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Purple house has two parking spaces but uses our yard instead of second one - so intrusive! Help!

120 replies

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 16:48

here is a diagram. The white Lanes are a private back roads leading to the highways. There is a set of gates then a yard for orange and yellow house.
I’m yellow house and also own the freehold of orange house subject to long leases. As some you know that brings in no money and is a heck of a lot of responsibility and hassle. You really have to keep on it. Orange leaseholders have allocated parking spaces on the yard which come with a right of access to orange house.

purple house has one car parking space which it can only access by driving through yellow/orange’s yard. I’ve labelled it 1 in red pen. Nothing in writing/nothing on the deeds. This is ok.

purple house has a second space at the back and fully documented legal rights to pass through light blue house’s yard to other private lane to highway. But it’s a garage that opens out to light blue’s yard from where it can exit.

purple’s newish owners moved in at the start of the pandemic with four little children and - no surprise - 2 medium size cars. We bent over backwards to accommodate them.

the trouble is that purple accommodates its second car in our yard too whilst using its garage for storage/hobbies :(. If an orange leaseholder is away (think second homes), purple breezily parks there. The degree of brazenness varies. Sometimes purple puts second car elsewhere at front on highway. Then it starts to come to yard and unload/drop off kids turn round and return to highway. Then that turns into parking for hours or overnight with purple people going to and fro with their hobby stuff/children stuff. Then purple’s elderly dad starts using it too. Then purple’s tradesmen ( I don’t mean deliveries).

I want to relax in my small private small orange house garden. Unfortunately it’s right next to a preferred purple-invaded space so I have to squeeze past purple family. Purple are responsible for a good 3/4 of the deterioration of the yard’s ageing surface. As freeholder I’ll have to resurface it. I’ll have to claim contributions from orange leaseholders. In the past one stroppy orange leaseholder has resisted paying on the grounds that freeholder was allowing predecessor purple people too much access/parking and causing him problems. He got really angry. He is still a leaseholder but doesn’t live here.

help! I chose yellow for my house before I remembered it’s the colour of cowardice......

Purple house has two parking spaces but uses our yard instead of second one - so intrusive! Help!
OP posts:
Rollercoaster1920 · 29/05/2022 16:54

As freeholder you need to stop the trespass. Get legal help to ensure wording of correspondence is correct

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:03

I do don’t I?

I have muttered in a middle class way before about “emergencies only” but they are ultra middle class and do the tinkly laugh “oh orange leaseholder/subtenant/the cat said they don’t mind” then walk off. Plus the little ones are there...

it may well be that orange leaseholder doesn’t mind (why would they? They aren’t there when it happens) but I don’t think this is in their gift.....they only have a “right to park at x and cross yard to access orange house and garden”. Not to access purple house back and forth! Anyway they are sensible leaseholders and don’t want to get sucked in....

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concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:05

At one point purple man said “well, if you want to be good neighbours....” and looked most disapproving.....

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Sunbird24 · 29/05/2022 17:11

If purple need more parking space they need to put it in their own (relatively large) garden, not park on land they only have access rights over…

SpeedofaSloth · 29/05/2022 17:13

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:05

At one point purple man said “well, if you want to be good neighbours....” and looked most disapproving.....

I would start a parking war if I had to put up with that.

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:14

They do have a massive garden compared to ours. They could easily fit in a garage-sized workshop.

they are very very entitled/posh. Think of the poshest hobbies..... yes, that’s them.

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concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:18

I think I’ve really struggled to articulate the problem till now. I’ve been giving them mixed signals.

oh fuck. Part of me almost wishes you lot were saying the opposite.

but as freeholder I have to stand of for all leaseholder even future ones don’t I?

OP posts:
IncompleteSenten · 29/05/2022 17:18

You should have replied I could say the same to you. Good neighbours don't park where they aren't supposed to.

IncompleteSenten · 29/05/2022 17:19

Yes.
You do.

BruceAndNosh · 29/05/2022 17:19

If purple house created an additional parking space in their garden, would their lease allow them to access it? Or does the lease only allow access to a single space?

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:20

In their position would you suck it up and tell blue house you’re starting to use your access rights?

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concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:22

Bruce their house is freehold. So I think they see us all as “just tenants”

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concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:24

so to answer your question Bruce they could create 2nd space next to space 1 subject to terms of their licence and planning laws.

they won’t though it would mess up the garden. As it is space1 is small and they have to stand in our yard to fiddle in the boot.

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GrumpyPanda · 29/05/2022 17:24

So do they or don't they have a formal right of access to parking 1 through your space? Your OP suggests there is nothing on the deeds whatsoever. Your further post stares that "they only have a “right to park at x and cross yard to access orange house and garden”. Which is it? If there is no formal access it would seem you have a very strong hand and could always threaten to cut off access altogether - if necessary by fencing off space 1 which would of course be the nuclear option.

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:27

Nothing in deeds at all but I don’t need to be that harsh, I just want it limited to one car.

predecessor purple was my close friend and didn’t abuse the space 1 thing. She bought space 2 to protect herself “if something happens to space 1”.

we were close and I miss her.

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OldTinHat · 29/05/2022 17:28

Definitely regarding blue yard and access rights.

Can you put up a penguin bollard across your land? As a freeholder your leaseholders will have covenants for right of access and you have rights to enforce them if they're misused.

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 17:35

Thanks tin.

yes, the leaseholders are indifferent. What do they care if purple parks at their x spot when they are away?
they have no idea.....

no to bollards- would block legitimate orange users

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Clymene · 29/05/2022 17:39

You are the freeholder of yellow and orange house so it's your responsibility to repair/maintain the yard. You can hardly ask the leaseholders of orange house when you've been too wet to tell purple house not to use it. One car space and access rights. If they continue to abuse it, the access rights will be withdrawn.

ItsSnowJokes · 29/05/2022 17:42

As a fellow freeholder you need to stamp on this ASAP and legally. They have been given free reign for 2 years. If I was in the orange house I wouldn't want to pay either, why should I?

Its a shit job being a freeholder sometimes, but you have legal responsibilities and if you don't follow them then orange house could take you to a tribunal and probably win.

LookItsMeAgain · 29/05/2022 17:48

My advice would be to get legal advice first and foremost.

See if it would be legally acceptable for you to install a barrier (fence/bushes/bollards) between the purple and red house so that they can't access it through the lane for red and yellow house and can only enjoy access through their legally documented access - through the yard at blue house.

That's what I would do.

I would stop them parking and using the access route that is designed for 2 houses, red and yellow. The lane that is for their use is the one that blue has solitary use of at the moment.

bigbluebus · 29/05/2022 18:04

Whilst orange leaseholder doesn't seem to care about their space being used whilst they're not there, have you pointed out the additional wear and tear on the yard which they will be contributing to and whether they'll be asking purple House to pay part of their share?

StageRage · 29/05/2022 18:04

Send a polite, friendly but nevertheless formal and direct letter.

”As the freeholder to properties orange, yellow etc etc, I am writing to ask you to restrict your parking / use of access etc to your own land and to the terms of the access agreement. This should be manageable without inconvenience, and will ensure everyone’s fair rights to enjoyment of the property are maintained.

Thank you,

ConcernedPHouse
Freeholder.”

If they moan to you say ‘well to be honest given the size of my garden I do feel hemmed in when you xyz. Also I have a duty to the other freeholders to make sure their long term rights are preserved.”

If they spout manipulative guilt trippy ‘good neighbour’ stuff smile and say ‘ah, you see, this is where I was looking to you to be the good neighbour’.

StageRage · 29/05/2022 18:06

Yes, add in ‘I am concerned about the level of (noticeable) wear and tear on the drive and I have a responsibility to the other leaseholders to keep maintenance up and costs low, so need to keep unauthorised traffic to a minimum.’

concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 18:09

pm’d you stage

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concernedrepurplehouse · 29/05/2022 18:12

I’m taking heart from this.

have started researching local solicitors.

might send the letter from an agent - makes it less personal.

any more suggestions for the language would be much appreciated.

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