party wall act - need some help pls

[itsme123]

brief story - having an extension built so notified neighbour as necessary on 26 dec. my dh has been round to see her and now she is on about getting a surveyor to see how her property will be affected. do we have to pay for this?
also, our wall is very damp due to her roof not being sufficient. (she doesnt live in the property - it is a barn)
what should i do?? should i go to see a solicitor to see if i can claim off her for the dampness etc.

incidentally, she objected to our plans, and we had to have smaller than we would have liked. but that's another story!

any tips or experience would be greatly appreciated.
TIA

We had to pay for next doors surveyor but then that was a council owned property of some sort. Annoying thing for us was architect cocked up and built on our side of the partyline anyway

if the work affects the party wall then it's in your interest to get a party wall agreement - it does mean you have to pay for her surveyor but it gives you various rights to facilitate the work eg access to the wall from her property. if you can do it amicably you can have one surveyor who acts for both of you.

Hatwomen - just read your last post with interest. Due to get party wall agreement with our neighbour due to our building an extension , neighbour opposed the plans fiercely and we won on appeal.

Our neighbour after us winning our appeal wrote to us stating that during the buikd we did not have his permission to go onto to his land at any time in order to build.

With a party wall agreement in place which basically proetcts his building does it mena that we can insits that we go onto his land to ensure the build properly and in order that it doesn't harm his property.

sorry to hi jack thread

If the works affect an adjoining property then you HAVE to get a party wall agreement. If you have a building firm/ project managers doing the work then they will advise you.

See teh RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) website for more info.

There is also a time element - you need written consent a prescribed time before you start the work.

sounds heavy but is really for your own good, it will stop your neighbour claiming that you caused structural damage to her property.

mummydear - I'm no good on details - you'll need to check elsewhere - I just know that that's the underlying principle. as far as I know the party wall act was intended to promote reasonable building work and stop people stopping it iyswim

thanks all for the replies. We did not initially know the party wall act came into effect when digging the way for the foundations (due to the 3 metre rule), therefore these have been done and currently she wont sign. i admit that is our problem and we should have looked into it it more detail before starting. anyway, think she is ringing roound for a surveyor so hopefully we can get is sorted asap. hopefully my thoughts that this may go on and on are wrong. keep yr fingers crossed for me.
x

Hi, My DH is a building surveyor, he's meeting a new client atm so can't ask him but if i remember correctly your neighbour cannot stop you from building your extension but she can impose certain conditions ie. hours which you have to work, ensure that any damage to her biluding are made good etc.

If she does employ a surveyor then you will have to pay for their services... but s/he is there to work for the Act not the person who has employed him.

If you do want any further clarification, please email me at micku5 at hotmail dot com and when DH gets back I'll pass on your questions.

Micku5 - have just seen your post and emailed you! many thanks.

itsme123,we had an extension built 2 yrs ago .OUr neighbours ,(previously seemed quite normal )were complete bastards and we went through the PWAact .As far as i recall you can do it with just one surveyor if your neighbour agrees,but she may insist on her own.You will then need two and you'll need to pay for both.

WE ended up paying for both .It held the work up by 6 months as they only started this the DAY BEFORE THE BUILDERS WERE DUE FFS!!!!
They had not objected at planning stage.
It ended up costing us about £2000 extra.
I can't remember but I think they can refuse entry on to their property ,but they have to allow admittance for maintenance,not sure about new build.

Initially the neighbours wanted the scaffolding to be taken down every night ,but after the builder said to witch next door that it would only be pissing him off and not us they relented.

They moved soon after the build.

Sorry you're having this trouble btw,can really sympathise.

mummydear... if you need any clarification regarding u going onto your neighbours land to build please email me and DH will be able to give you some advice.