A couple have expressed their anger after the actions of a neighbour who’s taken drastic action to try and sell their house, including claiming part of their garden as their own. Selling a house can be a stressful, lengthy process, with many homeowners keen to make their properties look as desirable as possible to secure a buyer.
But one couple is experiencing a lot of stress due to their neighbour’s desperation to sell their home and move elsewhere. The neighbour’s estate agent has taken photographs of the couple’s garden and, in the listing for the property, highlighted the “spacious” back garden – but this is in reference to the couple’s land.
Their neighbour has cut around “50 feet” into the couple’s garden to make theirs look “bigger” – and their estate agent is going along with it, even falsely advertising the house as offering lake access.
Another house on the estate, across the street from the house that’s up for sale, does offer access to the lake behind it but the one being sold doesn’t come with this selling point.
The neighbour’s house has a very spacious front garden as their house is situated much further back, which is why their back garden is so much smaller than the couple’s.
One half of the couple shared the frustrating situation on Reddit, tagging it as a “vent/rant”. They explained the neighbour has “cut approximately 50 feet” in an “attempt to sell their house as [having a] ‘spacious backyard’.”
They’ve tried to thwart their efforts but every time they leave their home, their neighbour “cuts” their garden to try and pass it off as their own. They “never” behaved this way until trying to sell their home.
On Reddit, the frustrated couple added: “As the [neighbour] continues to cut further and further into our property, I have finally heard from a surveyor and should be having the property surveyed soon.
“Also learned from the surveyor that our neighbourhood has never had a survey done. Surveyor stated that’s the way they did things in our area when this development was planned out.
“[The] original land owner just put stakes out in a field designating lots. This should be interesting. I will update further after the survey is complete.”
In the comments section, people were keen to share their thoughts. One person said: “Once you get a survey I would put up a temporary fence ASAP.
“Some wooden stakes and the back fabric used for erosion control (I can’t recall the name). Maybe affix some no trespassing signs to it.”
Another joked: “Caution tape in a bright yellow is a festive colour.”
A third agreed: “THIS! And make the fence look terrible… eyesore! Ha ha ha. If you have to go through the effort you may as well make their sale harder.”
Many others suggested implementing “ugly” fencing to make a point, with people concocting elaborate stories and lies to explain to any prospective buyers why the fence is there.
But someone else said: “Or just be honest. ‘It’s there so there aren’t any future arguments about the property lines based on how the realtor and homeowner attempt to market the property. I’ll take it down once someone is moved in’.”
And another advised: “Good call on getting a surveyor, nothing shuts down sneaky neighbors faster than legal boundaries on paper.”
