Opinion

Neighbours from hell

Neighbours can be one of the advantages of urban life, and that's likely to be the case when we're surrounded by civilised and considerate people. But we can't choose our neighbours and it's always a small risk, but when they're chosen by a government department as a social experiment the risk is not so small.

That's what happened to the neighbours of a Newcastle house rented by a government department to provide a fresh start for men from a rough part of Sydney. What happened to these neighbours is detailed in my column in The Herald today, and, briefly, it involved the seizing of one neighbour's dog and a threat to kill it unless a reward was paid, and a threat to burgle the house of an elderly woman who asked them to turn the music down.

The police were sympathetic, even supportive, but it does not appear that they charged any of the three men iinvolved.

The protections for neighbours in such circumstances sound good but in practice are meaningless. Housing NSW has its Good Neighbour Policy, which applies to its own tenants and Aboriginal Housing Office tenancies it manages, and that warns that serious or persistent breaches of the rules against causing a nuisance may lead to eviction. But who's to know if the people in the house next door are Housing NSW tenants? The men involved in the case I've detailed in my column are Aboriginal but a real estate agency manages the tenancy.

Every residential tenancy agreement stipulates that the tenant is not to cause a nuisance to neighbours, and the Residential Tenancies Act stipulates the same. But if the property is not being damaged (and it may be well covered by a government department's guarantee), breaches of these stipulations may not be a great concern to agents and landlords living in peace elsewhere.

The owner of the above-mentioned dog phoned the real estate agent, who could not help, and he phoned the fellow he knew still owned the house, a landlord who was concerned. There was, later, a problem with damage to the property and it appears that the men have left the house.

But the problem may not have been resolved, and it is a problem that can make anyone's life a misery. Should we not have more police-enforceable protection from anti-social, disruptive and threatening neighbours?

Posted By: Jeff Corbett on 7/09/2009 5:55:00 PM | Comments (64)

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Date: Newest first | Oldest first

it's the real world. no matter how many police we have it isn't going to change anything. they wanted a reward for the dog.. what was the money for, bad habits or what? Our government needs to activate tougher legislations from all perspectives and this can only begin from the top.

Posted by ts, 8/09/2009 10:12:24 AM, on The Herald

gday jeff. well ive been living in newcastle, aka glendale now for 24 years, and just for the last 5 maybe 6 years ive noticed who u are talking about richard. ive heard stories on why and how he got there, like he used to be a judge had the money and all but one day he let a rapist go free and that rapist ended up killing sombody so richard gave up everything and everyone he knows.thats the most stories i heard. when i see him i always give him 5 bucks,well when i first started i gave him 2 bucks and now i give him 5 bucks or food..does he take it???yup, when i was waiting for a bus i had food and i turned to him and i said u must be hungry and thirsty and i put the food on the bench and he took it. i dont think he poses any threat to anybody. we all go through stuff fun stuff hard stuff and we somtimes end up ok but like richard on the street.

if richard wants help i reckon hes clever enough to ask...until then when we see him i will always give him money.

will we be shocked if anything happens to him of course, i just hope not by some asswipe.

ps, i was standing near the bus stop and it was pissing down rain and my bus just arrived and richard stood beside me and he sat down and i said mm whats he doin,,,then i remembered oh shit he wants 5 bucks...i had to give him all 50 cents coins,,,lol,,,geesh,,,hes not silly..he knows what and want he needs...its just people like us...and the damn rangers who think he needs help.

Posted by Becca, 8/09/2009 10:16:31 AM, on The Herald

i have had some neighbours from hell , career doleys. two houses from me lived a family of mum dad and varying numbers of kids ,from 4-7. all unemployed with 4 to 5 cars parked on the front lawn, a boat, foxtel dish on the roof. they would sleep all day and keep us all awake all night with their drunken arguments etc. if a car needed work on somepart underneath they would just roll it on the roof in the front yard for a few days until it was done. our neghbourhood submitted many petitions to dept housing with no joy. countless calls of complaint were useless, until one day our prayers were answered when they were moved to an acreage near maitland so their house could be renovated.

Posted by catl, 8/09/2009 10:48:26 AM, on The Herald

I can picture it now, catlicker, and I shudder. Probably the worst of it is the overnight uproar - loud television, doof doof music, fights. It can have a serious impact on the life of neighbours.

Posted by Jeff Corbett on 8/09/2009 11:01:47 AM

There absolutely should be much more robust measures available to control so called 'neighbours from hell'. The case you described involved criminal actions, so I'm surprised the police weren't more concerned. I reckon the Dept Housing should be accountable for who they put where, and the results. Unfortunatley the very left wing (socialist?) Members of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunals (CTTT) almost always find in favour of tenants (and against landlords), regardless of the circumstances. Until there is some real equity in that system, neighbours from hell will continue to cause trouble. No wonder rents are skyrocketing ~ landlords need to be compensated for the real risks of owning and renting property, and dodgy tenants (& neighbours) are a real part of the problem.

Posted by Abundance, 8/09/2009 10:53:12 AM, on The Herald

Hi Jeff, I used to be a Property Manager and had tenancies to government Departments and housing welfare places where they would put these tenants in. Its great for the home owner as when the tenants leave or the company no longer needs the property, all repairs are guarenteed, all carpet is replaced and the place is repainted. Also the man pays rent to the company, and the company pays the rental agent, rent is always on time no matter what. But in these situatuions, the lease does have rules regarding peaceful enjoyment of neighbours, etc, so if it is breached, the police should be called and the agent notified. There is very little an agent can do without concrete proof. Get all neighbours to send letters to the agent signed etc advising of the problems, and keep on doing this. With enough different people complaining, and enough letters with information of lease breaches, the agent can then go to the CTTT for eviction orders.

Posted by Nafe, 8/09/2009 11:02:21 AM, on The Herald

But the interests of the besieged neighbours and the agent/landlord do not coincide. The agent and landlord are happy with the arrangement because the rent is guaranteed, a generous rent no doubt, and the damage is covered, so why would they move to end that relationship?

Posted by Jeff Corbett on 8/09/2009 11:17:06 AM

Abundance, also you are seeing alot better quality houses on the rental market because landlords are renovating their houses to get them out of the cheaper price bracket that most of the "tenant from Hell" inhabbit. When i was a property Manager, i was seeing houses for $200 - $230 being taken off the market (islington and mayfield areas mainly) to go through renovations, new kitchens, and bthrooms mainly and new carpet and paint throughout. Then returned to be leased for $330 + a week so they could get away from the lower grade tenants. That is one major reason for the rental price hikes we have seen.

Posted by Nafe, 8/09/2009 11:08:29 AM, on The Herald

good advice Nafe and thanks for that, but how do you find out who the agent is?

Posted by senior sergeant smith, 8/09/2009 11:18:45 AM, on The Herald

Most landlord i dealt with were reasonable people. Also initially, i would recomend the neighbours do exactly what i discribed above. Then pass all the complaints onto the company, be it Dept of Housing, be it and other commuinty housing organisation. They have reputations to maintain within the real Estate industry and do not wish houses to get damaged or neighbours annoyed. Also if ABC Real Estate managed a property with a problem tenant, and a neighbour decided to buy and rent his house out, do you think hhe would go to ABC real estate? No. Both the community Housing organisation and the real estate agency have a reputation they don't want tarnished. They will do everyhting they can if they get the required assistance from the neighbours to eliviate the problem. The CTTT won't do anything unless there is evidence, and the only way evidence is gained is through neighbours assistance. Also it is a drawn out process that could take more than 6 months because of the legislative requirements, but to say agents and owners wouldn't care is off the mark. Some may take the easy option, but if an experienced property manager, who is looking after his bosses best interest would take note.

Posted by Nafe, 8/09/2009 11:27:54 AM, on The Herald

SSS thats a harder one. Some agents, like the one i used to work for put stickers on the Garbage Bins. But most of the time its very hard to know. Unless the agents put a For Lease sign up previouslyand you remember who it was. Other than that you could do a ring around the agents till you find it. There is no easy way unfortunatly. Alot of landlords do actually speak to at least one neighbour, so if your friendly around your neighbourhood and are working together in regards to a bad tenant, someone around the proximity should know or have seen a paticular agent there. Its usualy the pensioner who spends alot of time in his garden who knows the ropes.

Posted by Nafe, 8/09/2009 11:43:19 AM, on The Herald

If you are a Tenant you have all the rights, property managers usually run for cover when a tenant starts playing up. The managers are good for the landlord only if the tenant is good. Other than that they have a list of excuses why they can't do anything for the person who is actually their client. As for realestate agents, good god they just like money. The dept housing must have a policy that puts screeching, whining druggie moles with their many boyfriends next to old people, it is so consistant in the large unit blocks they manage, it has got to be policy.

Posted by Buell, 8/09/2009 12:00:29 PM, on The Herald