Going Nuclear Option on Neighbors

I live in a rural subdivision. IE - all the homes are fairly close together, with lot sizes 50x100. We recently inacted a Property Maintenance Ordinance - but the county will only enforce it when they get a request to do so. You can't do it anonymously. 

I've got quite a few neighbors who are treating their properties like junkyards. Multiple vehicles sitting around, lots of junk in the front yards. 

I don't want to make enemies with my neighbors, but something has got to give. One guy in particular is bringing down the value of probably 6 or so houses around him because his yard just looks like complete E36 M3. It's bad enough his dogs constantly bark, but they won't bring down property values like his front yard junk. 

What say you? 

Are you currently looking to sell?

Any chance this particular person moved to this hood just because such behavior was acceptable at the time?

Pete

Do you have other neighbors that are concerned enough to take action? Safety in numbers...

Robbie said:

Are you currently looking to sell?

And if you are not, then the whatever the property is "valued" is not important at all.  Even better, if the state thinks the neighbor is pulling the value down, which lowers your property taxes.

You need to get them to move before you, and you win.

If it's about looks, that's a different story.  But value is only important when you sell.

Yes. Mostly because I'm kinda tired living to next inconsiderate neighbors. 

It sucks because I called animal control on one neighbor a few times to the point where he just got rid of the dog, but now a closer neighbor has 3 barking dogs and he'll be massively pissed (and know its me) if I call Animal Control on him. His dogs really aren't the problem, it's his piles of E36 M3 everywhere that bother me - and the lack of consideration for his neighbors. 

EDIT: another thing here is that another neighbor is trying to sell, and his place would go quickly (big garage, nice updates, nice location) but he's right next door to Mister Junkyard...and I think it's impacting his showings. He said he wasn't worried when he listed 3 weeks ago, but the house still sits...and he needs to sell it in order to build a new house out of town. It should be interesting to see what happens there. 

Sounds like you would be happier in a subdivision with an HOA.  If I were you I’d stop getting people to give up their pets and hassling them, indirectly,  about their property and just move.

The lack of anonymous complaints sucks.

In prior years, I would have said - go talk to the neighbor. But I learned my lesson when that spectacularly backfired on me and ended up with my neighbor spending a couple days in jail and having a protection order filed against him. So unless you know the guy well, don't go talk to him. File an official complaint if it bothers you enough, but stay away from him. I'm surprised your other neighbor with a house for sale hasn't complained. I sure would, in that situation. Even if a junkyard like setting didn't scare me off when looking at a house, it sure would scare my wife off.

Cotton said:

Sounds like you would be happier in a subdivision with an HOA.  If I were you I’d stop getting people to give up their pets and hassling them, indirectly,  about their property and just move.

What the guy is doing is illegal. If he doesn't want to be hassled, he should comply with the law.

Sounds like your neighbors have already passed the "willingly follow the rules" state, so its time for them to be told. 

People want to do whatever the heck they want, and they hate it when anyone tells them that they cant.  This is universal for all behavior everywhere.  Some of us deal with it like mature adults and accept that our craziness might bother others, and so we accept society's laws and we deal with it. Others have to be told, often repeatedly, until they are forced to comply. I am guessing your neighbors will fall into the latter category. 

So even if you get them to comply, with compliance often comes resentfulness and pettiness, and it can be directed towards you. You may have to accept that to get the nice neighborhood you want, your neighbors won't like you. 

My personal example: there are folks who live down the street and treat speed limits and stop signs as optional. Now, I bought a house at the end of a quiet neighborhood, on a dead-end street because traffic would be almost nil and moving slow. My kids, their friends, my dogs, and my cats are often crossing or playing in that street.  I am not OK with anyone flying around the bend, ignoring stop signs, and going too fast. So I asked nicely for them to honor the stop sign and slow down. They responded with "we never stop at that sign, we aren't going too fast, chill out."  I tried to be nice, they were a-holes. So I responded that I would call the police on any car that I saw going to fast or running the sign, I don't care if you live here or not.   

They started respecting the sign and the speed limit, but they no longer talk to me. I am OK with that tradeoff, I want my family to be safe, I don't care if some person at the end of the street doesn't like me. Your mileage may vary.

To be clear, I'm typically very anti-HOA. Why? Because they cross line from stuff you do during daylight hours or hidden behind fenses into "you need to paint a certain color" or "your fence needs restained." I can't stand HOAs for this reason - and I've lived in lots of urban settings where a property maintenance ordinance was enough - neighbors understood "keep your crap in the garage, shed, and behind a fence - and we're ok." 

I don't mind neatly organized building materials or a guy wrenching on his car during the day - I do that stuff too - but parking up the street to the point that people can't get past because your yard is so filled with crap (despite being large enough to park 4 vehicles comfortably) is a serious effin issue. Having your dogs out in the front yard because your fenced-in rear yard is so full of crap - is a serious effin issue. Or the neighbor who never maintains his property and has trash on his collapsing front porch and three vehicles that haven't moved in ages so he parks in the street. 

Mister Junkyard's house is run down and beat up but whatever, so are plenty of other homes in my neighborhood, but when the stuff starts piling up it goes from "a cheaper neighborhood with older homes" to "a junky neighborhood with hicks and barking dogs." 

Any way to get an independant party to file the complaint? IE, a consumer advocate or ombudsman?

pheller said:

 

another thing here is that another neighbor is trying to sell, and his place would go quickly (big garage, nice updates, nice location) but he's right next door to Mister Junkyard...and I think it's impacting his showings. He said he wasn't worried when he listed 3 weeks ago, but the house still sits...and he needs to sell it in order to build a new house out of town. It should be interesting to see what happens there. 

Get him to file the complaint. That way your problem gets solved, and the "name on complaint" is your neighbor that is moving away anyways. 

Everybody wins.

You want an HOA, but one that aligns with your definitions of what is acceptable. Which means you'd probably have to get involved.

Constantly barking dogs are really annoying and really difficult to deal with. People aren't logical about their pets, even if their pets are making a constant racket.

get the neighbor's realtor to file the complaint

dculberson said:

Cotton said:

Sounds like you would be happier in a subdivision with an HOA.  If I were you I’d stop getting people to give up their pets and hassling them, indirectly,  about their property and just move.

What the guy is doing is illegal. If he doesn't want to be hassled, he should comply with the law.

Without reading the specific ordinance the OP is referring to and seeing the condition of the property,  I don’t know whether or not it’s illegal,  but it does sound like it is a new ordinance to the area.  If Pheller feels so strongly about it he shouldn’t worry about being anonymous.  Personally, I try to deal with my neighbors directly if there are any issues and only bring in authorities as a last resort.

Pheller were there issues like this when you decided to purchase in that area?

Brother has a neighbor who had huge piles of scrap wheels, iron, etc.  Mentioned to him that it might be a danger to the guys kids and would he mind if he (my brother) cleaned it up.  Guy said to go ahead. 

He broke even - not counting his labor - selling the scrap.  Brother says it was worth the labor to be rid of the eyesore.

I might be able to do the whole "let me help you help me" with one neighbor, but the other guy is quite active, always bringing in new stuff, always acquiring new vehicles. 

He's one of those "this stuff is worth good money" that then promptly lets it sit. Despite talking a big game, he's a pretty poor businessman. 

AngryCorvair said:

get the neighbor's realtor to file the complaint

This is actually kinda brillaint. 

AngryCorvair said:

get the neighbor's realtor to file the complaint

Them, and the immediate home owner of that house have the most to lose, monetarily, and the least to lose, long term relationship.

Done and done.

Have the neighbor call the ordinance enforcement on you (just make sure your crap is in order)  *and* tell him to advise the inspector to check out the rest of the neighborhood at the time, as there are multiple violations.  If they question why your stuff is in order and he called, have the neighbor maybe say he got the house numbers mixed up?

In my neighborhood, they issue an violation order, you have x days to clean up, then it is a fine. Municipalities LOVE revenue streams. Is there a revenue stream here?

Cotton said:

dculberson said:

Cotton said:

Sounds like you would be happier in a subdivision with an HOA.  If I were you I’d stop getting people to give up their pets and hassling them, indirectly,  about their property and just move.

What the guy is doing is illegal. If he doesn't want to be hassled, he should comply with the law.

Without reading the specific ordinance the OP is referring to and seeing the condition of the property,  I don’t know whether or not it’s illegal,  but it does sound like it is a new ordinance to the area.  If Pheller feels so strongly about it he shouldn’t worry about being anonymous.  Personally, I try to deal with my neighbors directly if there are any issues and only bring in authorities as a last resort.

Pheller were there issues like this when you decided to purchase in that area?

Sorta. Mister Junkyard had just recently acquired his property through inheritance, and his property was mostly clear. In the two years we've been here he's gone from 80% of his property being clear to about...30%. He previously had enough room for 4 vehicles, now he's down to two, but he's keeping 3 on the property, so one gets parked haphazardly in the street (which has no sidewalks and of which he lives on a busy corner). 

We also bought the place in winter, when snow covered up the majority of his junk. He also only had a single dog. 

The other guy across the street only had 2 vehicles when he bought, he then somehow acquired two match Kia Souls, and an old van and honda are now parked - permanently, under his collapsing deck that has trash piled on it. 

pheller said:

We recently inacted a Property Maintenance Ordinance

When you say We, is that the subdivision, the county, or ?  If it's just the subdivision, are there any teeth in the ordinance - in other words, is it enforceable by law?  Assuming it is, is there anything in the ordinance that grandfathers existing conditions?  Was everyone in the subdivision made aware of the ordinance?  If you notify the county you have to give them your name, but does that mean they will give your name to the person you're contacting them about?

I know, lots of questions but I'm just trying to make sure the situation is clear to all of us reading it (there have been some responses that would indicate that may not be the case.)   I don't have a problem with a little clutter and a little dog barking, but personally if the guy's property is that bad I'd go ahead and report it. 

For those interested, here is the property about a year before we moved in. It was managed/rented by his father who liked to keep the place clean. 

Now, there is so much junk that he can barely get two vehicles parked over that culvert, and you can barely see the front of the house. 

Cotton said:

Sounds like you would be happier in a subdivision with an HOA.  If I were you I’d stop getting people to give up their pets and hassling them, indirectly,  about their property and just move.

+1