Gutted a new house is being built directly facing my back garden?

[mentalhealth323]

I know this is a first world problem and the whole process I’ve deliberately not been a biased nimby.

Progress must happen, people need houses and don’t ever buy a house for the view (if you don’t own it).

I bloody well love my house, it’s nothing fancy, I’m not the greatest area but the back garden is long and very private. The USP for the house was the garden (ex council post war house) and the element of privacy.

Being able to go into the garden in a towel to grab clean washing, gardening in a bikini, work out without having to worry that I can only manage one push up…. Drink wine for five nights straight listening to my guilty playlist.

It looks like it’s going to be finalised (there’s already construction workers placing flags outside) and there’s going to be a huge three storey house built 10ms away from my garden fence directly opposite my house. Their fence will be on my boundary. There’s no way of blocking them from having the perfect view of 100% of my garden.

I didn’t contest the planning permission as they’re building facilities/didn’t want to be a nimby - it’s also a nationwide new build company and the council was very much on board… didn’t think we’d have a leg to stand on. I’ve known for the plans for a couple of weeks and I’m absolutely gutted/can’t shake it off.

They are happily building all over the AONB round us .. it has given little to no protection..

We've always had a lovely view from our kitchen window over fields opposite and down to the river. The sad old bungalow and its huge orchard has now been demolished and made into 2 absolutely massive 3 storey McMansions that have decimated the view and are horribly out of keeping with the rest of the village. It's made me feel really enclosed yet there was fuck all we could do about it. Every empty space seems to be fair game these days sadly.

Start some screening plants now. Bamboo grows like wildfire, you could always pot some if you didn't want to risk the roots. Our rear NDN planted loads their side which has come through our fencing but I quite like it.

Same happened to us but the house was next door. Due to the slope of the land and the layout their child’s bedroom is on a level with our patio and we can see into their dressing Straight from our sitting room and got an eyeful a couple of times 😂. We whipped up a fence alongside our patio as soon as work started. Reasoned it was easier to do then rather then when people had moved in.

In the end we told the neighbors we could see into their dressing room and they bought a blind within hours :)

We were gutted at first and it took a while to get used to it but we have now forgotten what it was like to have empty land (a small field of a sheep) next to us.

Can you take measures now to screen the view ? Feels easier doing it before people buy it or move in - but then I am a wimp
Who hates confrontation.

If you don’t like it, then I don’t understand why you didn’t object to the planning proposals? Then they could have taken your views on board, and possibly altered the designs in some way to alleviate your concerns.

YANBU at all, it's very disappointing.

I second growing some screening trees for privacy. Poplar grows fast, but it's a bit tall and thin. I'd go for hornbeam, also quite quick growing, but bushier.

Actually, I'd have hornbeam, and pleach it so it's like a hedge on legs when it gets big. It looks fantastic, and birds like it.

Yeah, I always look at developments nearby and have objected - not to the development happening at all but to ridiculous numbers of homes crammed in/too high/not enough parking in an area where people really do need a car/it's on a flood plain. Sometimes councils make stupid decisions. Like locally, allowing a second, smaller Sainsbury's on a busy junction, two minutes away from the biggest Sainsbury's in the world (probably).

Whilst I can sympathise I voted YABU because you had an opportunity to protest against it and decided not to.

If you are thinking about planting trees you need to be aware that there is legislation about how high trees can be. This might be regional I am not sure. It would be dangerous to allow trees to grow to the height of a three storey building. Also home insurances often refuse to cover any damage caused by huge trees

YABU.

I didn’t contest the planning permission as they’re building facilities/didn’t want to be a nimby - it’s also a nationwide new build company and the council was very much on board… didn’t think we’d have a leg to stand on. I’ve known for the plans for a couple of weeks and I’m absolutely gutted/can’t shake it off.

You should have engaged with the planning process. You had the opportunity to request mitigation - screen planing, changes to window orientation, etc. You should have stated your concerns of loss of privacy then.

Get some trees planted.

I recently read about entitlement to day light hours if you have had it for 20 +years....hard to explain but prob too late now building has started anyway!
Interesting read.

We love fairly rurally and there is masses of new housing going up here. There are a couple of dog walks I either won't or can't do now.

Similar, if not a worse thing happened here. We're in a seafront location, and there is a tiny Pier. A developer bought the Pier and put up a load of flats on it. Loads of people, who had had an amazing sea view for 25 years, just lost it. No doubt knocking tens of thousands off their property values. I just don't think it should be allowed. Like, imagine that you had a lovely apartment, with a balcony over looking the sea, and then, all of a sudden, you overlook the rear of a block of flats, and you also lose all the sun on your balcony. How is that allowed?

YABU not to object to planning and then still complain about it.

Pegolas and gazebos are your friend here - your garden can still be an area of privacy and rest with a bit of thought x

My parents have a beautiful view and for the last 40 years developers have been trying to build on the field out the back of their housing estate. In some ways I wish they’d just get on and approve it because the constant new applications cause stress every time!

Due to this, it’s something I’ve always been very mindful of when looking at houses as there’s been a couple that we’ve said “no” to due to the likelihood of developments at the bottom of the garden fence.

I’d actually rather have an “ok” view of other houses than the pleasant field, because it’s less likely to be taken away!

I have 1500 houses going up in the field behind me at the moment. When planning went in, I didn’t want to be a nimby so I suggested there be a gap between the old and new. I suggest allotments, I figured they’d liked that as a green initiative. The developers took that idea and ran with it, so now we have allotments, an access road and then houses

I really do feel for you though, get some fast growing trees in now as it’s still planting season. You won’t see the houses in a couple of years.

@Rosehugger

Yes, you need to be backed onto an AONB, conversation area or SSSI to prevent development happening. And even then you get some chancer coming along at times.

We live in a conservation area in a market town, but the people who previously owned the house next door to us (grade II listed, parts dating back to 16th C) applied for planning permission for a 5 bed executive house with detached double garage and games room over - totally out of keeping with the locality, too big for the plot, blocking our light and looking directly into our house.

We contested it as far as we could, but it eventually got passed (I think reduced to 4 beds in the end?) and we could only conclude that money must have changed hands somewhere as it was so way beyond the local plan in terms of design, loss of our amenity etc. Previous owners wanted the pp to increase market value, but by a massive stroke of luck the people who bought the house love the garden and aren't planning to build on it. But, it is unsettling to know it could happen at some time, and how little protection you actually have. Conservation area counted for nothing here in the end, and objecting was like banging our heads against a brick wall.

I definitely feel your pain OP and have so much sympathy. It really is gutting, but your philosophical attitude will stand you in good stead.

Please consider any trees before you plant them - you'll both sides need to consider any light restriction and additionally depending on the garden size and trees planted, you open yourself up to subsidence in years to come from tree roots.

I blame David Cameron for this. The greenbelt of the United Kingdom used to protect our countryside but he set this aside. Where will it end, new housing developments are being built all over our South East England county.

In my village, there will be no dogwalking areas left, as they are to be built on. Where do all the people needing this housing come from?

With regards to hedges, I also recommend Hedges Direct and planted a row of Portugese Laurel to screen my property from a crazy neighbour (who has since moved). Laurel makes a lovely evergreen hedge and is not as oppressive as Leylandii etc.

We’ve lived in our house for 20 years with the back garden overlooking lovely green space. I really worry about it being developed. Our council do exactly what they want despite objections. Houses and flats going up everywhere.

This happened to me; what was annoying is that it was against privacy/overlooking regs to build a house there, so they applied for planning to build a suspiciously house-shaped "small office building", which doesn't have to meet the same standards, then once it was up, applied for a residential use conversion, which was of course granted.

Planning is a devolved matter - David Cameron had nothing to do with the situation here. Govt after Govt in all parts of the UK have lain down in bed with the developers, no patch of green is safe.

I just don’t understand. You didn’t want to be a ‘nimby’ and now you have lost all privacy. People are always objecting to developments with good reason. They do actually take objections seriously.

Our neighbours did an extension which made our previously non overlooked garden overlooked by one of their windows. We complained, it was automatically changed to be angled upwards. It’s really easy to lodge a complaint and it’s expected! We’re still friends with our neighbours they just didn’t think.

Time to get designing a privacy screen, trees or ask the developers if they have any privacy plans and check where the windows are and if they are glazed or not. Be proactive and perhaps gets things in place as they are being built and not afterwards.

Sorry @mentalhealth323 Whilst you have my sympathy for a 3 storey monstrosity being 30 feet away from your house, I voted for YABU, because you never objected, and are now complaining. Sod being a NIMBY. You should have objected immediately. You really have no cause for complaint now.

I still feel for you though, and maybe (as some posters have suggested,) you could plant some fast growing trees that will grow the height of the 3 story house (ie leylandii ...)

As pps have said, never buy a house overlooking a field or woodlands and assume it will always stay that way. I would only buy a house opposite woodlands and fields if I could buy that land too (so no-one could ever build on it!)