ONE resident said the problems had been going on for about a year and a half: “The house is at the heart of drug dealing.

“Christmas 2011 was effectively ruined, there was drug dealing going on relentlessly outside the property.

“You only realise the impact it has had when it stops. It is a cause of misery to all the residents.”

Another resident spoke of how the problem had been “snowballing” over time with “non-stop” dealing taking place.

“This has really affected my quality of life, and caused great anxiety. I am not eating properly and have lost weight as a result.”

Another resident spoke of being verbally abused by the people who visited the property and felt intimidated by them.

Dom Ford, 18, an A-level student from Southcliff Road, said: “People were here all day and night, as late as 2am, especially at weekends.

That was before he got raided, then he slowed it down.

The couple who live next door are really nice, they’re retired but they just want to live in peace.

People used to come and shout for him in the night.”

AP McDonald, 90, retired from Bath Street, who walks his dog Buddy past the house every day, said: “They looked a bit odd. I used to see guys going in there.

Anybody who went into that house was only going in there for one reason.”

Atinuke Phillips, 20, a media student at Solent University, who lives round the corner in Dover Street, said: “I did manage to peek inside the house with my housemate when we were walking past. T

"The place was dirty. There were huge piles of newspapers and boxes, it was just disgusting. It was gross.”

Bartolomiej Kozlowski, 27, an optician who moved to Southcliff Road about a year ago, said: “I hadn’t seen anything. I’m not the type of person who’s interested about different people. I wasn’t concerned about what he was doing, I never felt threatened by it.”