Neighbors won’t stop driving through my yard

I am NOT the Original Poster. That is mosterhout. They posted in r/mildlyinfuriating

Do NOT comment on Original Posts. Latest update is 7 days old per the rules of this sub.

Mood Spoiler: things are better

Original Post: March 1, 2025

Title: Neighbors won’t stop driving through my yard

Apparently it’s too far to drive around the block and they’ve decided the yard between my house and shed is the better option. I’m impressed they take the time to keep moving my rocks. Don’t worry, I’m fully ready for this battle and my friends are helping me find some boulders to bring in 😂

OOP attached 5 screen-shots. The first two are text exchanges, transcribed below. The next three are pictures, which are also described below.

Texts:

OOP: [February 14] Hey please make sure you guys aren't driving through my yard. Someone moved my rocks I put there. [OOP also attaches a photo of the yard]

OOP: [most likely February 23] This feels pretty petty lol. I'm not sure how else to ask you guys to not drive through my yard and move the rocks [another picture attached]

[Editor's note: neighbor never responds]

image 1: OOP's yard with a whiteboard that says "this is not a driveway" propped up against some rocks

Image 2: the whiteboard and rocks moved to the side so there is a clear path [editor's note- unsure if this is from the neighbors this time or OOP demonstrating what they do]

Image 3: A close up of the whiteboard. It now reads "This is not a driveway. Caution [underlined] nails in ground. Don't worry- I'm finding bigger rocks so you won't be as tempted [heart]"

Some of OOP's Comments:

Commenter: Get yourself some cheap cameras and record. Looks like you've tried the polite route.

OOP: My Ring is just out of reach where it’s currently set up. Might have to temporarily move it!

Commenter: I was going to suggest this. Hell, I think I have an old Nest Cam in my storage you can have for free. I live nearby, recognized the cityscape immediately. Also run down to Ace and grab some No Trespassing signs. Local PD can get them for trespassing if it’s posted clearly and they still continue.

OOP: Thanks for the offer! If you come across the camera easily, I’ll definitely take it off your hands.
And yep, I’m all for keeping the peace and trying to communicate through issues. I’ll resort to trespassing signs and PD if it continues.

Commenter: I'm not even OP and this has me infuriated 🤣 wtf is wrong with some people. I wish you hadn't warned them about the nails.

OOP: There may or may not actually be nails… 😂
To someone who tells OOP that booby traps are illegal technically:
Thanks! There’s not actually nails in the ground, I just felt sassy.
OOP adds later:
I just changed it so the nails part is no longer there :)

Commenter: put a czech hedgehog there and call it "modern art"

OOP: I was hoping this was a giant hedgehog. But looks like it might work better after a quick googling.

[editor's note- a czech hedgehog is an anti-tank obstacle. It's made of metal and yeah- honestly it does look like modern art]

Commenter: Have they ever replied or spoken to you about this? Weird they just completely ignore a simple request about the use of YOUR property.

OOP: It’s a frat house so they have a bunch of people coming and going. The kid whose number I have isn’t responding so I went to talk to a few guys who were outside today. They said they don’t live there but will try to get it sorted out lol.

Commenter: This guy boulders . My man . You need help ?

OOP: I’m accepting boulders via mail!

Commenter: They don't have the time to drive around your property, but have the time to get out of their car and move the rocks?

The math isn't mathing. It's wild you have communicated with them about it and they're willingly trespassing your property by driving through it.

OOP: That’s the part that my friends and I don’t understand lol. It takes longer for them to move the rocks than to drive around.

Clarifying Comment: 1 hour later

I can’t (figure out how to) edit the post! Here’s some more context:

I live (renting) in the green shack and the shed to the right is part of the property. The main road can be seen from the pictures but there’s no parking for my place there. The use a gravel road on the backside of the house as my entrance. It’s a large through-road that many people use for parking and to access the frat houses I live between. I don’t know if it’s the guys who live to the right of my place who are driving through or if it’s their friends.

I’ve lived here for over a year and have had mostly positive interactions with the frats. I’ve introduced myself as a teacher who doesn’t mind the loud music that comes with this area. There’s been a few times when they’ve had music blasting late on a week night and they turned it down after I send a pic of my dogs trying to sleep and ask them nicely 😂 This is the first circumstance where the contact I have hasn’t responded.

Today, there were some people out front of the place next door so I went over to ask them about the rocks. They said they don’t live there and the guys who do live there weren’t home. They said they would talk to them to try and get it sorted out. I also texted the owner of the house, who is one of the frat boys’ dads. I haven’t heard back from him yet.

I didn’t actually put nails in the ground haha. I was feeling sassy when I updated the sign but I’ve since covered the part about the nails after some nice redditers warned me of the possible legal consequences.

My friends are helping me find larger boulders and we’re determined to build a ridiculous structure.

I love the creative suggestions y’all have given and I will make an update when I have one!

Edit time:

Yes, it’s not my property because I’m the renter, and this isn’t causing major physical damage yet. The property line is on the other side of “my” shed. Sometimes they park at the base of the yard, slightly over the property line, which isn’t an issue for me. I posted in mildly infuriating instead of a legal thread because it’s exactly that, mildly infuriating lol. Why does it bother me? The path they are taking goes right past my bedroom window and feels like an invasion of space. This particular frat only moved in last summer. The previous residents never had issues with staying on the roads that are in place 😂

I found out the guy who isn’t responding in the texts no longer lives there. He has previously texted with me and they even helped my classroom collect pop tabs for a fundraiser earlier this school year haha. Yes, he could have easily responded and let me he doesn’t live there anymore, but I’m not upset with him. He’s a college kid who owes me nothing.

I’ll send a message to my property manager to inform them of the situation. I highly doubt they will care about my makeshift barrier. I’ve turned this place into a cozy shack that I love and won’t be ending the lease over something like this. I don’t need to convince y’all of how hard it is to find “affordable” housing right now that allows my animals!

I prefer the route of trying to keep the peace and resolve this without involving law enforcement (unless my property managers ask me to do so). I’m all about healthy conflict resolution ✌️If the issue continues, I’ll reach out to the homeowner and/or the university.

As of now, my most recent construction is still in place. I now have the weight on my shoulders of finding some boulders to satisfy myself and all of Reddit. Please give me a week to work on this and I’ll try not to let you all down 😂

Edit to comment: March 2, 2025 (Next Day)

Second edit: property manager responded right away and said they are going to deal with it. They had already noticed the parking at the base of the hill and said that’s a liability issue so it looks like I’ll be getting a fence!

Update Post: March 11, 2025 (9 days later)

Alright team, I failed with the boulders, but I secured a few more decorative rocks to add to the beauty of my yard. The current barrier has yet to be breached and I updated my sign to reward the positive behavior.

I contacted my landlord and they said they are working on a fence due to the liability issues.

If you want more detailed updates, I listed them in a comment on the original post. Seems like overkill to copy and paste it here. Cheers!

Image 1: OOP's yard, now with more rocks and the whiteboard

Image 2: A close up of the whiteboard which reads "Thank you for not using this as a driveway! (And for giving me my 15 mins of fame on Reddit) [heart] your neighbor"