# Constant construction on my neighbor's house **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 16, 2021, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773 "2021-09-16T18:37:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/1 "2021-09-16T18:37:16Z")
This could have easily been a rant but it’s not venomous enough for the pit. Possibly IMHO so peeps could venture a guess as to what’s going on. But I put it here because it really boils down to some mindless, pointless stuff. Someone bought the house next to me about six months ago. I was friendly with the previous owner and he said the buyers shared with him their plans to “add a bathroom”, which seemed insane since the house is even smaller than mine (under 900 sq. ft). But whatever, their kids are grown and technically there’s room for another bathroom (but it would have to be _really_ small). Since the time they moved in, I have listened to their remodeling activity in the wee hours of the night, the crack o’ dawn, and everything in between. They obviously have another home somewhere else, as the work goes in week long spurts and then they disappear. When they first arrived I introduced myself via the fence that separates our backyards. I got the strong impression that they’re private folks so I left it at that. I can’t decide which is stronger; my wish to see what the inside of the house looks like or my desire for them to STFU. Also, I’ve had Tome Waits’s “What’s He Building in There?” in my head for much longer than I care to. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/2 "2021-09-16T18:47:29Z")
Small house, constant construction, owners are private, they don’t actually live there - I’m going to guess either marijuana farm or meth lab is being installed. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/3 "2021-09-16T18:50:05Z")
Top of my head guess: When they broke ground (drywall?) for the bathroom addition, they found more problems behind the walls. Oh, this pipe is leaking, got to fix that, after we replace this chewed through wire and the rotten plywood under the carpet and look - termite damage! ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/4 "2021-09-16T18:56:09Z")
Don’t they have to file building plans with the city? If you’re curious what the plans are, can you go to city hall and look at them? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/5 "2021-09-16T18:58:59Z")
Plenty of places where that isn’t that common. Especially if they’re doing the work themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/6 "2021-09-16T18:59:41Z")
Sure, but if plans were filed, it might satisfy curiosity. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/7 "2021-09-16T19:03:46Z")
Yeah, that’s my assumption as well. But it’s gone on sooooooo long. I’m no expert but I did live with a contractor for many years and worked with him on sites more times than I can count. It’s hard to imagine a space that small necessitating that much work. Also, that house and this street just don’t seem worth it. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/8 "2021-09-16T20:09:58Z")
Only six months? When I moved here 26 years ago, I heard banging and sawing from the house two doors away. Apparently, they’ve been rebuilding the entire house, little by little. It’s still going on today, after 26 years! ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/9 "2021-09-16T20:33:11Z")
I suppose it doesn’t sound that bad in light of what you experienced. But our houses are 1930s wood structures set about seven feet apart. I hear EVERYTHING. Amplified. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/10 "2021-09-16T20:48:05Z")
Building materials are hard to get because of the plague so maybe they’re doing what they can with what they can get? Or they’re really, really meticulous? ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/11 "2021-09-16T20:48:54Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Only six months? When I moved here 26 years ago, I heard banging and sawing from the house two doors away. Apparently, they’ve been rebuilding the entire house, little by little. > > It’s still going on today, after 26 years! > **[Winchester Mystery House](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winchester_Mystery_House)** > > Reportedly haunted locations: > The Winchester Mystery House is a mansion in San Jose, California, that was once the personal residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of firearms magnate William Wirt Winchester. The house became a tourist attraction nine months after Winchester's death in 1922. The Victorian and Gothic-style mansion is renowned for its size and its architectural curiosities. > It is sometimes claimed to be one of the "most haunted places in the world", but there is no evidence to... Sarah Winchester was said to have believed that she would continue living as long as the house was under construction. The construction – often aimless, building corridors that led nowhere – continued for 38 years, with some brief interruptions. The house next door to where I previously lived was not quite as insane, but certainly strange. When I moved in next door it was a perfectly lovely bungalow that was occupied by a perfectly lovely couple, who maintained it immaculately. Then, due to their age, they sold and moved out and it was bought by a young couple. They weren’t there very long before they decided that a complete, massive renovation was in order. Which went on for months. Then things settled down for a couple of years and then … incredibly, they decided to gut the entire place down to the foundations. So not only did they destroy a brand new renovated interior, I had to put up with the sounds of major construction for many more months while a new two-storey monstrosity was built! 😠 ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/12 "2021-09-16T20:49:21Z")
Sounds like a Winchester Mystery House deal. The new owners are trying to appease malevolent spirits through constant construction. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/13 "2021-09-16T20:55:17Z")
In my area, there are ordinances limiting construction noise in residential areas from 7am (9am weekends) - 10pm. If your area has regulations, I’d leave a letter with this info on their door. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/14 "2021-09-16T20:55:22Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Only six months? When I moved here 26 years ago, I heard banging and sawing from the house two doors away. Apparently, they’ve been rebuilding the entire house, little by little. Perhaps they’re woodworkers and are constantly working on projects? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2021, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/15 "2021-09-17T15:08:22Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](#): > > Yeah, that’s my assumption as well. But it’s gone on sooooooo long. I’m no expert but I did live with a contractor for many years and worked with him on sites more times than I can count. It’s hard to imagine a space that small necessitating that much work. > > Also, that house and this street just don’t seem worth it. My father-in-law’s hobby was doing remodeling work on his residence. From the time I met him until his passing two decades later I never knew him to NOT have a remodeling project going on. He lived in three different homes in two states in those years and he no sooner finished one then he started another. Little projects, big projects, always something. Some people just like remodeling I guess. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2021, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/16 "2021-09-17T15:20:25Z")
Also some of us have workshops. At my first two houses; I was never close enough to a neighbor to make a difference, but I am pretty sure my projects are a lot more noticeable in the new place where the neighboring houses are a lot closer. Probably a good thing its a basement workshop at least. The first 6 months I was here, I was doing a lot of projects on the house. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2021, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/17 "2021-09-19T19:29:47Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > My father-in-law’s hobby was doing remodeling work on his residence. My dad was the same way, if he wasn’t doing something on their house, he was doing something to one of us girls’ places. He died with sawdust in his hair. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2021, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/18 "2021-09-19T22:35:57Z")
Being handy and imaginative has always seemed like a great way to pass the time. Maybe in my next life. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2021, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/19 "2021-09-19T22:50:56Z")
That is the only thing it could be. Partner with local law enforcement, document the constant stream of refugees coming and going, working for slave labor. Look out for people carrying un-attached catalytic converters. The FedX guy and Home Depot are in on it too. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773/20 "2021-09-21T19:59:29Z")
Just to be clear, I don’t think nor I am implying there’s anything nefarious going on. Simply that it’s . . .unusual and annoying. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/constant-construction-on-my-neighbors-house/950773.md?page=2)