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?

They are not ruining our garden or taking down the fence. It cost a lot money and it’s our side of the low brick wall that marks the boundary, so they can’t.

Well they are going to have suck it up!

And you are going to have to "suck up" the extra/longer disruption and the scrappy side of a wall. Enjoy!

This has all the hallmarks for a future episode of Neighbours from Hell. Potentially this could be years of conflict rather than just a few months disruption.

I would check the deeds carefully. It is irrelevant what your friend says if the deeds say different.

I am so glad you are not my neighbour. You are ridiculously self-centered.

Oh OP why are you being so difficult. If they have their heart set on the house with an extension it won't put them off, the difficulty and expense will just drag it out to make it take far longer than if you were to be accommodating. Why cause hassle with your neighbours.....what if you ever need help from them, you would have screwed yourself over.

I get that it's not idea and can be a pain but really come on........they are just trying to get by and better their lives and live in a nice house, why would anyone want to jeopardise that.

Came back to see if this was a reverse, and it doesn't seem like it is.

OP, you might piss your new neighbours off, but putting up a greenhouse won't actually stop them building an extension. It will just make it more difficult for them. As you say, they have no right to come through your property, and if it were me building an extension I wouldn't bother asking, I would keep myself and my building work as self contained as possible.

I live in a remote spot and have few neighbours. The closest ones object to everything we do, not just building works but have reported us to the council for having a cockerel (we live on an agricultural smallholding) and playing music in our garden (once, for a couple of hours, when we had friends over during the day.) We are polite and try to be good neighbours, but basically before we even moved in they decided they didn't like the way we were going to live in our house. We think they are arses, but their skin is so thick they have no idea just how unreasonable they have been over the years. My advice to anyone who has any neighbours at all is not to behave like arses if you don't want people to treat you like arses. OP is showing all the signs of the same sort of thick skin as my neighbours though.

The deeds do not say different.

Yep, hope you enjoy sucking up a long and noisy extension!

If you want to maintain the status quo then contact the estate agents and tell them how you feel. Give the prospective buyers the choice to proceed or not.

And we cannot allow side access because it will invalidate our house insurance.

OP - you obviously don’t want to be a good neighbour. Your new neighbours will go ahead with their extension - your lack of cooperation might mean it takes longer and involves more noise and disruption but that’s your decision.

@Greenfingeredsue suggests you love your garden and I understand you don't want it ruining.. maybe it's past experience that makes you feel it will be but give your new neighbours a chance and let them enjoy their living space as much as you do yours

Just popping by to say what an awful human being you are.

The more difficult you make it, the longer it will take. I wish you many happy months of building dust and disruption.

Who knows? Maybe the OP will get her wish, and the potential extenders will pass on the property - and it'll be bought by a family of keen drummers who have no intention of extending at all, because they've put their savings into breeding Irish Wolfhounds.

This must be a toady thread, surely OP you are not this much of an ar€e? Of course you don't have to give access and it may cost them more. However, every extra day for their more complicated build, is another day of noise and disruption for you. As you will have killed any idea of good neighbourliness, they will not care how much your spitefulness leads to your own annoyance.

@Greenfingeredsue You sound very bitter, it's not a good way to be. I think you need to accept the fact that so many people extend these days and maybe just get on with it. It may not be as bad as you expect.

On the other side anyone who buys a house factoring in your next door neighbours u do not know will allow access onto their property which u don't have any rights over are TOTAL fools!

Do what u want in your garden OP. Let them do what they want in theirs. You are totally within your rights and reasonable to not allow access or remove you fencing etc. They will have to plan their extension around that

My god you are so nasty! I truly feel sorry for your neighbours to be, having to live next to people so spiteful. What a sad little life you must have.

God @Greenfingeredsue you sound exactly like my neighbour. Exactly.

We got our extension in the end. We fought tooth and nail to get the plans approved because I was damned if i was going to let some too-much-time-on-their-hands NIMBY dictate what I could and couldn’t do with the first ever property we bought. We love our extension, even with that stupid square out of the side. It’s completely changed the way we use the house.

Your neighbours will likely be the same. And I really hope they are because you deserve everything that’s coming to you.

We are about to build a single story extension and new neighbours move in next week.

We've met them already and explained what we're building and because they've been so nice (so far) we will make sure the wall they'll have to look at will be rendered nicely so it's not an eyesore to them.

Nobody likes change but I'd be very careful if I was you. If the current buyers pull out you could end up with much worse buyers who may not give a flying fuck about your shed and fence and make life very difficult for you.

they would have to get planning permission.

Have you heard if permitted development

God you sound awful. No you don't have to allow access through your garden, that's fair enough, but if they get planning permission (which either they have or likely will) you have no say. So you will have to "suck it up" buttercup.

@Greenfingeredsue

Because the buyers have had a builder have a look at the Next door property. He has specifically asked if they will be able to access the back from our property and mentioned how difficult it will be to bring materials through the house due its layout. And he said it would be more expensive if they have to build from the inside.

Well they are going to have suck it up!

Yes we get that.

You don’t even know them or the type of extension they want. But you’re plotting to frustrate their plans. But you also plotting to get them to buy the place before showing your hand.

If you intend to object to their plans tell them. It may mean that they decide not to buy, that they’ll look elsewhere. The neighbours’s son may then find a buyer who doesn’t have plans for an extension. I’d like to think you’d be happy with that. New neighbours who don’t threaten your perceived expectations of peace and quiet. Although I suspect you'll find something to complain about. I’m certain we’ll see more complaints as you imagine new slights and outrages. You might be genuinely unlucky and get the neighbours from hell moving in who aren’t concerned about extending or improving the property or about consideration for their new neighbours, you in this case.

Your refusal to let these potential new neighbours have access doesn’t make their dreams impossible though. Just more expensive and more prolonged. So more disruption for you if they proceed with the build. Fine that’s your choice. It’s rarely that neighbours have to be forced to give access.

If you’re betting on them just giving up you'd better hope that they haven’t already got that buffer that people building or extending are advised to plan for either through savings or borrowing. Because if they have they’ll proceed. That’s their choice.

If they can’t afford that then yes you’ll have scuppered their plans. I am sure you will be gloating about that. But your attitude will be obvious and unlikely to promote helpful or friendly relationships with them. Maybe they’ll give in and sell up. A terraced house you say. Well there are still landlords out there looking for such terraced properties to turn into HMOs. It requires permission but little building work. All easily done from the interior. Just think if they sold on to that sort of buyer. You’d have no control over that. Or over who they let to.

Why wouldn't you allow access- its temporary, its neighbourly! We've extended our house due the needs of a disabled family member, the building work was horrendous for us and for our neighbours but they were fantastic, made us coffee when we had no electric and went out of their way to help and support us, it was only for a couple of months, because that's what neighbours do!!
I can't imagine being as spiteful as you OP and I seriously hope you change your mind.

Anyone else really hoping the buyers want to build the extension so that their weekly parties can be bigger and louder?