Can Your Neighbour Derail Your Home-Selling Plans?

Ages might have passed since the wise men first preached fellow humans to “love thy neighbour”, but the wisdom they imparted holds as much water today as it might have done in the past, the isolated lives we live in modern times notwithstanding. If you gave the idea a second thought, you might quickly realise that keeping your neighbour in good humour is in the face more important today than it ever was! Who would want to come home after a tough day at work and argue with their neighbour about parking issues? (The housing society might have allotted specific spaces to both of you, but your unruly neighbour likes to get in your way somehow.)

Equally painful would be the exercise to regularly tell your neighbour to mind their pets. (This person might be in the habit of letting loose.) Your anxiety would only increase if you are trying really hard to catch some sleep because you have an early morning meeting the next day while your next-door neighbour is partying hard, and is generous enough to let you hear it. (So hard is the sound vibe that you could feel your walls vibrating and thumping!)

Of course, you could go and complain about such unruly neighbours to the residents’ welfare association, but doing so often would mean you are not ready to “make adjustments” while you have opted for “community living”. More than often, the family you complain against might go for retaliatory action, too, irritating you in little ways.

Not only can a bad neighbour make your life living hell during your stay at a place, they could make it equally difficult to sell your house if they make up their mind to do so.  While prospective buyers make a visit, they would do everything in their capacity to make the area look as clumsy and untidy as possible. They could so far as to try to get in touch with buyers and share “insights” that might totally derail your plans.  If buyers sense some sort of discomfiture between you and your neighbour, they would like to avoid purchasing your property to escape future conflict.

In both the cases, talking it out – rather than complaining or going for retaliatory action – is your best shot at restoring normalcy. Invite them over a cup of tea and let them know about your struggle for parking only because this neighbour did not apply the little courtesy of parked their vehicle systematically. You could also let them know in a similar fashion how you don’t really appreciate their pets being let loose on your property where they can freely litter.

Complaining to the authorities should ideally be used as your last resort.

When your neighbour tries to thwart your plans of finding a buyer who is willing to pay you as much money as you are asking for, they are also doing themselves harm, often without realising it. In case you are in a hurry to sell off a property owing to neighbourly troubles and end you selling it for less than its market value, they stand to lose, too. Depreciation in the value of your property signifies depreciation in the value of your neighbour’s property, too. Try to put this point across, in those many words, again over tea amid other members of the housing society. In this case, too, approach the RWA only after trying your disaster-solving negotiation skills.