Owning your own home

It was this: https://www.onthemarket.com/details/4068297/

One of three - the other two are already sold/exchanged.

Y'know what, having a friendly management company on side makes all the difference. Fighting legals on your own is a lonely place to be in, but having someone to vent with really helps. I will be glad when the whole rotten Leasehold system finally topples.

Or just, you know, capital gains tax on sale.

Sweden has this, unsurprisingly perhaps. You can deduct improvement costs from the net gain though as I've just found out. Glad we've saved bills and receipts! There used to be an annual % property tax as well but that was changed to a fixed sum a while ago. Forced some older people to sell and move from areas where prices went up a lot as they couldn't afford paying property tax. Apparently, what do I know.

Interesting, ta!

I have a 23 square metre terrace, looks like this: https://mr0.homeflow-assets.co.uk/files/photo/image/14980/3766/791x_/large_CoppedHallF10Ph7_950_13093.jpg

The decking is actually wooden tiles, many of which are rotten from having large plant pots directly ontop of them soaking them.

we're thinking of pulling it all up and building some flower bed around the edge and using plastic decking instead.

We want to build some sort of storage box/seating platform with some sort of temporary overhang from the wall you can see in the picture to give it some rain shelter.

Anyone got any examples of something that sounds similar?

A skip has turned up next door. Neighbours have vacated and builders are on site. Apparently they're extending back (single storey) and doing a loft conversion. This is the first I'm hearing of it – no planning/notification/party wall agreement/etc.

No planning is ok I think as it should come under permitted development. The lack of notification and party wall bit troubles me as I thought we were on good terms with the owners.

What are my rights? What should I keep an eye on? I'm happy for the development to go ahead, as long as they don't fuck anything we own/share up.

Throw all your rubbish in it tonight. Set it on fire tomorrow.

is there anything on your council planning portal?

You can insist on your own surveyor & they pay, I think.

Whether or not the Party Walls etc Act 1996 applies depends on a lot of different factors, such as where the flank wall for the rear extension will be, and how deep the foundations of your house are, and how deep the foundations of the extension will be. Might be worth contacting them, asking them for details of the work, and whether they've considered whether the 1996 Act might apply.

Regardless of whether they have to tell you or not, that’s just fucking rude.

Take all the photos of any walls that are adjoining and make sure they are time stamped and clear.

@dt nope, that was first port of call (plus because I'm a nosey neighbour I'm always on there seeing what people on the road are doing with their places). Will pop them a message tomorrow.
@danstuff late-Victorian mid-terrace. I'm assuming it'll be down the boundary, loft conversion will definitely trigger it though I would have thought?
@Bainbridge on it. brand new plaster on our adjoining bedroom one, I'll be annoyed if that gets messed around.

Annoyingly we're off for a few days from tomorrow morning so I'm not going to be around for the bits that move fastest/ are most likely to be initially iffy.

I have (#MiddleClassProblems) been sealed into the house by some freshly lacquered floors – the second I can safely get out the front door I'm gonna have a proper chat with the builders, get owner details, see exactly what the plans are, have a chat with neighbours the other side and work from there. Not best pleased with it all tbh. The flip side is that we're just at the end of 6 months of lightly disruptive internal refurb, and I don't want to be a hypocritical arsehole about it.

Be surprised if they didn't need party wall agreement (assuming you're in a terrace/semi and no kind of loft conversion has been done before) for a loft conversion as they'll most likely have to cut pockets in the party wall for steels to support the floor.

The ideal would be to tell them that you don't want them to start the work until the party wall stuff is signed off (up to you whether you just agree to it or get them to get a surveyor in, I'd go with the latter). Actually getting them to agree to that may be harder work and I think your only recourse is to apply to the courts for an injunction.

At a minimum I'd take a load of photos of your party wall so you have some evidence if things are damaged.

Loft conversion doesn't necessarily involve the 1996 Act, although it often will. If the flank wall of the extension is right along the boundary line, then the 1996 Act will definitely apply - section 1(5) - 'If the building owner desires to build on the line of junction a wall placed wholly on his own land he shall, at least one month before he intends the building work to start, serve on any adjoining owner a notice which indicates his desire to build and describes the intended wall.'

The 'line of junction' is the location of the legal boundary between the two plots of land.

Think you can object. While they don’t need planning permission they do need consent from neighbours, or rather no complaints, if they are fucking with party walls, I believe...

On a dif note, finally bloody exchanged! Wahooooo.

The flip side is that we're just at the end of 6 months of lightly disruptive internal refurb, and I don't want to be a hypocritical arsehole about it.

This is a good place to start the discussion perhaps- shows that you're not wanting to be unreasonable, just to be kept in the loop.

Annoyingly we're off for a few days from tomorrow morning so I'm not going to be around for the bits that move fastest/ are most likely to be initially iffy.

do you want me to have a look?

If you don't mind swinging by on your way home tomorrow-Friday and scoping out how quickly their skip is filling up that'd be grand. We're back Sunday.

@branwen currently nobody but builders around to be unreasonable to, and my previous work hasn't impacted them so no need to hold back. Will get some deets and work from there.

sure I'll send you some live photos

Can also do this. Almost sent a photo just now of the front "fence" they'd made

There's a fence?! I haven't left the house for a few days. Really need to get out more.

No, just a big pile of interior rubbish piled up on their side of the boundary :/

that wall encroaches our side already, it's the only wall in this I'd like to see fucked up.

The skip will be full by Thursday, first job of any loft conversion is to clear out the existing infrastructure.