Oh, neighbors. We all gotta deal with ’em, for good or ill. Some times, they’re the salt of the earth and always willing to bring over a cup of sugar or a hello wave. Other times? Let’s just say they give you pause about whether or not you’ve accidentally wandered into some parallel universe where a little common courtesy is an extinct language. We’re referring to those neighbors who press every last button, who refuse to heed every polite ask, and who, finally, inexorably, drive you to the glorious, satisfying edge of mean little revenge.
It’s a truth for all time, isn’t it? As Redditor u/Robwaudby so eloquently expressed: “I was lounging on my sofa watching TV, and like everyone else, I have a really annoying neighbor. She believes she’s the queen of the street.” Does that ring a bell? We’ve all been there, seething on the sofa, wondering if anyone else gets the sheer rage of an absolutely dreadful neighbor.
So what does one do when reasonable dialogues fail, when calls for peace go unheeded? That’s when the internet, bless its heart, erupts with stunningly petty stories of individuals who did not hesitate to get even.
These aren’t one-off events; they’re a chorus of small aggravations mounting into all-out neighborhood battles. When u/Robwaudby wondered how far individuals go in retaliation against obnoxious neighbors, his question went viral with thousands of anecdotes. It turns out that individuals are downright happy to retaliate and often with a level of creativity that approaches brilliance.
So grab your popcorn, because we’re diving headfirst into the most hilarious and satisfying world of neighborly revenge.
1. The Endless Noise Battles
Noise is the number one neighbor complaint, and it sparks some of the pettiest paybacks imaginable.
- The Catalog Attack: Another neighbor, tired of upstairs battles and slamming doors, enrolled their raucous neighbors in every catalog and magazine known to man. Slow burn, but effectively crushing.
- The Tweenies Abuse: A pregnant parent beset with rowdy students partying at home one weekend finally had enough. They blasted The Tweenies children’s videos through every available wall from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. until the students acquiesced.
- The 12-Hour Feedback Loop: One miserable person with a 2:30 a.m. shift left a guitar buzzing on an amp for 12 hours in a row to get their revenge. Their neighbors never played music loudly again.
- Britney Spears on Repeat: After a dorm neighbor complained about every noise down to a sneeze the solution was easy: Britney on repeat, locked room, all weekend.
- The Fuse Box Trick: An exasperated tenant disconnected power to his neighbor’s apartment whenever the music was blasting, building from seconds to hours. Sweet, quiet revenge.
- The Chainsaw Wake-Up Call: One exasperated homeowner, sick of 3 a.m. parties, started revving up a chainsaw every morning at 5 a.m. Problem solved.
2. Pets and Property Paybacks
In addition to noise, neighbor pet and property conflicts tend to generate some of the most creative retaliation.
- The Dog Pile Return: A homeowner tired of giant piles of dogs in their lawn bagged them up and left them on the neighbor’s front porch. Problem solved and the neighbor soon relocated.
- The Bouillon Cube Gaffe: Another person threw a box of bouillon cubes into a rival’s yard during a rainstorm. Their dog trashed the former-perfect lawn, leaving the boasting homeowner embarrassed.
- The Fence Pee Incident: When college students celebrated all night and even peed on a fence, one husband started up his lawnmower in the morning and left it running for hours.
3. Parking Wars and Property Lines
Parking wars and undefined property lines can spark full-scale neighborhood wars.
- Boxing in Cars: One user observed neighbors boxing in another car just for parking on a public street, and inducing retaliatory anarchy.
- Tow Truck Tactics: Another had tow trucks call every time someone parked illegally in a no-parking area. Within weeks, the problem disappeared.
- The Septic Tank Surprise: After a neighbor had falsely accused a family of trespassing with their septic tank, a survey showed his house was really on their property. Taunting ensued for months.
4. Spiteful Home Improvements
When words don’t suffice, the home itself is used as a weapon.
- The Lipstick-Pink House: One grandmother, who had “tacky” pink lipstick and Christmas lights, painted her entire house the same color and left the lights on all year round.
- The Spite Hedge: Another mother allowed her hedge to grow into a 20-foot “wall of contempt” to keep out her despised neighbor forever.
- The Parabolic Mirror Trick: A stagehand in a theater used a projector and mirror to reflect a neighbor’s blinding yard light back onto their bedroom. Genius poetic justice.
5. Nosey Neighbors and Daring Escalations
And then, of course, there are the nosy neighbors who push the limits in ways that nearly cry out for revenge.
- The Fake Estate Sale: Two kids posted a false garage sale at their neighbor’s house, getting people pounding on her door at dawn for weeks.
- Slug Warfare: One dad threw slugs on a nosy neighbor’s vegetable garden every time they peered over the fence. Small, but nasty.
- Jehovah’s Witness Sign-Ups: One old trick? Sign your neighbor up for endless Jehovah’s Witness visits. Frustrating, but completely legal.
- The Dan Excavator Incident: One of the greatest stories after “Dan” scattered garbage all over his lawn, a man rented an excavator and dumped it all on Dan’s roof, chimney, and yard. Security cameras made sure Dan couldn’t fight back.
6. Creative and Poetic Justice
Some revenge stands out for its ingenuity and irony.
- The Bogus House Listing: One brother listed his neighbor’s house in the paper at a cut-rate price, including a phone number. Weeks of unwanted calls ensued.
- The Blackberry Fence: A grandmother installed blackberries along a property line stolen from someone else, guaranteeing decades of prickly revenge.
- The Boulder Defense: One homeowner grew weary of vehicles driving across his yard and set a giant boulder on the corner. A truck later wrecked on it, ending the issue once and for all.
- The Halloween Outhouse Trap: One great-grandfather relocated his outhouse to catch pranksters off guard and fall into the cesspit. Learned the stinky lesson.
- The Crab-Apple Fence Flip: A woman was reported for a broken fence just tore it down. Her cheeky comeback? “You want a fence? Build it yourself.”
Why Petty Revenge Feels So Good
Yes, the experts and polls will advise you to “be the bigger person.” They’ll recommend calm conversation, compromise, or calling the authorities. And yes, sometimes it does work. But these stories are here because diplomacy usually doesn’t.
The pleasure of petty revenge isn’t cruel it’s the regaining of peace when someone has pushed you too hard. Is it with a lawnmower, a boulder, or a well-planned prank? These tales show one thing: when it comes to bad neighbors, sometimes the pettiest methods are the most efficient.
And really, isn’t a little peace of mind worth a box of bouillon cubes or a strategically placed hedge?
