New neighbours extension plans

[Greenfingeredsue]

Hi all

My current neighbour has died. Now probate is completed her house is being sold.

Her son has prospective buyers. He has mentioned in passing to me that they want to extend the property out the back. I am wondering wtf they can’t just buy a house that meets their needs?

The gardens are quite big so there’s plenty of room for them to do this. However, we don’t want them to.

We need a new shed, so my husband has suggested we build a new one with a greenhouse on their side right as near to the boundary as we can, next to the house.

We’ll do this once contracts have been exchanged so we don’’t scupper the sale, plus they would have to get planning permission.

My only concern is that the new neighbours could force us to dismantle them so the builders can work?

If it’s within permitted development there’s not much you can do to stop them. If they need planning permission you’ll be asked for objections, they have to be very specific.

Sushiroller posted:

"Fun story: mum was in a similar situation and isn't a dick.The neighbours offered (and did) get their team to totally relandscape her garden as thanks/payment for access- she was delighted."

That was a lovely way for the neighbours to compensate your mum for the access/inconvenience. Unfortunately so often things do not go that way in this type of situation. Neighbours these days are often quite selfish and when extending they are often intent on achieving their objective as cheaply as possible, and will happily take advantage of neighbours who are too obliging. As for letting builders have access - give them an inch and they'll often take a mile, and if you object in any way then you're punished by extra levels of noise and dust, while they treat you with contempt. All this was our bitter experience, when neighbours extended some years ago. It soured our relationship with them completely and I would be feeling exactly the same as OP if a neighbour had plans to extend now.

So, I totally understand why OP is anxious, but I would not erect any shed or greenhouse near the boundary, as that won't prevent the extension but would cause maintenance problems later down the line. I would not allow access of any sort in your situation - that is where we made our mistake. Decent neighbours will understand and accept your decision not to allow access. Entitled thoughtless neighbours will resent you not allowing it, and reveal their true colours earlier, but at least you won't have the worst of both worlds, like we did.

I would only allow access if I had lovely neighbours that I trusted would do everything possible to minimise noise and disruption, but lovely neighbours are rare these days.

Unless they are doing something illegal it's really none of your business what other people do with their lands and property?

Forgive me for saying I think you sound selfish. If it’s their house and planning is granted, they can do as they wish.

I agree that your life will be disrupted for a period of time but life is full of compromises. Maybe if you greet your neighbours graciously and build a rapport with them, when it comes to build time you may find they’ll be more considerate to your needs.

A property we rented saw us have our neighbour knock on the door the day after we moved in, not with a hello but with a, ‘don’t walk on our drive and park as close to your house as possible’. Need less to say we were wary and rightly so as we moved out not long after! Do my be that neighbour!

You actually remind me of my brother in law - sold their house but was resentful of new buyers who were planning on doing the extension he never did!

Guys @Greenfingeredsue has gone. Probably drafting dozens of pages of pre-emptive objections to extension plans which might never even come to fruition.

@Greenfingeredsue just do what you want to do on your property as long as its permitted development. And no, they can't ask you to dismantle a permitted development/allowed home shed/green house on your property for access to extend!! If you know the building work may be happening then make plans yourself to hide to from your view now - who cares about the sale!!

Have you always been so nasty? I feel sorry for the neighbours. They could be the nicest people in the world and you have already decided not to like them.

Mean spirited

Yeah OP has gone. Gone to continue being a complete twat.

You have every right to make sure that they do not use your land for access. They CAN ask for permission to access their property from your land for existing buildings for maintenance purposes.
As they are building on or within 1 metre of the boundary line they must issue a party wall notice. They need a Quantity Surveyor for this. You can appoint your own QS to oversee the project and to make sure they comply with all the correct legal procedures. They will have to pay for your QS too. After all it's their extension. The law really does work well in your favour here. The QS will ensure amongst other things that you are not overlooked and that extractors to not vent over your land. I know all this because I was accommodating to a neighbour who was having an extension. Once he and his builders crossed the line by trying to run a drainpipe into my garden I got a QS. I have to say he was brilliant and ensured that this transgression was corrected and he drew up the Party Wall notice that puts any future liability for damage to my property on the neighbour. I recommend you do likewise and good luck.

Our neighbours have put in a planning application for a side extension that will come very close to our boundary, it will add about 12 feet to the side of their house and will be used as a bedroom. I rang the planning office to just check it all out. This will be a single story extension, will yours be?
The lady said hardly anything doesn’t get approved nowadays for single storey and they could build right up to the boundary.
I’m not particularly fussed other than they seem to be doing it themselves and are late 60’s so seems they have family helping and seem to be digging for much of the day and chatting etc, I think it will take them ages to actually build it! I don’t think they want access in our garden but I’d very much assume that I don’t have to agree. We have dogs that would be barking at any visitors and they could leave the gate open etc. I would absolutely say no to access from my side as we live on a busy road and they’d die if the gate got left open. Surely no one can force you to give access? So I’d just say no to access.

Yeah OP has gone. Gone to continue being a complete twat

😆😆😆

As long as you build your greenhouse shed within your boundary they can't make you dismantle. Their plans would be for their property. If they can't access the boundary line for work they'd have to move it in slightly. An extension should affect you. The worst case scenario is blocking light into greenhouse. When they put in planning permission you will get the chance to say your concerns but otherwise it doesn't really involve you.

They can make you dismantle anything in your own property, as long as it's not build against their wall.
Not much you can do about plans to extend, it may be more economical to do it this way rather than buy a bigger house.
Its now possible to build a fairly large single storey extension without planning permission under permitted development rules as long as your not in a conservation area or listed building.
However if it is something they do need permission for you will be able to comment at planning stage.

I do have some sympathy re the disruption, dust and noise. The neighbours whose garden back onto side garden has put in plans to build a big kitchen extention and I have to admit I’m dreading it.
I was able to go and see the plans and potentially object but I don’t want to do stop them building it but particularly as I suffer with migraine I’m dreading it.

You and your husband sound pretty awful new neighbours for these unfortunate people. You are also very badly informed. They have no automatic right to erect scaffolding on your property unless you agree to it which you obviously are not going to do.

Eurgh, I pity whoever is moving in next door to you.
I've had neighbours like you before. We moved.
Nasty, petty little nobodies with no real friends, aka curtain twitchers.

Just try being nice for a change.

Not a chance this is real 😂

I also think there is a lot of needless OP bashing in this thread.

When you are a new neighbour in an area its up to you to fit in with the people already there, as others have pointed out. so you need to be a bit humble and concialiatory. Moving in with an air of entitlement will certainly get up the noses of the established owners.

This is what bugged my friend. The new neighbour did not say that he was going to apply for permission to put his scaffolding on my friends land, but more of less TOLD him he was going to do it. Then he got all huffy when he realised that my friend was treating it like a business proposal so that they both got something out of the deal.

New neighbour would get his extension and friend would be financially compensated for use of his land, loss of his amenity and privacy, and the time taken up with arranging access, liasing with workpeople, etc. As my friend said to the pushy new neighbour. "Lets leave this neighbour business on one side. Im a business man and you've come to me with a business proposition to rent part of my garden so I want to make sure things are done properly."

There’s a reason new builds are now on smaller plots and smaller gaps between houses
They have set housing types so a mixture of flats to family homes to large houses
They set a balance for the population

Look at Victorian houses, much needed for the large families and those with servants.

They were nice neighbour hoods, no they are student flats in the main with no parking and the local greens and parks have been built on - so people just have shared yards and no where to spread out.

When everyone has brought and extended they’ll be a shortage of smaller homes reasonable priced homes.

Our children will be priced out and it destroys communities.

People on here are failing to see the bigger picture

Where I previously lived the elderly population were dying off, in moved the builders and the previous green front gardens were paved over, hedges destroyed in favour of walls, extensions went up over garages, even those with one child built bigger kitchens and extra bedrooms, downstairs toilets and extra parking.

Prices increased and the local school became less accessible to the council estate it once served.

But yes it’s their property and they can do what they liked! The truth is the planning office no longer capable of keeping up with illegal building and just let people carry on so they didn’t have to invest in more officers and paperwork.

Our children will suffer in the long run. Affordable housing will be a thing of the past.

Warn them now I'd hate to be stuck with neighbours like you tbh

Oh goodness you sound like the neighbour from hell wow selfish and real mean. Already plotting from every angle.. Build on the boundary.. Don't let them use our side gate how fing awful are you.

This has to be a wind up. No one can be that malicious.
If it’s not a wind up,I hope your potential neighbours have teenagers,I hope they build a two storey extension,install a hot tub,build a snooker room and an outdoor bowling alley

Way to go! Making enemies of neighbours before they move it! Smh

Look up the party wall act. You can't realistically stop them from temporarily accessing your garden to do work on their house. So...put the shed up where you thinks it looks nicest, rather than as a missile of neighbour control!! 🤣🤣