Possible Extension?

[BusyNothings]

We are looking to buy a new house and having googled for hours still can't figure it out. Does anybody know about extensions on the side of a house? The house we are looking at has a big driveway running the length of the house to the side of it which is kind of redundant due to shape of the garden. Are you allowed to extend to the boundary line sideways?

Sorry if that makes no sense.

If you are building on the boundary I think you will be covered by the party wall act, this government site will give you more information www.gov.uk/guidance/party-wall-etc-act-1996-guidance
Basically you can build sideways, but will need to cooperate with your neighbours, to ensure their safety, their properties safety and gain their consent to use their land to access your wall.

IME it depends where you are. In our area, you would be allowed to extend at the side but would have to leave 1m between the extension and the boundary. The Council here refers to it as avoiding a terracing effect. There are also different policies depending on whether you're considering single storey or double storey.

They're also strict on double storey extensions if your house is side on to a road (e.g. you were on a side road / cul de sac and the house is the last house closest to a road).

Thank you that helps! We obviously haven't bought it yet just thinking long term

Also ensure that by extending to the boundary, you might lose the only side access to the back of the house which can be a pain if you have to carry garden stuff through the house. Unless ofcourse if you already side access on the other side of the house.