Hoarder home Berkeley Vale: Tatted-up woman declares she doesn’t want to be ‘judged’ for her piles of junk piled up on her footpath – as neighbourhood war erupts about ‘living next to a dump’

A neighborhood war has broken out over a chronic hoarder’s home, which is filled with so much clutter that it stretches “down the road.”

The front garden, carport and footpath of the property in Berkeley Vale, on the NSW Central Coast, is filled with unregistered cars, ladders, building materials and all sorts of discarded rubbish.

Those living on the streets are fed up with the ugly mess and ‘beg’ the council to intervene, calling the house ‘toxic’ and ‘dangerous’.

But Jess, who lives at the address in question, sees things very differently.

‘This is just how we live. Everyone has a different way of life. And I don’t want to be judged for that just because I live here,” she said A current case from her balcony.

“It’s not junk, it’s worth money and it’s our business. We make money with it. There are no rodents in it, no snakes, my cat is all in the stuff.’

The woman, who has a large tattoo on her left arm, claimed that many of the items in the property are worth thousands of dollars.

“It’s not bullshit, so that dog thing over there, that’s worth three thousand dollars,” she said.

‘Look, one, two, three, four, five, six damn scraps hanging from the fence here. That’s money.

‘Lego. Worth money. Collectibles,” she said, holding up a bag of Lego bricks.

Neighbor and father of two Llewellyn tries to ignore the mess and looks the other way as he sits on his porch.

But living next to the eyesore has taken its toll.

“I call it the junkyard… it’s like living next to a landfill. You’ve got the rats, you’ve got the junk,’ Llewellyn said.

“But seeing the ute come by with more stuff makes me anxious and angry. But I am especially angry with the municipality, because they are actually the only ones who can do something about it.’

Llewellyn is supported by other neighbors on the street, Leanne and Robert.

“You can’t park on the street because of all those unregistered cars they have. It’s a big eyesore,’ Leanne said.

It’s been thirteen years since Llewellyn bought his house, but his quiet life has changed dramatically in the two years since the new neighbors moved in.

And the problem is getting worse. “It’s just grown and grown and grown because they ran out of room…and now it’s just down the road,” he said.

‘I just want to move. I feel like a prisoner in my own home. I’d like to move out and be done with this.’

But he believes the price of his house has now plummeted because of the hoarders.

“With the amount I owe on the property, I can’t sell it for less than it’s worth,” he said.

Leanne and Robert feel that Jess and her family should clear their belongings.

“It’s just unhealthy. I mean, I feel sorry for them,’ Leanne said.

Jess said the Central Coast Council has ordered them to tear down the carport, but they have not told them to clean anything up.

“We’ve talked to the councillors, they come by almost every week,” she said.

“Our properties have been like this for the last ten properties we have lived in. We were harassed by the municipality at every building we visited.’

Llewellyn said he has literally begged the council to fix the situation. “I actually wrote the words, I beg you to do something about this.”

Jess sees things very differently and says, “This is just how we live. Everyone has a different way of life… It’s a business, it’s not a mess’

Jess gave an indication of the reasons behind the hoarding, saying, “Our family is not functioning properly. We fucking try to get to it, we have to put up with each other.

‘So yes, the neighbors can tolerate us. Why can’t you just say, “Oh, cool. That’s not your house. It’s the neighbors,” and ignore it.’

The Central Coast Council said nothing it has tried has worked so far and is now considering enforcement options.

Meanwhile, Llewellyn tries to have a fence put up so he doesn’t have to look at the mess next door.