Knocking down a house attached to another one ( a semi)

[KatyWhatsit]

Does anyone know the legal circs around this?

I may in the future be in a position of developing some family land. One option which a few friends have mentioned is to increase the access by knocking down the house on the land, but it's a semi.

How would a developer approach this? Would the other house owner be able to object and / or could they be compensated?

I think you would need to contact the local council first and talk it through with building control.

It's not something I'd be doing personally; the plot would be sold to developers, so assume their legal team would do it? I just wanted to know if it was possible at all.

I don't know but surely if you sell the semi to a developer then they'll be responsible for what happens afterwards?

Yes. I've found a very old thread on here - from 2006- someone asking the same Q.
Yes it's possible- it needs a specialist solicitor- would be the builder's - and usually some form of compensation to the other house.It doesn't need their permission but you need to shore- up their house and make good.

The other point that thread threw up was the sale of the house that is needed for access can be as much as 50% over its market value, plus the land, as it's so valuable to the developer.

The other half of the semi does then become detached, I suppose. But the semi wall would need to be made good extremely well (& I imagine the occupants would also demand significant compensation for the disruption...)

I know someone this happened to. They lived in the part of the semi which remained standing. The developer made them a really good offer on their house so they took the money.

The house which had been joined on to them was demolished. Houses built on the land at the back. The still standing ex semi was spruced up big time and sold as a detached for more money than it had been worth as a semi......and I believe more money than my friend got for it.

This article might be useful:
granterskinearchitects.com/articles-2/demolishing-a-semi-detached-house.html

Thanks

Fortunately (I'd hope) the adjoining house is owned- and has been for many years- by an organisation which uses it as a retirement home for their employees, or otherwise.

It's been rented out for years and they appear to have no intention of selling it.

I've read some info online and it appears semis are built with double-skin party walls, which means slicing one house off isn't too hard, but obviously it all has to be made good.

My cottage was once an end terraced cottage. The other four attached cottages were demolished at the beginning of the last century and I have a disproportionately large garden for a 2 bed cottage. We've thought about selling off part of garden.