There’s nothing worse than a neighbor who can’t mind their own business, except, perhaps, one that’s grumpy enough to call the cops at the drop of a hat. People like this can bring down the vibe of the whole neighborhood, so it’s great when they get their comeuppance.

One Redditor couldn’t help but share a prank he played on the constantly complaining neighbor next door. Armed with a decommissioned hearse and his out-of-work brother-in-law, he came up with a funny plan to put the old woman in her place once and for all.

More info: Reddit

We’ve all heard about nosy neighbors, but this one took the cake with her outlandish complaints

Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

She’d frequently call the cops on kids playing innocently in the nearby playground

Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

Guy confronted her about it, encouraging her to quit complaining or move out to the countryside

Image credits: cottonbro studio / Pexels (not the actual photo)

She threatened to hire a private investigator to keep an eye on the playground and that’s when the guy hatched a sneaky plan

Image credits: TomrummetsKald

Guy employed his brother-in-law and an old hearse to fake a stakeout right outside her house

Image credits: TomrummetsKald

She finally quit her moaning after people in the neighborhood kept checking in on her for two weeks

OP begins his story by telling the community that they had just moved into their new house when they met “Betty”, their grumpy old neighbor. OP adds that Betty enjoyed an uninterrupted view of the nearby playground but hated the fact that the neighborhood kids would enjoy themselves there.

In the first two months of OP’s residence in the neighborhood, Betty called the cops on three separate occasions to complain about the kids, citing violence and other nefarious activities, which pretty much forced the cops to respond. Having had enough of this, OP let her know that she could quit complaining or move out to the country.

Betty responded with a threat to hire a private investigator – that’s when OP struck upon his genius idea for a prank. 

He told Betty that he would spare her the inconvenience and hire a PI himself. Within two days, he set up a new company called “Tommy’s PI Office”, hired his jobless brother-in-law to pose as the private eye, and rounded it all off by putting “Tommy” in an old, decommissioned hearse, right outside his neighbor’s house.

The fake stakeout only lasted two weeks before the neighbor had had enough of people checking in on her and politely asked “Tommy” to end his investigation. OP concludes by saying there weren’t any more complaints after that.

Image credits: Patrick Quinn / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

While OP went to extraordinary lengths to put a stop to Betty’s constant moaning, there are somewhat easier ways to deal with a nasty neighbor. 

In her article for Today, Amy Eley writes that even the most beautiful home in the most serene town can become a nightmare if you live next door to the wrong kind of people. And dealing with unpleasant neighbors can be enough to drive even the most peaceful people to the brink. 

Eley puts forward 9 fail-safe strategies to put an end to rude, nosy, and toxic neighbors.

Some of the best include calling ahead and picking a time to talk, meeting on the sidewalk or property line, letting them know how the problem bothers you and working together towards a solution, and consulting your condo or block association to send a standard letter to your neighbor citing the ordinance or by-law that’s being contravened.

In their article for Calm Mind QT, author Ashish writes that recognizing toxic behavior involves looking for consistent patterns rather than isolated incidents. If your neighbor often engages in loud arguments, throws late-night parties, or keeps parking in your designated spot, these are all red flags. 

Ashish goes on to add that boundaries are essential for maintaining respect and peace between neighbors, defining what is acceptable behavior and what is not, and helping to create a comfortable environment for all involved. In order to create boundaries, you need to communicate your needs clearly and respectfully to your problematic neighbor. 

If written notes and direct conversations don’t fix anything, mediation may be a useful avenue to pursue. Mediation involves a neutral third party to help both sides communicate and find an agreeable solution. If that fails, it might be necessary to involve the authorities, which could include local law enforcement, city officials, or homeowners’ associations.

In the case of OP’s grumpy old neighbor, it’s doubtful whether she would’ve responded well to any of these methods, but if you find yourself constantly battling with the folks next door, these options are probably worth looking into.

Bored Panda reached out to expert Jonathan Forisha, Director of Education and Community at TurboTenant, provider of landlord software to get his opinion on the situation.

When we asked him what he thought of the fake PI prank, he had this to say, “This was super creative, and I expected the story to involve having the nosy neighbor actually hire the brother-in-law. Instead, the OP set everything up out of the goodness of their heart, which surely earned some points with the neighbor.”

Forisha went on, “By covering the PI’s bill, they also took away the neighbor’s ability to try to direct how or what he “investigated”. From the neighbor’s perspective, something was being done and their concerns were being investigated and the property owner looked like a hero.”

When it came to one piece of advice he’d offer someone dealing with a toxic neighbor, Forisha said, “Communicate and document. Our software serves landlords, and they’re often caught in the middle of neighborly disputes. The tenant says one thing, their neighbor says another, and the landlord usually doesn’t have enough information or evidence to know who to believe.”

“Of course you want to stay on good terms with your neighbors, even if you don’t agree with their yard signs or the things they think are happening on the nearby playground. Clearly communicating expectations and following up is the most important thing.”

Forisha added that the documentation is important for peace of mind, but also in case anything goes south.

“If a landlord’s tenant issue heads for eviction, or if police have to get involved with a toxic neighbor, having thorough documentation is going to make life a lot easier. Documenting doesn’t mean you’ve got to start recording every interaction or journaling whenever you chat with the neighbor, but it does mean that having the dates of any escalations will back up your side of the story,” he says.

What would you have done if you’d found yourself in OP’s situation? Do you think his solution was over the top, or a perfect fit? Let us know your opinion in the comments!

Redditors in the comments congratulated the guy for his genius prank and some expressed a particular liking for the old hearse

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