Buying a flat with a shared garden: What are the issues with this?

[BuyMeAHouse]

I am considering buying a downstairs flat. The flat has a shared garden with the upstairs flat.

Are there any legal problems with this?

For example, if I am to sell the flat later, will I need permission to do so from the upstairs flat?

Also, if someone was to "trash" the garden, who would have to pay for it?

I wouldn’t buy a flat with a shared garden purely because of threads I’ve read on here about issues people have had -inconsiderate sharers, one person allowing their dog to trash the whole garden, Childs toys being used/broken by the other owners, feeling they can’t sit in the garden when the other owner is there, other owner monopolising the garden etc.

I once lived in a flat with a shared garden - never again!!

The other family didn’t really use the garden much (despite having 2 young kids, who seemingly spent most of their time running around their flat & being yelled at ) but they dumped loads of old broken kids toys and stuff in there & just left it to rot.

We paid to have the garden cleared (it was in a dreadful state) and maintain in & we paid to put a shed in as we needed bike storage. They never contributed anything so it definitely felt a bit unfair on the occasions they did use the garden, i.e. we were essentially maintaining it for them!!

They were an odd family though, two young kids yet never went outside in the garden or to the park which was literally round the corner. The dad was very shouty

You might have better neighbours, but on the whole I would absolutely avoid!

Ask your solicitor. The property deeds should cover who is responsible for maintenance. I'd probably also ask vendor what happens too.

I live in a property with a shared garden and it doesn't cause issues. Most neighbours don't use it often. I would buy a property with a shared garden - mostly because that's what is available and affordable where I want to live.

You won't need permission when you sell, it will just be sold with a shared garden, as it is now.

A lot of flats obviously don't have a garden at all, so one shared with just 1 other person would be a bonus I think. Potential problems are only if the other neighbour isn't respectful. Being on the ground floor could make this more apparent, as obviously if they're roudy/Have parties/don't keep an eye on their children etc, I assume it will be happening right outside your windows.

What kind of state is the garden in now? That will give you some idea of the current situation. You won't be able to vet future neighbours though obviously, but that's just a risk you'd have to take.

For me when I was looking at properties to buy and some were flats either with their own garden or shared garden I wondered how it would work - I mean lots are fenced off etc.

I did hear from a friend that she never felt able to use her own shared garden which was sort of fine until she had a baby and then would've liked to have used it. She moved.

1. What condition is the garden in now?

1. What arrangements does the current flat owner have with their upstairs neighbour?

1. What is actually written down in the paperwork?

1. Have you met the upstairs flat owner? Are they the actual owner or a tenant? Whether a flat has a shared garden or not, you should meet your potential immediate neighbours. Doesn't mean they won't be psychos but you have a better chance of talking to them.

Is it actually shared?
The estate agent said it was when we offered on our old flat, but on the deeds it was actually split 50:50.
We spoke to the neighbours & they wanted to put a fence up and divide it anyway - so that's what we did.

I shared a courtyard garden in the first home I bought and it was fine. Both single professionals who were really respectful of each other. Mind you, I was only five years out of university and still had a 'shared living' mindset. I'm not sure it would be for me right now.

I was upstairs and my stairs down were on the left, neighbours French doors on the right so that gave us a natural 'side' iyswim.

We definitely stuck to our own side generally when using the garden. Nothing physical to divide it though. It was paved, about 30ft square with a shrub/tree border.

I did lots of planting as I like gardening (all the way round), we had our own furniture out there and tended to stick to our own unless we needed extra chairs.

I wouldn't say we became friends but we were good neighbours and would share a cup of tea/glass of wine now and then if we were home alone and in the garden.

Depends entirely on you neighbour as to whether it will work for you.

Property with shared garden? - nope
Property with shared drive? - nope

Buying a property is probably the biggest expense you'll ever make. To take a chance on the others sharing (or not) fairly/decently is not a risk I would personally be willing to take.

Neighbours may be lovely now but you can never be sure who would move in next.

I would rather have no garden than a shared one. I wouldn’t use it if someone else had access to it so it wouldn’t be a good thing to me. It’s up to you though of course.

I wouldn't buy with a shared garden/access.

We have rented a flat for several years in a converted house - it's us and ground floor neighbours. We do each have our own bit of the garden for exclusive use - theirs is basically the side return and ours is on a higher level by the back gate, but this means they have access through our bit out the back to the bins.

As a result we never use our bit. We don't fancy sitting there to then have people traipsing past with their rubbish. We don't even hang washing out there because they would be brushing past it to get to the gate. It's also close to their back window which feels horrible and awkward.

Hello,

Thanks for the responses.

To be clear, the flat is a BTL. It's in an area near several workplaces (factories etc.), so we expect the renters to be young professionals.

ATM, the yard is just concrete. There's nothing there at all.

We haven't seen the paperwork yet.

we expect the renters to be young professionals.

Any one can dump their rubbish e.g. broken fridges, broken washing machines in the garden, so you need to know who is responsible for maintaining it.

Avoid anything shared, gardens, driveways etc

Too many potential problems

I hate having to share my fence, let alone my garden. I definitely wouldn't buy anything with a shared garden.

I expect when you see the deeds that there will be a boundary so it is shared only in the practical sense - unlike a garden shared by a block. As pps have said, it can be disastrous and totally depends upon who is sharing so a bit of a gamble.

It worked well for us with young kids because both parties were respectful and we used it in the day whereas they worked during the day and came home when we were getting kids to bed and they would tend to sit out (in good weather, so not much!) in the evening.

You need to look at the lease for responsibilities and what happens if one party wishes to put an actual fence delineating whose bit is whose, if that is a practical option. One party may still have to provide access to the other if this is done.

flats near us have shared gardens.....if they are fenced off then you end up with two very narrow strips...not much use really.

I know I'm posting my reply a bit late, but I've only just found this discussion, about renting a property with a shared garden. From experience, I really advise not going ahead with it. Trust me. The building complex, where I have my flat, has a shared lounge, as well as a shared garden, and it's nothing but trouble. It's worth having just your own garden. I would love my own garden. I think I can MAYBE get my landlord to arrange to have little individual fences made, around each our own patches of garden, outside of our flats, that face onto the shared communal garden, then we'd get more privacy. I feel like I'm in a goldfish bowl, because every window of my flat, all face onto the communal garden. Mind you, I have voile nets up at my windows, and I've asked the neighbours if anyone can see into my flat. They tell me they can't. Still, no-one wants to feel like they're being watched. As well, this other thing, if the communal lounge, has a TV, and a sofa, just like my own lounge in my flat, then I might aswell just watch TV in my flat, on my own sofa. I get that communal areas are meant to b designed for people living in the same building, to watch TV together, but instead, if I want to spen time with anyone, I'll visit their flat. Plus, there's always too much nervous tension among others living here, when they're in he communal garden, or in the communal lounge. I'd rather just keep out of the way of that. Of course, not all of us are the best of friends, but the one's I AM friends with, I'll go to their flats to see them.

Forgot to mention, my flat is on the ground floor, and all of the windows of my flat, are on the same wall, so that's why all of my flat windows, only face the communal garden. Just incase anyone got confused.

Why would you buy a flat with a shared garden when you could find a better flat with its own private outdoor space? You don’t want to live in it but when you want to sell, it will be the flat that everyone crosses off the list first. It will be less attractive to tenants as well.

Private outdoor space is a huge asset and yet shared outdoor space is of negligible value at best. I would run a mile from it - it’s not like there is a shortage of flats for sale anywhere!