Help! Potential boundary issues with potential new neighbours...pics included

[ediepop]

We are in the process of buying a 30s semi...this process has been protracted to say the least, and for various reasons have only just had our survey back. Amongst other red flags, our surveyor has noted two possible issues with the neighbours. One is, their gutter has been continued on the property we want to buy, with the downpipe actually running down the gap between 'our' extension and boundary. The other is their shed at the rear of the gardens, protrudes into 'our' garden...

DH wants to go round this afternoon and knock on the neighbours' door and ask if they are aware if these issues. He plans to be extremely pleasant and friendly - very non-aggressive and just wants to see what they say. Tbh , the shed thing doesn't bother me that much - it's not by much and I'm not going to get my knickers in a twist about a few inches. The gutter on the other hand seems extremely cheeky - I can't understand why they would have done this and why the current owner allowed it. If indeed she is aware of it. I assume we could enforce the boundary and get the neighbours to move the shed and gutter, but then presumably we'd have permanently bad relations with them, and would have to declare the dispute when we came to sell...

So I guess I'm asking - is it a good idea to approach the neighbours before we actually buy the property, or should we just walk away altogether? The survey has raised several other issues that make us nervous too, but I'm not sure if that's just inexperience - we are FTB.

Any advice appreciated!

And have you seen the land registry plans yourself to know exactly how the boundary is defined, the surveyor will have made assumptions that it was a straight line along the fence but that may not be correct.

Damp and may need a new DPC prob comes up in almost all house surveys of houses of a certain age.
Did they say the roof needs doing now or may need doing in the future, roofs are expensive but again its a common thing for a surveyor to say and if it has any flat roofs they will warn you they need replacing. Did they say there is asbestos or there might be?
I'm not saying they are not issues but generally older houses come up with these things, so make sure you have really looked at the exact wording the surveyor has used & be aware if its an older house that a few of these issues will be fairly common and part and parcel of owning one. Also potentially if there are some issues that you will need to fix asap you may be able to renegotiate the cost. I'd suggest getting in touch with the survey and putting him on the spot to commit to a cost of works, as this is your best negotiating tool and will give you a more accurate picture of how serious any problems are.
I think pre a certain date you possibly didn't need building regs for extensions, i may be getting muddled but i thought maybe pre 1980?
one last thing is how long have the neighbours lived next door, possibly they just bought it like that

I'm sorry to add absolutely nothing to the debate but Ediepop was my dd's nickname as a baby Bizarrely, she went to nursery with another Edith who had the same nickname!
As you were...

Lots of properties in certain areas are leasehold. Most 1930s properties in our area - including ours - are leasehold. Ground rent is £10 per year, leases are 999 years (from 1934 in our case) and certainly not something that I'd consider a deal breaker.

I had a very shit experience with leasehold.

Also my mother did, too - couldn't even work from home because of the leaseholders' association conditions.

So I am biased, I admit.

Hi all,

Thanks for responses so far, ediepop's husband here.

Bit of Background: Our offer was accepted at substantially below the asking price due to the amount of modernisation and decorating work already required.

The owner is a heavy smoker and has a number of cats. The cats have heavily fouled a number of the rooms and all rooms are nicotine/tar stained. We already need to overlap our move dates to allow us time to sanitise the house. With a brand new baby, this was always a substantial risk.

The survey has flagged a number of issues we had not previously been aware of (best xx hundred pounds we have spent IMO)

In light of the survey I am not willing to continue at the current offer and tbh my gut feeling is to cut our losses and pull out entirely. The last thing we need is more work/cost than we originally thought AND the potential for boundary disputes.

I don't love the house - it was the best of a not great bunch. Life is too short for these sorts of hassles. Time to move on.

D.

red flags all over this one- walk away.

Good move.

Agree, I would pull out.

My sister bought a house from a heavy smoker, they had to have all the floors sanded as the smell penetrates everything, from floors to walls to ceilings.

I just couldn't do it.

Years of fags and cat piss? You aren't ever going to get that stink out :(

Good move to walk away

ediepop's husband I think you have come to the right conclusion.

There are just too many things to be sorted, both with the house and with the neighbour.

I'm not a lawyer (fortunately!), but if that shed has been there for years there may be a question of adverse possession.

ediepops' husband:

Thanks again all. Unfortunately this is not an easy decision. We have spent a substantial amount on money getting to this stage, and the house is in the catchment of the best school in the area.

Rising market prices, starting again (sigh) and the desire to stop paying our current landlord's mortgage instead of our own are all factors in the decision.

Seeing those words written down still don't weigh up against the risks on the table with this house for me.

Life always has a way of sorting itself out and I can't help but think we are dodging a bullet if we pull out of this one.

D.

I would not be prepared to have the water from the roof of a neighbouring house coming Down a drainpipe and discharging onto my property. They have just put it there to save them having a drain! What are the arrangements for your roof drainage? The whole place looks like a total nightmare to me. The neighbours really will not care a fig about your problems with the fence and shed and appear to have got away with what they want due to the vendor being too obliging and naive. Walk away. How will you reroute their drain pipe that is on your property? What will happen if it needs replacing or gets blocked?