Seller lied on property information form

[ilovetomatoes]

Please help, this is one of the biggest mistakes I’ve made and I do t know how to fix it.

Bought a house four years ago, next to a sports club. To cut a long story short the noose is a nightmare. Loads of loud parties in the summer etc the previous owner made loads of complaints but didn’t disclose this on the disputes section. I am so upset, the stress is overwhelming. I hate the house and want to move but I’ve made so many complaints myself I would have to declare it and so have zero chance of selling. I spoke to a litigator at the firm I used for conveyancing and she told me not to bother suing as it would cost me 50k in fees with no certainty on the outcome. Is that really the case? Do I have to suck it up? It’s ruining my life, I think of nothing else and can’t believe I am in this situation.

OP there's some noise associations out there if you google
See if they can advise you on how to get the licence people to help, i can see that waiting for them to witness it must be a nightmare

I'd still go that route rather than blame previous tenants

You are okay with the club as long as they stay in licence? How far outside are times/noise levels? I must admit, with any local club I'd expect leeway for special events etc, I live near a pub which has events and I checked all this.

Thank you. They annoy me a lot of the time, not just outside licence hours. Put barbecues right next to my house etc. Just really inconsiderate behaviour, they could easily put it elsewhere. I would have had to stake the place out at all times of the day and night to discover how bad they are. I have had environmental health witness the noise once and they agreed it was bad and sent a warning letter. Nothing much changed though. They still do as they please.

Left field suggestion here, might not be possible. Could you offer your property for development purposes and sell it to the club so they can extend their premises? Or sell it to a developer who might have an interest in building a commercial property to service guests of the club? I guess it would depend on how your property was zoned...

I appreciate the suggestions, however left field. I am desperate. I don’t think I could sell my house to them for various reasons.

What kind of sports club is it , s doe sit belong to an official affiliated organisation with rules of conduct ? I wonder if so, whether that may be a way in to resolving your complaint

I will look into that, thank you

How about part exchanging your house with a developer?

I hadn’t thought of that, will see what is around. I expect the developer would want to know any issues which would affect the valuation though?

Could you have a word with your local bobby about licensing laws ?

Its a costly affair and even the environment health are not that good if its with its liscincing aka some smart person bought a house next to silverstone race course (motor race course) then proceeded to complain as its noise some weekends a year as long as they obey their liscene not much you can do.

Surely if your seller wasn't obliged to disclose this noise nuisance - and even if they were obliged, failure to do so seems to make no odds as you have discovered - then you wouldn't have to disclose when selling either?

I can see how you would be reluctant to pass your problem on to some other unsuspecting person though.

You do have to disclose disputes. There's a question on the seller's form. The seller could be found against in court if they lied, though OP would have to pay some costs to get there. It's just that as an individual, rather than a business with insurance, it could be very hard to get them to pay up, even if found against.

After four years, I'm not sure what your chances would be against anyone.

Did you get a survey? Did that refer to the surroundings and potential noise issue? You would need to check whether that's something a surveyor should have mentioned (by talking to another one, or a solicitor). They are regulated professionals with insurance (as are solicitors), so it's just a practical fact that a complaint against them can result in a payout.

Given the time-lapse and well, obviousness of the presence of the club, I can't see how you'd have a case there.

How would the courts contact the sellers in the event of them upholding a judgement against them? I appreciate you could be found if anyone seriously wants to find you, but would a court actually have the resources to search for a person who's left no forwarding address?
Unless op actually knows where the seller actually lives now?
For example, if and when we sell again we'll probably move country.
I'm not planning on leaving behind any situations that would cause anyone to come searching for me (!), but would or could they?

The OP would have to do that I think, as part of bringing her case. Most people aren't trying to do a disappearing act so wouldn't be hard to find - using the internet, electoral roll etc.

They should have disclosed but it's clear the repercussions of it are low and they were probably advised not to for the reasons you've been given that its unlikely you will win the case or want to once large fees are mentioned :( Its been 4 years so that will be used in the argument and so will the fact you signed knowing the club was there, I would speak to someone else first and if they say the same I personally would gamble putting up the money to argue the case tbh.

You say you hate the house? But I then you say you wanted it to be your forever home. Could you not look into installing soundproofing throughout the property and replace the windows and doors with soundproof windows you may not need every window with soundproofing but least the windows and doors which face the most of the building and noise.

would this make you more happy in your home? It would be good for resale, It may not help when you're trying to relax in your garden but quite often there is always someone out to ruin that no matter where you live.

So to answer all the points about 4 years. I have been trying to resolve it directly with the club, then the council and licence authority to no avail. I have soundproofed at considerable expense, it didn’t work. I have installed secondary glazing which has helped a little. So that’s why I am now at the end of my tether really!

Sleepyhead yes perhaps I should just put it on the market and lie like the previous scoundrels did! But I dont think I could morally do that to another family, given what I have gone through. It just seems so wrong.

OP as I said I live near similar and only visited twice to check noise but had to assume worst case when deciding. Sounds like you assumed best case?

You are literally next door to the club. You say about the barbecue but they put it in a place they're allowed to. Yes it's not consider are but sadly these places usually operate that way.

Most people will assume noise and cooking smells, so just put it on the market and say " it wasn't right for us" and be honest in the form about disputes. I think you will get a buyer anyway - some won't mind the noise, some will hardly be home, overall I think it sounds like you expected too little disruption from living next to that kind of place, so you should be fine to sell it as I think a lot of people will see the issue and probably won't even view if they are hoping for minimal disruption. Lies won't be necessary and then you'll have a clear conscience and hopefully a nice new home too!

I have loads of sympathy for you OP, but the fact is that you bought a house next to a Sports Club and didn't do your homework. Maybe a plea to the better side of the Sports clubs nature? Try and work with them would be my advice.