A new study has revealed that millennials are the worst neighbours to live with when it comes to making a complaint.
First-time homeowners are the most concerned with keeping up appearances, research by Purplebricks suggests.
It also found that two specific things really upset another particular age group when it comes to common issues with neighbours.
Research by Britain’s biggest estate agent lifts the lid on the attitudes of UK home-owners – with one age group in particular found to be unlikely to help their neighbours if they have a problem next door.
It also found which age range would be the least likely to annoy a troublesome neighbour if they were causing a commotion.
The study found that 25 to 34-year-olds were least willing to ignore a neighbour who consistently caused disruption to their surroundings while also revealing that mllennials are least likely to suffer in silence about noisy or untidy neighbours.
With the average age of a first-time buyer in Britain now 33, the poll of 2,000 homeowners suggests those with a first foot on the ladder are the most confrontational neighbours.
Less than a quarter (24%) of Brits would confront a neighbour whose home had become unkempt or fallen into disrepair but two-fifths (41%) of millennials would take them to task.
Just 13% of millennials would talk to a neighbour directly, while 10% would rally other neighbours for a group showdown and just 19% would offer to lend them the tools to fix an issue.
Of the millennials not prepared to take direct action, one in 10 would worry their neighbours’ home was ‘lowering the tone’ of the area – higher than all other age groups.
Nearly half (48%) of millennials would confront a neighbour about a loud party on a weeknight, compared to an average of one in three Brits (37%).
More than a third of millennials would politely complain to a neighbour whose cat did its business in their garden, compared to a quarter (26%) of Brits.
While the numbers might make grim reading for anyone living next door to millennials, the research did find that they are the most likely to give advanced notice to their neighbours about disruptive building work, with nearly three-quarters (71%) keeping next door up to date.
However, millennials do also appear to be the least considerate neighbours, with less than two-thirds (64%) taking in parcels for a different address, compared to an average of 74% of Brits.
Only a third (33%) of millennials would alert a neighbour who had mistakenly left their car lights on or left their keys in the front door, compared to nearly an average of 39% of Brits.
Despite being the most concerned about the look of their street, millennials are the least likely to put their neighbours’ bins out, if they have forgotten them on collection day.
In addition, just a fifth (21%) of millennial homeowners said they would assist with their neighbour’s bins, compared to a third of Brits (36%) on average.
Purplebricks CEO Sam Mitchell said: ‘Given the average age of a first-time buyer in the UK is 33, it’s perhaps no surprise that millennials are the most protective of their precious pad.
‘The generation with their first foot on the property ladder will no doubt already have an eye on the second rung, and that forever home in mind.
‘Buying your first home is a big deal, it’s a huge achievement for anyone. I would bet there’s a bit of Hyacinth Bucket in all of us’.