How’s this for a whole new level of cheeky fuckery - someone has token our allotment!

[YaMuvva]

Moved into our new house in January. Bought off a lovely lady who was a widow and something of a popular figure in the street (relevant).

We were pleasantly surprised to find that in the deeds it came with a garage across the road (which we’d seen at the viewing but it wasn’t clear it belonged to the house) and an allotment plot. We’ve actually been on an allotment waiting list for years so it was nice news.

We’ve already had aggro with the garage - when we got the keys we went to open it and found that it was rammed full of full boxes! I called previous owner directly as she gave us her number (as assumed they were hers) and she said she allowed our next door neighbour for years to use it. He was most put out when we told him to clear his stuff as we needed to use it. This was 3 months ago, and only last week did he finally clear it out, and only did so when we had to get shitty with him and say if he didn’t clear the garage we would do it for him (don’t want to get off an a bad foot with the neighbours but he was taking the piss).

Anyway we have never checked out the allotment before now (it’s not far about a 10 min walk from here) just because of time constraints and illnesses and crappy weather but decided to finally today go and find it as the sun is shining here.

Anyway, when we got there we looked on the sheet of paper we’d been given and found the plot - and a person sitting next to a full and lush patch sitting on a chair having a cuppa! There is also a shed full of tools coffee cups newspapers etc in it too . We asked the person if we’d got it wrong as we are new owners of number 8 on X Street and thought this was our new allotment.

Apparently she is our neighbour down the road (never yet met her) and yes whilst it is the allotment belonging to number 8, the previous owner (a “very dear friend” of hers apparently) let her use it, she’s been using it for 10 years.

My DH, still stinging from the garage debacle, said well I’m afraid your very dear friend doesn’t live in no 8 any more we do and we are reclaiming the allotment, thank you for looking after it but it is OURS to enjoy.

She bloody said no! And that she’s cultivated this patch for several years, she grows all her veggies here and it’s her sanctuary so if we want it we will ‘have to fight for it’! She also said she paid for the shed.

DH said that’s fine, expect a fight then, and we shuffled away in shock. I then rang the old owner and she said “Oh yes it’s Barbara’s plot really she was good to take it off my hands and it would be awful to take it off her”. To be clear - the plot has NOT been sold to Barbara.

I just can’t believe the piss takery of this. DH thinks we should just go and take down the shed, leave it at her front door and dig up everything and chuck it all in a bin.

I feel like the neighbours just took the piss out of the old owner and think they genuinely have a claim to the stuff she was kind enough to let them borrow.

I bet Babs is growing weed. You’ll cut off her sideline business as a dealer.

Well the OP had a very relaxed attitude to home buying then. That's not my experience. I'm not saying solicitors were not at fault bit if I was told I had a garage nearby during the process I think most would check it out.

As an aside... my Raspberries and Strawberries are growing like mad, and the blueberry bush. The mint is coming to life (in its carefully quarantined pot).

But this is on my land. I have sympathy knowing it takes years to establish some things... but its not her land.

If OP had referred to it as her garden... would the Be Kind responses have been the same?

Thus thread is batshit. So many posters completely entitled. Id not want to give barbara an inch.

Not on the android app

I'm sure there are one or two who'd urge the OP to 'be kind'.

Dream on.

This is actually beginning to remind me of the batshit thread about an inherited house (in poor condition) with elderly tenant in place where the OP was told (by more than just a few) that it was terrible that she wanted to evict the tenant, that she should really give the house to the tenant 'because she'd lived there such a long time'. Not only that, but she should fix the house up first

I remember that thread! It was insane. She inherited a house legally from a relative and people told her she should GIFT it to the tenant. An entire house. To be kind. No mention of the fact that the OP might need it financially or that it might be used for her own pension/retirement. No, she should just give it away.

It's all utter BS. People are very quick to give away other people's belongings arent they but if it was their house I dont believe for one second they'd give away a house for free to someone that was legally theirs (and also it was the wishes of the deceased that the OP should have it, not some random person).

Just ignore the suggestions like that OP- people are very generous when it's not their money. If it was their own it would be a completely different story.

@Doingmybest12 when you buy a property, until the day you complete the sale, the property contains the possessions of the seller. The property doesn’t have to be vacated until the day of completion. So if OP had seen that the garage was full of junk, she would assume it belonged to the seller, and that it would be empty on completion day.

I fear this may result in you getting looked at by Barbara in an unfriendly manner going forwards.

But she didn't see it was full of junk because she didn't look. When I've bought I've looked at every nook and cranny and if I'd seen a garage jam packed there would've been a conversation to ensure everything was going.

Rhubarb, our rhubarb is well up already. Pity I can't stand the stuff.

But the difference is, here in the UK, we don't need to call the police - we can do it ourselves.

As I understand it, in California you can only use force to remove a trespasser yourself if:

"it would appear to a reasonable person that the trespasser poses a threat to the property or the occupants"

If Babs is just sat in a chair drinking tea I don't know if that would count as posing a threat. Here in the UK we can chuck her off ourselves, as I understand it you have to call the police in that situation.

ps the only reason I heard about this was the recent incident with the UC Berkeley professor and her husband trying to remove a student from their garden, so I may well be wrong.

Neighbours thinking they have the right to do what they want

When we were mid way through stripping our new house out to the bare walls
My builder called me from a different room, i turned to see the neighbour in the kitchen, saying, ‘I just come to see what you were doing, the man who lived here before build this kitchen’

I was so shocked all i could say was , yes, 30 years ago, i’ll show you out’

Like what the actual hell

@YaMuvva - you wrote "I wonder what’s gonna happen next. Surprised I haven’t found random cars on my drive or people sunbathing in the back garden 😂"

It's a bit chilly and wet, weather-wise at the moment for the sunbathing to happen but I'd strongly recommend getting some side gates (if you're not part of a row of terrace houses) so that you can definitely secure your property.
Also, if you have 4ft fences in the back garden, strongly consider getting them changed to 6ft fences. Don't want people hopping over the fence now do we?

This is BS. There’s no way a conveyancing solicitor would get back to you the same day, let alone within 4 hours!

I'd go round today inform her that she'll be receiving a solicitor letter informing her of the change of ownership, that hse has no right to the land and that she needs to remove all her stuff. That you'll be taking soil samples to ensure she doesn't try to tamper with the land as that would be criminal damage and you would pursue her for it. "Look, you've had 10 years free use of a piece of land, your friend doesn't own it anymore so ths time is up. Let's not make it any harder." And then start planning what you're doing with it. Make your presence there known and clear. Anything you can change, do, paint the external fences and gate kind of thing, make her see that it is not hers.

"But she didn't see it was full of junk because she didn't look. When I've bought I've looked at every nook and cranny and if I'd seen a garage jam packed there would've been a conversation to ensure everything was going."

Yes, it must have been annoying to the Op that the Seller hadn't arranged for the garage to be cleared.

But irrelevant to ownership of either the garage or the allotment.

The Op could have waited months longer to inspect if she'd wanted, still wouldn't change her title to the land.

Also, speak to the person who sold it again. Ask if there's anyone else she's allowed to use the property she sold you, and that she is liable for any costs to you to remove this lady so since its her dear friend maybe she'd best talking to her herself than letting legal fees add up.

@MumblesParty

I think it’s a bit different - it’s a plot of land away from the house, where the ownership is somewhat fuzzy - in terms of Barbara’s perception. Howecer I reckon Barbara knows, and of course she is in the wrong. Allotments/vegetable production can be more than just a hobby, it’s someone’s life. I would imagine she’s got a huge emotional attachment. She might be highly skilled, and - just my personal take - would be - could we get on? could I learn from her? could we tend the plot together? so long as she understands who the owner actually is! It could be beneficial to have her there to help with watering etc.

We'll need a new thread on this.

some posters are totally batshit crazy. What’s hard to understand that the OP (wait, let me check)… owns the plot of land. Effectively she has a squatter on her land. Sure, give "Barbara" time to pack her shit a harvest her crop. Then kick her off (checks notes) … your plot of land. All the rest is just noise…blah blah blah.

to the crazy loons on here … get with the program.

I had a conveyancing solicitor who was very responsive and would’ve responded this quickly. He wasn’t terribly thorough at times though…

Having read this thread, if you can see her house from yours and vice versa, surely she already has a plot in this market garden area? Is she covering two plots with her planting? Do the houses on her side of the street not get a plot? Then she should be active in the community in acquiring another piece of land that can be divvied up between her neighbours.

@dearohdearwhatdowehavehere

I think you need to have a word with the government. They think 60 = young enough to work for almost another decade.

Yes I think that if it’s a local solicitor they may well respond quickly as this is quite unusual and they’d be keen to check they’d been diligent.