Planning, council, house, neighbor

[Mummymum1234]

Hi, I’m probably not in the Wright place for this as it’s mumsnet. So should probably be about mummy’s and children but I’ll give it ago anyways and hopefully someone can enlighten me. I brought my ex council house a few months ago. My neighbours No Iv brought because news travels fast around here. At the front of my property there was a little land. 20x6 foot. The neighbors have always called it (no mans land) when I brought my place I also brought that little bit of land because the council said you might as well have it due to you maintaining it anyways. So I took the price offer. No one knows I own that part other then me. Anyways Iv had the builder in. To build a wall around the front of my property. Because I’m fed up of wood rotting away. Iv been on the councils limits. Iv built well within the limits. Iv obviously built it around (no mans land) anyways yesterday while I was at work my mum called me and said there was a man and women in suits taking photos of my wall. My mum is disabled so she couldn’t get out the house very quick to ask who they were. Any ideas why I have someone taking photos of my wall?? I’m so scared Iv done something wrong. I honestly don’t think I have but why would someone be at my house taking photos. Why wouldn’t they knock on my door and introduced themselves? Has anyone had this problem before?

Don’t worry about it, it’s your land. As long as the wall is built squarely on your land and is within correct height limits then don’t give it another thought.

If there’s something they’ll write to you eventually, until then try not to worry yourself with the unknowns, it’s a waste of your energy.

Oh just to add have you checked the deeds of that land that you can put a fence or a wall? Some deeds prohibit it. If it doesn’t say anything then anything goes.

Hi, I’m not sure to be honest, I just thought seeming I brought the property with that little bit of land at the front it’s mine, I didn’t give it a thought, I just went with the council limits on there main site and made sure I’m well within them. I don’t understand why I would be inspected. Why wouldn’t they introduced themselves. Why just take a photo then leave. It’s so rude! 😪 do you think Iv been reported?

You seem to have posted in the Pregnancy topic so you might want to ask Mumsnet to move it to legal or property for some advice.

Under permitted development, you can generally build a wall or fence so long as it's not higher than 2.0m without having to get planning permission. If it faces a road or comes out further than the front of your house or further than the side of your house you will normally need planning permission. If there was a fence there before, you might be able to replace it with a wall so long as it is not any higher than the fence was.

There's also rules about conservation areas and listed buildings but I'm assuming neither of those apply or you would know about it.

Ok, I’m really not sure what it saids in the deeds, I just assumed it would be ok as I own it and it’s at the councils limits but maybe that’s just my huge mistake now. Iv had to get a small loan for the labour and wall. It would be so upsetting if I had to take it down. Who do you think it was taking the photos?

Shameless placemarking

They might have been from the local planning authority enforcement team. It's unlikely they would just stumble across it so if it is the planners then they've probably received a report or complaint. You may not have to take it down but you may have to apply for retrospective permission.

Yes your right, my place is in the corner. Way away from the actual cove I’m on. You have to walk down a little path to even see my property. What a joke. I really hope I can laugh in there face and the council email them and say they have inspected it and it’s all fine. That would make my day. Nosey bloody neighbors!! 😪

I own an ex council house. There's a restrictive covenant in the deeds to say that no walls are to be built anywhere in the garden or on the boundary. This maybe the reason you had a visit.

Surely it’s different for different areas tho, it can’t be every ex council house, that would be strange as every council have different rules, I’ll have to just wait and see. I brought this house understand a lot of stress so to be honest. I didn’t check a lot of stuff out, all I no is my neighbours own there council houses and they all have low level walls at the front of there place 🤷‍♀️ Probably been there for years but there still there. Where can I find my deeds?

Ask the solicitor who bought the house for you to confirm if there is a restrictive covenant over that area of land. There are often covenants which say either 'nothing to be built in front of the building line' (that's generally the frontage of the house) or 'that the area in front of the building line is to remain as open plan' (which means it can only be a garden or a drive). If a covenant like that is there then unfortunately you would be in breach and would have to remove the wall. It could be that or it could be a breach of planning law depending upon the size and location of the wall compared to the highway.

@redastherose Iv just come across something. Some paper work. It saids (restrictive covenants by transferor NONE) any clu what this means?

Is that your copy of the registered title. If so it sounds like no covenants were imposed when the prop was sold although that would e really unusual for council property.

How high is the wall?

@Seeline just over 5 foot

@redastherose I wish I could send you a picture of my deeds 😪 I can’t make sense of them

Is it next to a road?

@Seeline no. A foot path

OP, there are lots of knowledgeable posters on the Property & DIY section of Mumsnet if you ask MNHQ to move your thread.