Neighbor's girlfriend repeatedly parks car on homeowner's driveway, neighbor protests when they ask her to stop: 'The space is empty most of the time'

Ally Perry • Writer and Editor

Oct 8, 2026 2:00 PM EDT

Is a neighbor entitled to somebody's private space just because they don't use it?

People who can't help but make their mark on the private property of their neighbors are a surprisingly common occurrence. It is like they think that they are entitled to use the space purely because of its proximity to them, never mind what the law says about who lives there and/or owns it. They have a need for another piece of yard or a parking space, and so they trample all over their neighbor's boundaries.

While part of living close to other people is accepting that we cannot have full control over how they live their lives, it is not unreasonable to expect them to respect what isn't theirs. It's normal to do something nice for a neighbor, like invite them to a backyard BBQ or let their family park in your space one time. However, when these kinds of favors turn into unspoken expectations, it sets the stage for conflict that can turn a pleasant place to live into a sincerely aggravating one. Bad neighbors are a different kind of frustrating, because it is that much harder to get away from their nonsense.

*_{A man walks up a wide driveway in a suburban neighborhood while looking at his phone. Actor performance of story events.}*

A homeowner was asked by a neighbor to let his girlfriend park in their driveway, as they had extra space there. They agreed on a one-time basis, but then found that this parking arrangement had turned into a habit. Both he and his girlfriend regularly parked in the driveway.

As a result, they decided to tell him that this was not acceptable behavior. He didn't see the point, as they only had one car, and his girlfriend got annoyed when later asked to move her vehicle again. They were now struggling with being given the cold shoulder.

My neighbor keeps using my driveway because "I don't need all that space"

I moved into my house about 6 months ago. I love alone, and my driveway has enough room for 2 cars. I only own one. A few weeks after I moved in, my neighbor asked if his girlfriend could park in my driveway for one evening because they had family visiting. I said yes. I thought it was just a neighborly favor. Apparently that became permanent permission. Since then, I've

come home multiple times to find either his car or his girlfriend's car parked on my side. At first I tried not to make a big deal out of it. I would just park around them because I really didn't want to start problems with someone living right next door.

Eventually I politely asked him to stop. He seemed surprised and said, "But you only have one car". I explained that it's still my driveaway and sometimes I have friends or family over. He agreed. 2 days later, his girlfriend's car was there again. I knocked on his door and asked if she could move it. Je got visibly annoyed and told me I was being difficult for no reason because the second space is "literally empty 90% of the time".

He didn't see why they had an issue.

What really bothered me was when he said that since I live alone, he doesn't understand why I'm so protective over space I'm not even using. Now whenever we see each other outside, he barely acknowledges me. His girlfriend moved her car, but they've made me feel like I'm some petty neighbor who created drama over an

empty parking space. I genuinely tried to be nice when they needed help. Now I regret ever saying yes because apparently one favor turned into them feeling entitled to part of my property.

Maybe the space is empty most of the time, but I don't understand why that means someone else automatically gets to use it.

They were not happy with what the situation had become.

TL;DR: I let my neighbor use my driveway once as a favor. He and his girlfriend started regularly parking there without asking and now think I'm being unreasonable for stopping them because I love alone and have an unused space.

*_{A woman smiles while driving a car with the window rolled down. Scene shown is a visual representation.}*

It wasn't their space to use.

c ntliflower C Even if you had no car, that would not entitle them to your space.

AgrajagsGhost Dude, no way. That's YOUR driveway and you can use it however you want. Would your neighbor be cool with you putting solar panels on his roof to feed your house? He's never up there, it's empty literally 100% of the time...

Namaste Noodle Well progress is progress. Obviously they're not parking there anymore and they're not speaking to you. It's a win-win all the way around. They were r de and invasive and then decided to get ridiculous when you told them the reasons why they couldn't keep parking there all the time.

And you own that property and you don't have to let anyone on it if you don't want to. You could have told him that half your din house was empty most of the time even when you were in it and that doesn't mean he's welcome to just come right in.

They were allowed to keep the space for themselves.

Cosmicshimmer You can do what you want with your empty space. It doesn't have to have a car in it and he doesn't get to decide you're going to have a car in it because he doesn't make decisions about your property. Even if you had zero cars, it doesn't mean it's free parking for everyone else.

Next-Drummer-9280 "Stop parking on my property. The number of cars I own is irrelevant, as is your assessment of how much space I need. The next time I find your car there, it will be towed at your expense."

WomanInQuestion Start putting a pile of stuff in the empty spot so she can't park there anymore. They don't have the right to dictate what someone else does with their own property.

They needed to let go of a need for approval.

Impossible-Froyo4924 If he had stopped. Then you need to move on. Who cares if he is happy. Let it go. Doesnt sound like he was going to be a friend anyways. You could also buy a boat and park it there

beckstermcw Him no longer speaking to you is the best outcome. Take it as a win and don't worry who he talks to.

Mr Abe Fromen Honestly, do you really want to be friends with people that will just walk all over you? I personally would be happy if people like this totally ignore me, but I'm a simple man that doesn't want to engage in niceties with duchebags.

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