympathise with your situation and I hope that some resolution can be reached. As far as reporting the matter to police - there's not a lot they can do unless an offence has been committed. Police generally consider these matters to be 'civil' (pardon the pun) and they don't have a lot of powers to assist. I'm afraid that you may be left even more frustrated if the police can't help you. Often times getting the police involved can make matters worse. Having said that, if you are generally frightened or feel intimidated by certain behaviours (particularly the pervy type) then don't hesitate to contact the police. In some states there are mediation services available for this very situation. This may assist. Are you able to have a conversation with the wife? Is she any more reasonable? Sorry for your predicament. Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 23Nov 08, 2010 9:09 pm paddyandbeau Will get photos of the gate shortly. Had posted photos of the trees but it had the neighbour in the background and wouldn't want to get in trouble regarding defamation etc. You never know. its not defamation if its the truth (that you can prove). I would serve him with a notice to fence and get the rest of the fence up asap. He doesnt have a choice in the matter. As for the gate, get a handyman to fit a lock on your side. It wouldnt take more than 15mins. Also take the family to mediation, the council should offer these services between neighbours. Also start documenting things and the private investigator is a great option. Or have you thought about making a donation to your local bikie to have a chat to him Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 24Nov 10, 2010 12:48 am Thanks everyone, I must say I have thought about having a few guys pay him a visit but only a fantasty of mine The wife is no better. In fact, I feel she may fuel the fire. She is bitter about us putting in the fence and now the trees. They feel anything we do on our side of the fence is their business. I guess as our house was rented for so long prior to us purchasing, the neighbours see our property as some sort of extension of their own. Very odd. So far no problems but it's rather like that. He seems to build up and then go mental on us. Anyway, the trees go in on Wednesday afternoon as does the window film so I'm hoping we don't incur any problems from the neighbours but no doubt they'll stew on it for a few days and then make some remark. I'll just be saying calmly that the trees are a result of his inappropriate and aggressive behaviour and that if he continues to harass myself, my family, my pets or any tradesman on my property he will be receiving a letter from my solicitor. Perhaps he might see that harassing us is not worth any of his time or money. Jackdownunder, thank you for your info. Sorry to hear you are having similar issues. Targetting children is so low, especially small children. I hope everything works out for you. Will add to this post if anything new occurs but fingers crossed! Thank you all for your input! Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 25Nov 10, 2010 7:04 am paddyandbeau I'll just be saying calmly that the trees are a result of his inappropriate and aggressive behaviour and that if he continues to harass myself, my family, my pets or any tradesman on my property he will be receiving a letter from my solicitor. Perhaps he might see that harassing us is not worth any of his time or money. Good stuff! You need to show confidence and not let him see that he is getting to you. Don't show any signs of weakness or nerves near him - just be confident and assured of yourself and most of all if you say you are going to do something then you must follow it through so that he know you mean what you say He really does sound like a bully who is trying to intimidate a female - he should not be allowed to get away with this!! 'A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world.' Louis Pasteur Vegie garden: viewtopic.php?f=19&t=27637&start=0 My Backyard Adventure Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 27Nov 11, 2010 11:03 am I'd get your solicitor to type up a letter stating that he is not to have any contact with you and any contact will result in legal action. We have a horrid neighbour and my best friend is a solicitor, so she typed up a letter for us! It was a great letter! Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 30Nov 13, 2010 1:15 am Had the police out again. Its becoming a joke. 3 times in 2 days. My dogs have become so insencsed to my neighbours behaviour, that he and his sister have taken to leaning over the fence and banging on the side of my house (whilst I am at work and my wife is home alone!!!) I do have a friend in real estate in NSW she tells me to keep taking it higher, even to the mayor of Ipswich? Does anyone think this might help? Jackdownunder. Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 32Nov 13, 2010 8:41 am It sad that it's come to this and I really, really feel for you. I can't imagine what it's like not being comfortable in your own home. This has escalated since the last time I looked at the thread. Time for an AVO. All the best, hang in there. Leonard. Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 33Nov 13, 2010 9:38 am I feel for you! I had to take a neighbour to court to get him to pay for half of the fence, during this time, I honestly found him to be slighting unstable! God help me if he ever decides to move in. My one piece of advice, DONT BACK DOWN. I am younger, and my neighbour tried everything to get me to do things his way, even demanding I dont construct the fence like the COURT ordered! I just kept going and pursued what I knew what right! Go out in the back yard with your dog for as long as you want. Let him bark at the bully. Dont feel intimidated. If he threatens to ring the council its unlikely he will. He knows he is doing the wrong thing and wont want to get any authorities involved. Ignore him, dont give him the time of day, just go on with your life like he doesnt exist (easier said than done I know, but should be easier now you have a couple of privacy issues sorted out). It honestly sounds like he is trying to push you to breaking point - just dont let that happen because he is clearly not worth it! Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 34Nov 13, 2010 4:07 pm I just have a couple of suggestions, first put a bolt and padlock on your side of that gate so he can't use it. When he pokes his head over the fence and says "why are you doing this or that?" just ignore him, you dont have to give him any reason and dont say things like "I'm doing it because of your behaviour" etc, that's just going to inflame things but whenever he talks to you dont even answer him just walk away because then he doesnt have an excuse to tell you what he thinks, or go on a rant, he can stand there argueing with himself all day but it won't give him the power that he's looking for. people like this expect an arguement and they expect to win it with aggression, but if you just put the hand up and say "whatever" and walk away, it does take the wind out of their sails and you're letting them know that nothing they say is even worth listening to. The other up side is his age, in the next 5 or so years he wont have the energy to harrass you anymore Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 35Nov 14, 2010 1:43 pm Also watch out for your dogs,he may do something really nasty,sorry but just a warning. I think you have been given great advise by the others,don't back down to a bully,even if your scared stiff. I would enclose my patio on that side,just so he cannot see whats going on,it would drive him crazy. Plus you would be disconected to him,don't answer him back if he talks,let him talk away to himself Put a bolt latch on your side of the gate. Document every little detail,i would get a camera,i think you would find he visits your house abit Shame,i have a man that looks every bit the bikie,a diamond in the rough & a pussy-cat cat!!!!!! He just looks,doesn't need to say anything Best of luck Block bought 1st RBC X! 2nd Ventrua,Keeper! Pstart 18/7/11 Ethwks jan 2012 Slab Bricks- finished 7/6 Roof Trusses 15/6-cbond 21/7 viewtopic.php?f=31&t=41185 Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 36Nov 14, 2010 6:08 pm Thank you all so much for your helpful advice and support! The other 12 trees went in a few days ago. With all the rain we've had lately they are growing strong and my gardener says they will be 10ft tall by March. Yay! I also had a handyman put up outdoor blinds so that the neighbour can't see into the patio area - I can see him though so if he's lurking around I will know. The window film is now also on so I can have my blinds up completely without being watched by him. It's like the glass in police interrogation rooms (not that I've ever been in one ), I can see him but he can't see me. Fantastic stuff. Well worth the money. Unfortunately though it has darkened the rooms so I'll need some skylights. It's frustrating how much money has had to be spent because of this loony but it's all necessary and I guess it adds to the value of the house. So far no comments from the neighbours about trees or blinds. I'm hoping he has come to his senses but I am still just waiting for him to pop. This morning (Sunday) at around 9:00 am he stood next to the fence for about 15 minutes with a leaf blower going. I can tell he is trying to stir me but as many have said it's best to just ignore him. Unfortunately I don't see our pool or spa going in until next year because of the lack of privacy in the backyard but atleast I now have privacy inside. A helpful person on this post mentioned something about whether the neighbour was running a business. It struck me the other night that he just might well be. Nothing large but many people come over with their lawnmowers and he tinkers with them and then I see them trying them out on his lawn. Perhaps lawmowing maintenance? I'm sure he would need a permit for that. Anyway I'm not spiteful but it's good to have a few tricks up your sleeve. Jackdownunder - I'm so sorry for your troubles. I can of course empathise given my situation but with your young children it must be much worse. So wierd about your neighbour banging on your house just like mine did with my fence to rouse my dog. Wonder if our neighbours are related! Afraid I can't offer much advice but try and screen them out as much as possible. Unfortunately it all costs money. Are you able to file some sort of harassment order or something along those lines? I think perhaps an AVO is in order. If they are bashing on your house surely that is tresspassing? Not all that sure on the laws - I might take up a few legal units in my degree this year. Should come in handy! All the best. Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 37Nov 14, 2010 8:52 pm paddyandbeau Hello everyone, Thought I would pop in for some advice on issues with the neighbours. We recently purchased our home which is on a small block of only 480 m2. When we purchased we noticed the boundary fence between our house and the neighbour on our right only went half way down the property. We were told by the real estate agent that the neighbour had taken down half of the fence but would put it back. We both have a driveway each seperating the houses and a fence used to seperate the driveways. Once this was pulled down it left the driveways as what I would call 'communal' and this was obviously the neighbours intention behind pulling down half the fence so that he could use my driveway to back his car out more easily as the driveways are rather narrow. When we moved in we began to realise how necessary the rest of the fence was. The neighbours friends and family would constantly park half way down their driveway which looked straight into our windows and in particular our living room and kitchen. Many a time people would stand and chat whilst having a good look through our windows. We have roller blinds and as you can imagine would have to have our blinds down completely on this side of the house to obtain some sort of privacy and as a result had no light. The neighbour is also an incredible stickybeak and is incredibly bold and arrogant. I have often seen him and his friends come up to the fence and stand there talking and pointing at things in my backyard. I can't believe it! I have two small dogs. One elderly terrier and a 1 year old Cocker Spaniel. Both are indoor dogs who spend about 23 hours of the day inside. The other hour is spread over the day for toilet trips outside. I work from home and am therefore home all day. My Spaniel never leaves my side but has somehow become a topic of complaint for my neighbour. As the fence only went half way down the boundary I informed the neighbour that I wanted to put back the rest of the fence. I organised for additional colorbond to be installed. The existing amount of fence was only 5ft tall and so I proposed putting in 6ft panels and adding extensions to the existing panels. This I told the neighbour I would pay myself at no cost to them. They decided they didn't want the fence to be 6ft tall - for whatever odd reason they could have. The only reason I can think of is that they enjoyed having a good look into my backyard and back windows. Anyway, as a means of being 'neighbourly' I didn't put in 6ft and instead decided I would put in trees on my side. A taller fence or trees were necessary as the street is on a hill and the neighbours property is higher than ours and as the neighbour is around 6ft 2" he towers with his head and torso over our fence. This along with the fact that he spends his entire day with his truck parked against our fence playing with his tools in the boot (even though he has a garage) means I have no privacy whatsoever. It is of course his right to do whatever he wants in his backyard but why he feels the need to do it up against the fence is beyond me. When my dog is outside and the neighbour is up against the fence my dog will bark at him. Within a minute I am out there but have gotten to the point where this guy is against the fence so often that I can't put my dog outside without a problem. The neighbour loves antagonising my dog. In the first few weeks my dog would be quietly sitting or playing with a toy in the backyard while I hung out the washing or watered the garden. The neighbour would come up to the fence, stand there while Paddy barked and then would bash on our side of the fence saying 'what's up with you' over and over again. I told the neighbour he doesn't like strangers but the neighbour insisted on persisting with Paddy. After a while this began to really frustrate me and I was at the point of telling him that he was causing the problem. Instead I let it go. When the neighbour wasn't standing up against the fence, my dog would be quietly milling around not making a noise. I decided it was time for some screening trees. Two weeks ago at about 6 pm Paddy was sitting in our enclosed alfresco dining area. He heard a few hoons on the street behind us and barked a few times. I was sitting in a room near to him and went to see what was wrong. He stopped barking and I let him outside to go to the toilet while I stood there waiting at the door. A few minutes later the neighbour shoots out of his backdoor shouting 'does that dog ever shut up?' Frankly I was not ready for this attack but was so irritated by this neighbour and his constant perving through our windows, thumping music, antagonizing of the dog, 2am goodbyes to their friends and family outside my bedroom window etc that I fired back 'yes when you're not around' The neighbour then ranted on about taking me to the council about my so called barking dog. Keep in mind that this is a small/medium dog that is inside all day long. I am home all day long. He is never left at home on his own (too needy) and is left with my Mum when I go out - like a child I know! He is not a dog tied up outside 24 hours a day with no exercise or attention and best yet has NEVER barked at our other neighbour on the other side. Anyway that was the first outburst from the neighbour and I decided it was time for the trees. $1000 later I had 10 conifers against the boundary fence. Currently only 5 ft tall and rather useless but with time - one can only hope. Now, a few days ago I was hanging out my washing with my dog at my side. The neighbour then goes into his garage and backs his truck right down next to the fence and plays with his tools and obviously trying to get my dogs attention. My dog sees him and barks so I gather my washing basket and call to my dog to come inside. The neighbour turns around and starts shouting 'shut that dog up' 'shut that dog up' I couldn't believe it. I'm talking two or three barks and he goes off his brain. This time he tells me 'you want a war, I'll give you a war, I'll show you what a mongrel can do, you just wait' I told him that I noted his comments as threats and to not go anywhere near my dog or me again. I then heard his 88 year old Mother in Law yell out 'shut your mouth you stupid b**ch!' Ugh! Charming. I might also add that I caught this neighbour coming up to the fence at 8pm on the night the trees were put in sticking his hand over the fence trying to grab one of the trees. I told him I saw him do this and he denied it instead saying 'yeah well, they're illegal, they have to be a metre back from the fence'. This is not the case. I had already checked with council. Even so the trees were planted 60 cms back and one wonders how he knows how far back they were unless he stuck his head over and had a good look down. The guy is obviously off his rocker and frankly I don't know what else to do. I am now putting in another 12 trees down the rest of the driveway which have been paid for - another $1200. I am also having privacy film put on my windows at a cost of $700. So now I have spent $2200 in trees plus $580 in fencing and $700 in window film for a total of $3480 and I still can't get away from this creep. He stares at me when I go in my backyard. I have to strategically hang my washing as he is such a pervert. Today I had to put up with his horrible grandchildren climbing up the 5ft fence and holding on while sticking their heads over the fence and yelling at my dog in my alfresco area. I am now considering enclosing the alfresco area so that nobody can see into that either. If I could bill all of these costs to these wierdos I would. I am so over this. I have decided to get a solicitors letter informing him that his behaviour is harassment but that hardly helps the lack of privacy I have in my backyard. I can't use the backyard whatsoever. I am wanting to put a spa outside but as you can imagine - can't. Every tradesman or friend I have come over the neighbour comes outside to listen to our conversation. When I was talking with a handyman in my front garden I saw the neighbour stick his head out of his window to have a good look and obviously when he couldn't hear enough came out to his front garden and stood at his letterbox obviously pretending to read his mail. It appears he feels that everything I do in my house is his business and is angry at me for wanting some privacy and frankly not wanting to know him. I think the dog is some sort of an excuse as they can't find anything else. He even went so far as to say my dog barked all night long. My dog is asleep in my room at the bottom of my bed all night. That's how deluded he is. My other neighbour has an outdoor dog that barks occassionally at night. Doesn't concern me but I feel I'm getting blamed for every dog in the street. I don't play loud music, I don't have parties, I don't make any noise so this is all so ridiculous. Sorry for such a LONG winded post but felt it best I get it all out there for the best advice possible. If anyone can suggest something I would appreciate it. I feel like we're living in a fish bowl from hell. I have even considered packing up and moving. It's that bad! Any advice re privacy screens or other ideas much appreciated. So you have just moved into a house and already have - Put up a fence that makes it difficult for your neighbour to get down their driveway - You are annoyed they park halfway down their driveway - has it occurred to you that they have been doing this for decades? Why shouldn't they park where they like on their own driveway. - You also get annoyed that they can see over your backyard and point at things. If they are higher it is easy to do this. I look over a few of my neighbours - that's life on hilly terrain. You might consider this rude, lots of people would not. - You are also annoyed he plays with his tools in his truck. This is probably his hobby and he has been doing it for years. It is his property, why shouldn't he play with his tools in his truck? - He enjoys his peace and suddenly your dogs are barking at him. So he gets annoyed. - You plant a load of trees that might disturb that gardens on his side or block out his light I have deliberately written the above with a perspective of your neighbour. He could be a total nutjob (I hope not) or he could be genuinely aggreieved by all you have done since moving in. May be worth trying to talk and understand his viewpoint. Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 38Nov 14, 2010 9:24 pm OH you poor thing. Have you spoken to the neighbour on the other side of him? Do they have the same problem? Have you thought of planting some trees closer to your home -- even in pots covering your windows and giving you privacy? Sounds drastic -- what a 'common' person to be so rude. (**rolling eyes** at thought of bored, batty and idiot neighbour) Maybe just ignoring him and he will get sick of you -- and maybe move on. He should be happy that the house was bought by an owner. You can install a high fence as long as it's on your side. You can also purchase a lavendar collar for your dog -- and then he has 'nothing' to complain about. Is he the owner of the house? or a tenant (that thinks he owns the house)? Re: Nuisance neighbours - HELP! 40Nov 15, 2010 4:46 pm what a situation to be in but all to common having to live next door to a have a neighbour from hell..and makes it worse when houses these days are built right next to eachother.. no space. i have a neighbour at the back of me that has one of those trampalines right against our back fence and when the kids are jumping on it they can see right into my alfresco area.. onedayi was outside with my dog and i heard the child tell its mother innocently!! as she could see me.. .. mummy that lady is brushing her dog .. lucky i wasnt naked it depends on the natural ground level, if they excavated their boundary wall needed to be built as a retaining wall. If you filled, which sounds like the case then you… 1 7084 The only thing to add to these comments is that where possible it's always good to try and work with people than just say "no" because you can. Having someone… 4 17149 Hi there, long-time lurker but first time posting. I've bought a house 2 and a bit years ago and last year we had some major water damage on a converted pergola area… 0 7931 |