What is front lawn Etiquette in shared flat?
Posted by anxious_and_tearful@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 20 comments
I am not from the uk and do not know the etiquette is when it comes to shared front lawns.
I moved into a big house that had been renovated to five flats one on each level.
Here I rent and here some people own their flats.
My neighbours decided recently to rent do the front lawn. Removing bushes and planting plants that will not survive uk weather.
Then today I see they have decorated with banners and tassels and blankets and some pillows. They are now outside playing music very loudly.
I find this upsetting but do not know what to do if I am wrong to be upset. My neighbour is also from my same home country and plays music in our language Portuguese, I had to leave my home town and hearing the language makes my soul hurt.
Am I in the wrong if I complain?
Competitive_Test6697@reddit
Hand them a beer and enjoy the sun
Hulbg1@reddit
It’s a shared space and you need to grow a pair. It’s effectively a space for all. If music is enough to tip You over the edge you have more underlying issues than a few plants and pillows.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
Excuse me I was simply asking a question I have come from a very different background and am just simply shocked by city life and yes perhaps I do need to join in rather than ridicule something I do not understand. I grew up very isolated and am only now perhaps learning more than the tiny island I come from.
Hulbg1@reddit
It’s meant in jest, however here people generally do what the f they want. You’re lucky you haven’t got neighbours who get their xl bullies out and smoke crack. What island ?
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
Faial, it’s very different to the uk. I am shocked by the drugs in the uk too, I think I have it better than others in regards to this set of problems and am simply not counting my blessings.
nrsys@reddit
Check the deeds.
It is common in my area for the back garden to be a shared space open to everyone in the block and should be managed together - ideally everyone taking their turn doing the gardening, and discussing any proposed alterations (though often it will tend to default to certain people who just get on with things).
The front garden is often owned by the ground floor flat looking on to it, and is their private space - so it is theirs to do with as they wish (both in terms of decorating and using it, but also maintenance). In this case you won't really have any say in how they use it as long as they are not being completely unreasonable with the noise and disruption.
Not all blocks will follow this pattern though, so it is possible it is owned communally too, in which case everyone has the right to use it. In this case it sounds like they are overreaching slightly in terms of alterations, but are still allowed to use it - just not to the exclusion of everyone else in the block
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
Yes exactly! It’s happy to listen to people having fun outside but I have tried to connect before with offering help in the garden as I grew up in a farm I know what I’m doing and i carefully suggested to them some more beginner friendly plants and they completely blanked my efforts they just say oh it’s trial and error we are just having fun. But I would like to contribute!
Willeth@reddit
If they own the space, they are within their rights to refuse your help. They are allowed to be wrong about the plants and make mistakes.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
I belive they have shared rights as they told me it’s communal but perhaps that is them saying they own it but feel free to use it, I shall perhaps post a letter to the landlord to see if they know
Willeth@reddit
It's worth finding out for sure.
Regardless, even if it is a shared space, while they should be consulting with other residents, if they plant stuff there, it's their property, and you should only interact with it with their permission.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
Agreed!
BaBaFiCo@reddit
This will be covered in your rental agreement. Either it is a shared space or it belongs to one or more of the flats specifically. That said, playing music during the day isn't against any law. Is your complaint about the volume? Because again using loud speakers before 9pm isn't against the law.
So unless it is particularly loud or obnoxious it sounds like you're deciding on whether you want to be known as "that neighbour" who moans about anyone trying to enjoy their bank holiday weekend.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
I think they realised it was a bit too loud, and turned it down, unfortunately I work from home and can’t help but feel I shouldn’t hear music through my window mid day.
BaBaFiCo@reddit
Not off today? That sucks. But being able to hear the outside is just a simple matter of physics. The world doesn't exist to provide you perfect working conditions. And neighbours playing a bit of music isn't really that bad, especially on a bank holiday when they probably expect everyone else is also off work.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
Indeed it doesn’t I think I am experiencing culture shock this is my first time in a city! It’s very strange
BaBaFiCo@reddit
In cities there's often a greater acceptance of the fact that space is at a premium and so there's going to be cross over between lives.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
I think so I’m from a place where you have to get a ferry to mainland for groceries we didn’t grow on farm! I’m surprised by how liberal these cities are, I think once I start to take part too I’ll start to enjoy it more.
BeardedBaldMan@reddit
It's a shared space with no clear rules. You either get everyone to agree to a timeshare system or you just join these people for drinks and music.
I don't think you can reasonably expect people not to use their limited green space in this weather.
anxious_and_tearful@reddit (OP)
I understand that totally, I think part of me is just salty, but another part of me feels like even though they say it’s communal they seem to have taken over the lawn I feel perhaps a little pushed away. I also have to respect the fact that we are very different people I’m perhaps a little more reserved.
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