Problem Neighbours and Council

SwordofLight

Hi All,

I won't say which city, but after some builders put flats into an old neighbouring house with no planning permission, they have been let out to social housing. It's a row of townhouses, generally quiet the past 3 or 4 years, a few businesses.

The neighbours are in about 6 weeks. The teenage kids seem to be on the pathway outside the door night and day, tattoos up the necks in tracksuits commenting on passers by and whistling at people etc. People have trouble walking past them sometimes because there can be several. The smoke from the weed they're puffing comes in the windows here and it stinks the place. I can only imagine how it is affecting the babies in the arms of some of the young ones also there. I don't know how they fit. They leave black sacks of rubbish in front of the other neighbours doors. I've left my bin out twice and the moment it is emptied by the binmen, these people are putting their black sacks in. There's an elderly couple on the road with a disabled space and this lot have a UK reg car parked in it.

I have no problem with social housing, I've had my own struggles in life too many times and have compassion for people relying on this help. But I don't have compassion for this kind of thing, total lack of respect for others.

I think it would be a bad move to confront them, or to call the cops. They'd have a good idea as to where the complaints came from, and I don't fancy a brick through my house or car window. I could press the council about the planning issue, but all they'd do is apply retrospectively and again how could I complain about that.

I think I've just got to suck it up and hope the kids grow up fast and move on. Any ideas?

Get a gravity lock for your bin. That'll solve the issue of them filling your bin for you.

Report anti-social behaviour to the Council.

Jim_Hodge

Are you saying the council is using an illegal build for social housing? Weird.

SwordofLight

Ye, I suppose anything goes at the moment with the housing crisis. I chatted with a Nigerian girl earlier who is complaining about false promises for people coming into the country because there is no housing for them or for the locals. Taking so many from Ukraine versus the other European nations was probably poorly planned I suppose.

Gravity lock is a great idea. I've contacted the bin company to see if they support them.

I wonder how the council might act on anti social behaviour? Any ideas?

L1011

Leave your far right hashtags to Twitter. Do not attempt to reinstate it. Do not reply to this post.

You can also leave immigration out of this thread as it has nothing to do with the topic

Gumbo

if they are converted to flats illegally then they require planning, fire cert.

Send email to your local Building Control Department and Planning Enforcement Section.

Girl Geraldine

Do but the council are unlikely to take any meaningful action. They will send a few sternly worded letters, which this crowd will only laugh at and wipe thier arse with.

Council are pretty much powerless. in theory, after failed attempts at resolution, they could take them to court. But what would be the point. A fine or civil judgement hasn't a hope in hell of getting paid, and a criminal conviction....well whats one more when you already have 80 of them.

SwordofLight

Just want to update, a year later, the problem has escalated. They now have screaming matches down the street at all hours, leave bins blocking the pathway, continually have the street filled with the odour of weed smoking (I have to close my windows), and hang around shouting abuse at people.

They have their 4 and 5 year old kids running around on the flat roof at the back of the house playing. The street paving is almost black from the rubbish and cigarette butts outside their doors. I witnessed the daughter getting out of a car one night and flinging three mcdonald's bags up into the air all over the road.

The road used to be full of respectful, quiet people, including the people from other countries and ethnicities. I have asked the council about the build, and have been ignored now for over a year. I suspect the housing list is not to be messed with, once people are in somewhere, nothing gets in the way of it. That's my thinking at the minute.

callaway92

For peace of mind just move if any way possible. Life is too short to fight that miserable battle

spaceHopper

If these are rented flats go to the RTB and open a case with them. Document everything.

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120767050#Comment_120767050

Ah sure I'd have to sell up and everything, I was installed well before them and the location is great for the city. I keep telling myself they might move on eventually. I'm tempted to phone the guards about the weed, but I could really do without drawing them on me.

jackboy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120767359#Comment_120767359

Why would they move on? The guards wont care about that weed. You need to face facts, this is your life now unless you move.

Deeec

Sorry to hear about your situation OP. Its a dreadful situation to be in. The problem is the council wont deal with problem tenants as they will just have to rehouse them elsewhere and know they will be just passing the problem on and on. They were probably a huge problem in their last accomadation also.

I know I probably will get slated for this but these problem tenants deserve to be turfed out and left homeless and their children put into care. Thats the only way they will learn to respect property and neighbours - we know this wont happen though.

Sadly your only option is to try and sell up.

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120767401#Comment_120767401

Ye, like it's really dangerous having those kids on that flat roof unattended running around.

I was thinking I could approach the landlord and ask how much it would cost me to buy the place altogether.

SEPT 23 1989

They won’t go anywhere but you should

your mental health is worth more than bricks and mortar

syrgian

The whole situation sounds dreadful. As someone that might buy a house soon, which is the best way to avoid places where this could happen? Make sure that there are no derelicts/unkempt houses? Or is nowhere safe?

The worst thing is that you might buy a house for X, get these kind of wastes of air nearby, and suddenly you won't sell your house for more than X*0.8, which will get you trapped there as you just lost your entire life savings.

DownByTheGarden

Unfortunately this happens with the council. They have no interest once the tenants are placed. Whats more the council will probably bid on your house at a knock down price if you were to sell and this behavior is obvious to any other potential buyers.

I have a friend who rented an apartment to the council on a 10 year LTL lease. The tenants they put in are terrorizing the neighbors. Council always just say its being dealt with and nothing ever happens. The owner contacted the RTB. The RTB said nothing they were doing their best then said GDPR cant tell you anything, and they suggested the owner take a case against himself.

The neighbors are now threatening to take the owner to court about it even though he has no say whatsoever and is doing his best to get the council to act.

Once one rotten family get in somewhere the whole place is ruined and nobody cares.

Ive seen cases like yours op before when social houses got added to estates and torag families moved in (it only takes one). Peoples only option is to move out and find somewhere nice again. Sad, but thats where we are at today. When we moved house we avoided like the black death any houses in estates built since the part 5 rules came in. We also avoided anywhere where we could tell that there were council tenants in there.

I sold my apartment to the council earlier in the year and my former neighbors tell me that there are total torags in there now too.

syrgian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120781681#Comment_120781681

How can you tell that there are council tenants during a visit to the neighbourhood? Could you be unlucky and not realise?

DownByTheGarden

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120785699#Comment_120785699

If you think they are council tenants by the look of the house then thats enough :)

If you cant tell then even if they are council tenants they are obviously nice ones and shouldnt worry you.

I just did a random google.

If that was my house behind or opposite that wall I would have that cleaned up.

So if you see this kind of house in the middle of otherwise nice houses you can make a call on whether they would be good neighbors or not.

Anyway. You will know.