Has anyone experienced a neighbour building an extension right up to the boundary between gardens?

[hooliodancer]

And what happened next?

Our neighbours are planning to do this under permitted development. They will effectively replace a fence -ours- with a wall.
I have spoken to a party wall surveyor, who has said that once they start Party Wall Act stuff, they will have the right to use our garden for the build, including destroying our mature plants which grow along the fence. They have to compensate us for this. Although totally heartbroken to lose so many lovingly grown (my roses are 15 years old and glorious!) plants, I accept I have to abide by the law.

I would really like to hear other people's experiences of this. I can imagine that there is going to be constant arguing between us and them in the future. They have told us they want us to keep the wall totally clear for maintenance. Our solicitor says we don't have to do this. He says he will need to check the condition of his wall regularly from our garden, so any plants we have in our border will get trampled on so he can access his wall. Our solicitor says if he damages anything he has to pay for it every time.

I can forsee this terrible stress I am under now continuing for ever. The neighbour is very selfish, and just expects everyone to do his bidding. The solution is that he builds behind his boundary and leaves enough room for maintenance. He says he will not do this.

I posted about this situation in legal, as at first it was a boundary issue- his initial plans used part of our garden for the build. I understand the legal bits now, I would like to hear other people's experiences. I can't sleep for the stress! Thanks.

[howtorebuild]

I had a selfish liar do the same. They had a roof overlapping my land, their extractor coming into my land. Then when I asked her to clean as she promised she didn't and was PA nasty. Horrid using fake type couple in general. My advice, move, life is too short to live near knobbers.

I only had horrible neighbours road, there were a few in that road including a weirdo letter writer, a gun runner and drug Lord, most expensive house I lived in too. though have had a few eccentrics elsewhere

[howtorebuild]

Tires so didn't make sense, it was just one road in all my years with horrible neighbours, most are ok elsewhere.

[Hamsolo]

It sounds like your neighbours attitude is a bigger problem than the wall!

We recently had an extension which created a new party wall. We agreed that we'd pay for their garden to be put back as close as possible to how it was/ pay for replacement shrubs etc. We also changed the height of the extension at their request to make it easier for them to do the same in a few years time, and there is no ongoing need for access for maintenance.

Have you got as far as a party wall surveyor? He or she should help represent your interests. Planning permission doesn't mean you can be ridden over roughshod...

[Wombat87]

We had this with one of ours. We replaced all the fence panels before renting it, after their tenants (next door was rented) kids kicked them in. Made it nice etc. We got a letter through stating their intentions:

A brick 'shed' (complete with front door and 2 Windows so obviously another rentable room), and an upper extension over the existing one. I was upset that most of their brickwork makes the view from our garden gross as they've essentially made it half their garden, and the brick wall is terrible. They will also be blocking out light from the neighbour on the other side.

Sadly it's all permitted development, just make sure they adhere to window regulations. They are not allowed Windows on the upper extension that are on the side (or they'd be looking directly down into the neighbouring property's kitchen / garden.

Horrible situation as its not contestable. As soon as we want to sell this particular property, we'll be taking up some garden space with the highest allowable fence to block out their brickwork.

[RaphaellaTheSpanishWaterDog]

My sympathies hoolio

We had a similar scenario about 15 years ago at a previous house in a very naice conservation area (also the most expensive house we've owned and also a drug baron who was the perpetrator, howtorebuild ).....

In our case our Victorian house had a tiny gap separating it from a later (1950s) build that had replaced a bomb-damaged property. The drug baron bought next door and proceeded to turn it into a barn conversion in the city, including a vast indoor pool complex, which involved tearing down a large section of our original 1880s garden wall (owned by us) and erecting huge temporary metal fence panels at night whilst during the day his builders (and their dogs!) ran roughshod over our newly landscaped garden. It went on for many months, and whilst he did compensate us as well as ensuring we got to choose the bricks to rebuild the wall (by his builders at his expense naturally), it was an awful, stressful time while it lasted.

When we decided to rebuild a conservatory against his building (where one had formerly stood in Victorian times), he had the audacity to scream abuse at our builders, who backed off as they were scared of his reputation

Suffice to say we sold up shortly afterwards.

[RaphaellaTheSpanishWaterDog]

Meant to add, agree about the party wall surveyor and that you should be able to prevent windows overlooking your garden etc. I know in our case they had to have veluxes in the attic bedrooms when they wanted dormers and another neighbour (whose house was at right angles to theirs) argued that their landing window looked straight into her bathroom so this had to have obscure glazing.

[PigletJohn]

remind them that they do not have the right to hang their gutters and eaves over the boundary, so they had better put the wall to their side. Especially as it is your intention to build your own brick extension soon, which will go right up to the boundary, so it will be impossible for them to inspect or maintain their wall.

[Chocolatedeficitdisorder]

You can refuse permission for their workmen to come into your garden to raise the brickwork. It's true that the 'Access to Neighbouring Lands' act exists, but it only counts for maintenance of existing property, not for building new property. They will have to pay a great deal more for brickies to build it entirely from their own side. That would be a shame. You also have the right to select your own party wall surveyor at their expense to get you the best possible deal.

You don't have to make this easy or straightforward for them.

[ThanksItHasPockets]

Zombie thread.

[Chocolatedeficitdisorder]

Ah so it is, should have spotted that.

Zombies never make great neighbours.