My neighbors are starting to become Harassing and Intrusive. Need some advice.?
Hi,my name is Anne,I did the following:
Q&A: My neighbors are starting to become Harassing and Intrusive. Need some advice.?
I live here in National City, CA renting out a house from family for the past 4 years. I like the home that I am in and the small street and the people around me. Its a family community where often kids play at the street, riding bikes, walking pets.
The place is fairly safe. And like all cities we have our fair share of news crime and petty teen vandalism. I would say in our block there is a house with a white fence which is always the target for graffiti sprays. But Other than that I feel fairly safe and proud of my home.
My only issue is that of a neighbor which I had a verbal altercation in the past 2 years . Our house is diveded by a fence and a hedge.
I went out of the country for a time around Nov-Dec 2007 due to my mothers death. Upon my return a few days later or so I saw my neighbor a couple in their mid 50’s or so who in the past I have been friendly with and I said my usual friendly greeting.
Unfortunately they accused my fiancee who was staying with me , for breaking in their home around the time they were out on. To add insult to injury the husband decided to humiliate me in the middle of the road as he shouted insults toward me. They were VERY insistent that we were the suspects even though they lack any evidence. Not to mention during the time that I was out of the country, he was nowhere at my house or city.
Their assumptions of the robbery was that ever since they started seeing him the robbery happened. And there was a trail track of mud from their home to our front yard. Unfortunately for us. Our Front yard was a dirt yard that shares the same sidewalk as they are and being that it was raining that month. Anyone walking from our side of the street to their side would leave mud tracks and vice versa from their side. Even medium- heavy rain can cause some of the mud to trickle to their side of the sidewalk
Since then we kept our distance from them but not without some minor provications here and there. A boiling point came when they heckled me and my fiance as we were pulling out driveway telling us to move out. It was when i screamed and called the cops ( after the male neighbor came too close to me with a broom handle) that they backed out and we kept our distance.
there has been some uncomfortable peace lately over the months that pass. I have tried to GREAT lengths and extent not to make them angry as they are a bit of a “nit picker” of sorts.
However I have learned that they have decided to take their form of silent harassment on other ways
Here are a list of accounts they have done
1. Sometime in 2007 my then nephew living with me was home from school when he saw the Lady neighbor walk into our front yard in more than one occasion.
Unfortunately for us we were told before unless there is evidence there’s nothing we can do
2. At more than one instance I have spoken to other neighbors that they have approached them to warn them about us.
3. She had approached me at one time telling me that my family members resent me. A lie that i know since we are a close knit family
4. The latest is that of her approaching my housemate telling her of the incident of the “robbery”
5. I feel very uncomfortable doing front yard work without them or one of them staring at me. This goes for some of my housemates that they will find the opportunity to speak to them. When they see them waling back towards the yard or so.
6. Sometime in 09, the hedge that acts like a divider between our front yards grew taller. One time I saw our male neighbor cutting off the top branches from our side of the yard and throwing the branches onto our lawn and driveway. As I walked pass, he said ” Go clean that up”
I spoke to an officer and they said THERES NO LAW for someone littering at your lawn. I found that advice verry ill informed. The incident happened more than once.
I am sure there may be other incidents that are unbeknownst to me
I am at lost on what to do. I know it sounds petty. I love where I live. I do not like altercations and barely socialize with the neighbors due to my work hours. However I do not feel at ease of them coming to my friends and renters telling them blatant lies about me.
My new worry is that the house right infront of us will be up for rent soon. And I do not want the new neighbors to think ill of me. And I do not appreciate the fact that they are coming up to my own housemates.
My issue is that of how far is too far. And do I have a case if thing comes to a point I would like to have the authorities involved? Would it be slander or harassment?
I don’t want to go and do a restraining order on them because things may get out of hand but I would like to know if I do decide. Do I even have a case against them?
I hope you can help me. And give me some good pointers on how to deal with all of this
Thank you
I just noticed this error. But the incident with the nephew seing the lady was actually our back yard.
And mature and niceties are out of the picture. Since they are MEAN and would not even helped out when i had an emergency one time.
Q&A:
Answer by furi0usfungus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKNU5xgvua0&feature=search
=solution
Answer by Stuart
While all of this seems like it’s pretty horrible, it sounds like you would do well to just make peace with the neighbors.
Take over a casserole, apologize for whatever they think you’ve done, and tell them you really want to get along with them.
Better to spend fifteen minutes standing on their porch listening to them than a lifetime of having to put up with them.
- Stuart
Answer by Vet’s Daughter
I don’t think that they are the type of people that you can make nice with. All I can suggest is to ignore them as much as possible. That does not mean avoid your front yard. That’s your place and you have every right to be there. Just stop letting them intimidate you. As long as they know that they are getting to you, they’ll keep doing it. If someone had tossed a bunch of stuff into my yard and yelled at me to clean it up, they’d find it right back in their yard. But then that would just cause a big argument, so I don’t know that I’d suggest that. But you can’t let them push you around either, so if that happens again, i’d pile it neatly in their yard. Or do nothing with it at all.
As for her coming into your yard, get a cheap motion sensor sprinkler. And when they go around saying stuff about you to the neighbors they are making themselves look like idiots. Let your neighbors judge you themselves.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
