Neighbors mess

[pennwalk]

Three years ago this July the house next door was knocked down and all the trees cleared from the lot. Because two foundation walls were reused the whole project was classed as an addition. The new house went up and it is kind of unconventional. It is like a conventional rancher with a huge barn like structure behind it. It kind if stands out in the neighborhood. I posted in 2006 about the guy cutting the tall grass and hitting a lot of rocks. It turns out he would mow the "grass" whenever someone would call the police and complain. After the house was up and the rough stucco was applied to the outside work stopped and it has sat for a little more than two years. It turns out that the building permits ran out and the Township declined to renew the permit again. The guy appealed to the arbitration board. One of the neighbors found out about the meeting and 20 angry neighbors showed up. The arbitration board gave him 30 days to clean up the yard, remove the full dumpster, and replace the osb over the front door with a front door. Turns out he works well with some motivation. The dumpster disappeared, he cobbled up a front door and he has been mowing the "lawn" every other week weather it needs it or not. He told the board that he has run out of money and couldn't sell a house he owned on the west coast. The neighbors found out he owns 5 houses in town which made then which made them wonder how hard he was trying to get the house finished. I have to say that I am enjoying our little Payton place here. My wife hates the way the place looks. Heck she hates it if I get behind on the mowing here. I figure it could be worse. I found out this kind of thing happens more often that you would think which is a real surprise because we live in a pretty regulated township. Have you ever encountered anything like this in your neighborhood?

Chris

 

[Redbug]

I live more in the country, (on a dirt road, etc), and there is a place just up the road like that. I don't like the way some folks want to live but would not say anything or go over and "make" them change things. If some people want to be slobs, as long as they don't infringe on me...that's their business.

If you live in a subdivision, things are different. People are sardined in together and they wind up minding each other's business. You also have neighborhood associations etc. I guess in that type of environment what others do can affect others, since they live in such close quarters. It would bother me too, if my neighbor were like that. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

I would move out to the country. Ain't America Great! Life's too short to spend it being unhappy about what others are doing when you can be doing your own thing.

 

[pennwalk]

I guess this is really suburban living. Our neighborhood was developed in the 50s. Most of the neighbors are proud of the neighborhood and take very good care of their properties. Lots of gardeners with beautiful gardens. We are at the top of the hill and the view is nice. I guess that's why the guy next door wanted the place. Tear downs are not that common here yet.

As far as moving to the country I guess you can run but you can't hide. Look at all the threads about neighbor trouble on tractorbynet. Sometimes I wonder what the ratio of good neighbors to idiots is ? On my bad days I think it might be 50/50.

Chris

 

[pennwalk]

As a side note. I now think my neighbor must own that little New Holland tractor that he uses for rock busting and other assorted lawn mowing tasks.I am totally impressed! That little blue thing takes a licking and keeps on ticking and it is amazingly quiet. I guess what fooled me into thinking it was a rental aside from the fact that he treats it like stuff is that he always drives over here from the direction of the New Holland dealer. He must have another house over that way.

Chris

 

[Redbug]

Sometimes folks can surprise you if you don't know them and strike up a conversation. He may be an alright sort of guy but just does not connect well with others. With that NH, he just isn't your normal subdivision type. I would swing by and open up a conversation.

Yes, everywhere you go you have problems. I guess it's a different sort out in the country. There are probably more goonies percentage wise in the country than in a subdivision. They could not survive the structured type of lifestyle. Everyone needs a little bit of a buffer. Heck, I think I'm one of the goonies, (only I hate litter)...

 

[pennwalk]

Thank goodness for our wives keeping us straight. Otherwise I think I might become one of the goonies too. I could easily see myself living in a wonderland of old farm machinery and rusting cars.

Chris

 

[pennwalk]

Sometimes folks can surprise you if you don't know them and strike up a conversation. He may be an alright sort of guy but just does not connect well with others. With that NH, he just isn't your normal subdivision type. I would swing by and open up a conversation.

One thing that made me wonder about this guy is that one of the neighbor ladies tried to strike up a conversation with him one day when she saw him out working in his yard. Now she is really outgoing and not too bad looking and he wouldn't talk to her. You know that doesn't happen to her very often. I think it hurt her feelings.

Now with the neighbors ganging up on him he probably won't be talking to any of us.

Chris

 

[CDsdad]

We have zero regulation where I live. Granted, we are very rural. And my closest neighbors about 200 yards and across the road keep up pretty well if you like beer bottles instead of garden gnomes. They do cut grass though.

Now down the road about 1/4 mile are the neighbors who moved out of the collapsing house and into a newer trailer across the road. First though, they had to move the old trailer into the front yard of the old house. Then they opened the front door of the new trailer, and when crap quit falling out of it 3 days later, the yard looked just like their old one. I guess some folks like it a little cluttered, to use a nice term. That's why most folks around here that are looking to build or move into the country are looking to block views of others as much as they can.

 

[pennwalk]

That's why most folks around here that are looking to build or move into the country are looking to block views of others as much as they can.

Funny you should bring that up. My wife has been hinting that she wants a berm and trees put in to screen our house from the construction site. I have been trying to hold her off till I have a better idea what the neighbor is going to do. Why spend good money and time if he is going to put up a wall or a fence or something. Sadly It looks like there is no date for the project to be completed.

Also there is the question of run off. It looks like the neighbor plans to raise the lot and crown it off to the edges of his property. I may end up having to deal with more water in our yard. We have to be careful to keep the yard draining away from the house or it ends up in the basement.

I can't make up my mind weather it is better to have the house finished or not. Right now the unfinished house is very quiet. When he moves in who knows?

Chris

 

[Timber]

One thing that made me wonder about this guy is that one of the neighbor ladies tried to strike up a conversation with him one day when she saw him out working in his yard. Now she is really outgoing and not too bad looking and he wouldn't talk to her. You know that doesn't happen to her very often. I think it hurt her feelings.

Now with the neighbors ganging up on him he probably won't be talking to any of us.

Chris

Not everyone is into girls

 

[Eagleview]

An old guy once said to me , "where the Bitumen ends , build your house 100 miles further on" I believe he was correct , i built my home 30 miles from town , behind a mountain , through 2 gates and up a dirt road 2 miles . It is just far enough . Friends of my wife asked her "are'nt you scared when Reg is not home"? She replied that there are no monsters in the bush and all the people that would cause harm are in town next to you . Rush hour out here is 2 cars a day and 1 of them is ours .

 

[EastTexFrank]

You guys must be unlucky.

I've lived in the country for over 10 years and have essentially 3 neighbours. The ones across the road that raise the horses, I haven't spoken to in 3 years. They've been there about the same amount of time as us. If I drive by and they are out playing in their pastures, we wave at one another but that's about it. My other neighbour, who's been here about 25 years, I run into in town occasionally or see him and his wife walking the dog at the weekend. When we meet we keep on saying that we need to get together for dinner but it's never happened yet. My last 2 neighbours, we don't have adjoining property, have owned their place for about 10 years and lived there for about 8. I haven't seen OR spoken to them in 4 years. I caught a glimpse of him, I think, 2 week-ends ago tramping through his woods as I was driving by.

When I listen to the stories told by some of you guys, my life seems almost idilic and I keep on wondering when some raving lunatic is going to move in and ruin it all.

 

[LBrown59]

we live in a pretty regulated township.
Chris

I'm glad i'm not in your township.
I hate regulations.
The only regulatins is septic tanks in my county and the township has none.

 

[pennwalk]

Not everyone is into girls

Timber, No doubt about that. But no matter what you are into, life goes easier if you can get along with your neighbors. I also think that good neighbors are one of life's true pleasures. I would observe that you have to work at it to build good relationships.

Chris

 

[LBrown59]

We have zero regulations where I live.

Same here but the county does regulate septic tanks.
Ain't it great with no resricted freedoms.!

 

[pennwalk]

LB, I hate regulations too. Especially if I am being regulated. Now if you are being regulated I say the more the better.

If regulations keep people from harming other people then I think that is a good thing.

Chris

 

[pennwalk]

EastTexFrank, We have one family in our neighborhood that everyone jokes must be in the witness protection program because they don't talk to anybody. I don't have any problem with them because their house is real nice and they keep the yard up and they are very quiet. People are different. Luckily there are fun outgoing people in the neighborhood too.

Chris

 

[CDsdad]

Same here but the county does regulate septic tanks.
Ain't it great with no resricted freedoms.!

I forgot about that. We get the standard perk test and installation inspection, and then see ya. They'll never come back. I've seen people have septic troubles and run a 4" line down in the woods. Nobody checks unless it runs on somebody else and they gripe.

 

[CDsdad]

Not everyone is into girls

I LIKE girls. One in particular. I'd probably like girls even if I was a girl. I don't find myself the least bit attractive.

 

[jinman]

EastTexFrank, We have one family in our neighborhood that everyone jokes must be in the witness protection program because they don't talk to anybody. I don't have any problem with them because their house is real nice and they keep the yard up and they are very quiet. People are different. Luckily there are fun outgoing people in the neighborhood too.

Chris

I think a lot of how well you know your neighbors depends on the size of tracts around you. Our area is divided into mostly 10-12 acre tracts and we have lots of trees. Some have subdivided their properties and have houses much closer together. The closer neighbors always seem to have the most problems in the neighborhood.

I enjoy making nicknames for my neighbors based on thier most distinctive personality trait. There is Pow-Pow Larry who likes to shoot guns all the time. Chainsaw Bob is the guy who had no electricity and decided to use a chainsaw to cut the framing lumber for his house. Junkyard Paul ran a full-fledged junkyard on his place, but he died this last year and his son, Spike (real name) now runs this "jewel" of the neighborhood. Then there is Doggy-Dog the Cajun down at the end of the road who has a pen full of barking dogs at his house. You never see this guy without two or three of those dogs in his van with him. He used to let them run loose until the mailman ran over one. Doggy-Dog was was furious at the postman even though his dogs were all chasing the car and ran in front of him.

We have had some real characters living out here and I'm probably one of them too. I've got this old crooked barn that was here when I bought the place and it really needs to be torn down. Unfortunately, it is full of junk (old furniture, old riding mowers, and a 3-wheel utility vehicle. That doesn't sound too bad, but I've managed to stack and pile enough other junk around them that you can't tell what is on the bottom of the pile. I even have an old antique Mosler safe in there somewhere. The only good thing about it is that my junk is all in one place and it isn't blowing all over the neighborhood or really even visible.

I'm reminded by pennwalk's story of the guy who started building a house just off a major highway in our area. It was one of those A-frame kit homes and pretty darn large. He got the whole thing framed and the OSB on it in about 3 months. It was one of those things that you could tell he was using every spare minute to build this thing by himself. Then, one day things just stopped. The house sat there with piles of building materials deteriorating. It began to deteriorate and finally after sitting for two years, the whole structure just collapsed into a heap. I heard various stories about why he had stopped building, but don't know any of them for sure. Stuff happens...