Whether it’s due to noise, rudeness or “weird vibes”, it seems most Americans aren’t happy with their neighbors, with a survey of more than 1,500 consumers showing that 75% dislike people from at least one of the households that live nearby.
The Lending Tree survey showed that 23% of respondents say they’ve called the police on their neighbors. Further, more than one in 10 Americans say they’ve moved because they didn’t like their neighbors.
Broken out by age group, the younger generation—Gen Z—were more than twice as likely as baby boomers to say they hate the smell of cigarette-smoking neighbors. Millennials had more gripes about problem pets. Baby boomers were more likely to dislike neighbors with messy yards. Gen Xers (those between ages 42 and 56) were most likely to call out rudeness as a top neighbor gripe.
“In today’s hot housing market where prices are high and inventory is limited, the unfortunate reality is that some people might not have any other choice but to live near someone they don’t like,” said Jacob Channel, LendingTree’s senior economist. “And while getting ‘bad vibes’ from a neighbor can certainly be annoying, dealing with them might be worth it if it means you have an affordable place to live.”
While some may not be happy with the person next door, other homeowners say they like their neighbors—at least a few of them. Seventy-four percent of respondents say they are friends with a neighbor. But they also say there is some friendly competition. Seventeen percent of Americans say they feel financially pressured to keep up with their neighbors, more than double that amount when respondents live in a homeowners association (36%).
Even friendly neighbors snoop: 32% of Americans say they’ve looked up a neighbor’s home online to see the value and check out the inside of the home, the survey finds.