The Pros, Cons and Latest Features on RottenNeighbor.com

Rotten Neighbor isn't the newest site in town but its popularity has made it hard to get into the server sometimes. Since some recent updates, the buzz about the website is hotter than ever...and for good reason. Where else can you vent to the world about your neighbors? Where else can you see who may be reporting you? Not surprisingly, people have used the site, located at: www.rottenneighbor.com/ to get a voyeuristic peek into various neighborhoods.

Since the first time I visited the site I discovered that reports had bloomed like crazy. Now I saw accusations about people being dirty housekeepers or reports of convicted child molesters. The site also contains information about home foreclosures in an area, useful to home buyers who want bargains or perhaps a sign to avoid a neighborhood which might be sliding downwards (although even the best areas have their share of foreclosures these days, depending on the city).

The site is so busy and popular these days that the server can get slow at peak hours, a sign (perhaps) that people don't want to buy or sell a home in this economy without knowing the lowdown on those rotten neighbors - or the good ones (you can report those as well).

Considering that the site was only launched last summer, it has had amazing success and is more in demand than ever.

How Rotten Neighbor works

Simply enter an address or zip code in the search form on the home page. Then you can get very detailed reports of most neighborhoods, covering noise and safety issues as well as reported sex molesters. If children tend to throw rocks at cars, you may well read all about that as well. To enter a report, register and list your complaint.

A look at the Rotten Neighbor website was very helpful in determining where we might want to buy a home...but that, of course comes with a downside. What about when it came time to sell a home? Would we suddenly discover that we had several homes on our street with various warnings? Would the barking dog several doors down jinx a home sale? If someone reported a neighbor, perhaps there'd be payback when it came time to sell. After all, in many cases neighbors were clearly fighting with each other before filing complaints so it might not take much detective work to figure out who complained.

Videos are a new feature since the last time I visited the site

Yes, videos which actually document alleged incidents or noise at various homes. In one case, a particular video indicated that someone was indeed making a racket upstairs from the person taping it all. A visitor to the Rotten Neighbor site could click on the title of the video (Stomping Day and Night) and get an address for the alleged home or apartment where this occurred. Who'd want to live there? Certainly not the person taping the whole thing...and possibly not a future tenant or homeowner.

Pros and cons of Rotten Neighbor for home buyers and sellers

Clearly, if you want to buy a home, you're going to want to know if child molesters live there. You'll also care about the number of home foreclosures and how many neighbors are mad at each other. A significant number of complaints could hint at a major neighborhood issue or perhaps a rift in a homeowners' association, a big deal in some areas.

You can find out even more if you take a visit to the message board there and see the variety of complaints. Loud music and animal noise seem to top the list of complaints, followed by poorly maintained homes, rude neighbors and messy or overgrown yards. You can read the variety of complaints in the Message board section of the Rotten Neighbor website.

One problem may be that people can make complaints out of revenge or because they get mad at someone

Although registration is required to make a complaint, the process for checking the validity of complaints was not clear. It seemed pretty easy to just register and complain. There is no guarantee that the statements made by anyone are true. Of course, good neighbors can be praised as well but (not surprisingly) the number of complaints and foreclosures seemed to outweigh the glowing praise I saw for any neighbors in random neighborhoods. I entered a variety of zip codes, from supposedly good areas of my town and other towns - to the worst of the worst.

My fears about Rotten Neighbor's effect on property values has been backed up by other critics

Real estate agents and people who've mediated neighborhood disputes have concerns over the site's effect on home sales and values. Some say anonymous postings can hurt home values and not just for a single home. It could bring down the price of homes in an entire neighborhood. They suggest talking to neighbors face to face or even bringing in police or other authorities rather than just venting on a website. Talking to a neighbor may provide hope of some understanding and maybe even peace and understanding.

On the other hand, a list of foreclosures and convicted child molesters is information I'd want to know

Wouldn't you? Yes, this may not help neighborhood sales but the information can help parents and homeowners try to live in safer neighborhoods.

How Rotten Neighbor could help homeowners

In one case in our area, a homeowner didn't know her dog was bothering people. I wasn't the brave soul who complained but someone did. Eventually, she saw the post on Rotten Neighbor and took steps to control her dog. It worked. However, it was a roundabout way of getting the information. Wouldn't an anonymous letter in her mailbox have worked just as well?

Reading through the various complaints on Rotten Neighbor did make me realize that neighbors do pay attention to things that may seem small to me. Although I don't have reports against me, I've noticed that something as small as an old basketball post or some toys left in the yard during the day can upset some neighbors. I'm more careful about taking my trash cans into the garage soon after the trash collectors arrive. So it has upped my awareness of what being a good neighbor might mean.

Sources:
Rotten Neighbor website and the forums and information there: www.rottenneighbor.com
Article: Rotten Neighbor: The Tell All Website of Communites, May 6, 2008, KTNV News at: www.ktnv.com/global/story.asp
LA Times: Hot Trends Watch: Rotten Neighbor, June 27, 2008