Neighbour demolishing bungalow & building 3 storey, 5 - 1 bed flats - Advice...

[Smith23]

Hi all,

Our next door neighbour is demolishing the small 2 bedroom (detached) bungalow, and replacing it with a large 3 storey building of 5 - 1 bedroom flats, and 4 parking spaces.
We will lose light from the entire side of our house, and they are putting in windows which will look directly into our main bedroom (we are a semi-detached house)
Despite multiple attempts at opposing the works by us, and other neighbours in the road, permission was given to them by our greedy local council.

I was wondering if anyone could offer any advice on how we might be able to protect ourselves during the building works, or if we can still object to the window at least?
I am also concerned that they are also building too close to our boundary line, and i was wondering if anyone here could give me any advice about the rules for the legal distance etc?
Our house is approx. 2m away from our fence (on the boundary line), and it looks like they have markers in the ground for less that 1m from our fence, is this legal?

I would appreciate any advice from anyone with this knowledge, or that has been in a similar situation? It's just a nightmare for us.

Thank you,

 

[ETAF]

i dont have much advice - other then this is a problem all over the place - even when we got the council to deny , it then went off to appeal !!!!!! - so we have 5 houses being built in a couple of very small plots just beside us - all sorts of reasons for the deny from CC , all ignored by the state......
A bungalow - originally planned to be a 2 story house in a backgarden into a road with only bungalows , now a bungalo with approval for skylights in roof spave and a slightly higher roof height - again approved at appeal......

my uncle had a property extended next to him, with all sort of light issues and overlooked and also near to the boundary - and lost all appeals etc

I know the houses near us have a lot of restrictions on times they can work - only saturday morning and NOT sunday - and then the hours ......
But if they do work past this - then 1 you need to see that and report and 2 - they probably just say opps ......

I'm sure someone will be along to help, with more accurate info - we have just been involved with so many building applications and appeals locally - just a nightmare

I dont think the appeal to government is in force anylonger -

 

[thomp1983]

If plannings been granted there's not much you can do and they would be entitled to build on the boundary line if that is what has been approved, you've no right to say they can't build on part of their land in the same way they couldn't stop you building upto the boundary if you had planning permission.

 

[Smith23]

Thank you for the replies. I thought as much.

 

[Smith23]

i dont have much advice - other then this is a problem all over the place - even when we got the council to deny , it then went off to appeal !!!!!! - so we have 5 houses being built in a couple of very small plots just beside us - all sorts of reasons for the deny from CC , all ignored by the state......
A bungalow - originally planned to be a 2 story house in a backgarden into a road with only bungalows , now a bungalo with approval for skylights in roof spave and a slightly higher roof height - again approved at appeal......

my uncle had a property extended next to him, with all sort of light issues and overlooked and also near to the boundary - and lost all appeals etc

I know the houses near us have a lot of restrictions on times they can work - only saturday morning and NOT sunday - and then the hours ......
But if they do work past this - then 1 you need to see that and report and 2 - they probably just say opps ......

I'm sure someone will be along to help, with more accurate info - we have just been involved with so many building applications and appeals locally - just a nightmare

I dont think the appeal to government is in force anylonger -

I am sorry that you are going through this too. It's a nightmare.

 

[ETAF]

I am sorry that you are going through this too. It's a nightmare.

very much so in our area, sewage issues all over the place and pumping new estates out every month - we have 320 houses being built at the end of our road ............
how area has no infrastructure to support the 2000+ housing schemes, roads, drs , etc , building on flood areas , knocking down protected hedges , which they said in planning they would not do, and now they have , just going through notification , that will just end a small fine ..... ....... just a free for all... at the moment - developers paradise making loads of profits ......

 

[Smith23]

very much so in our area, sewage issues all over the place and pumping new estates out every month - we have 320 houses being built at the end of our road ............
how area has no infrastructure to support the 2000+ housing schemes, roads, drs , etc , building on flood areas , knocking down protected hedges , which they said in planning they would not do, and now they have , just going through notification , that will just end a small fine ..... ....... just a free for all... at the moment - developers paradise making loads of profits ......

It's crazy! Only a few years ago it was almost impossible to get a small garage built, now it seems anything goes, as long as it means more money for the developers and local council.

 

[conny]

Sounds a nightmare! Regarding them overlooking your garden. A block of flats in London has just won an appeal to stop people using a viewing platform at the museum, because it means members of the public can see into their bedrooms/living rooms.
I don't know what the long-term solution is going to be in the London case but, maybe if you are losing the light anyway, (which I thought they weren't allowed to do), you could ask the planning committee to insist they put up some form of screening such as tall trees or opaque structure to prevent 'peeping toms'.

If you have access to the plans, it may be worth employing a freelance building inspector to check they have been passed to the correct rules. My FIL had a builder wanting to buy a section of his garden for 3 bungalows but when we checked his planning application he had submitted for only 2 bungalows. This was the application that was passed. We then found out he was trying to buy land from next door with the intention of building a total of 6 bungalows under amendments to the original plans. FIL refused to sell his land so the whole lot was scuppered. Builder not happy but nothing he could do about it.

 

[Notch7]

You could try suing them on right to light if you qualify.

I know a property investor who said there are Increasingly big payouts on this, esp in London

Extensions and right to light | Brady Solicitors

If you’re planning an extension you must consider how it may affect your neighbour's right to light. Sumi Begum of Brady Solicitors explains

www.bradysolicitors.com

 

[Smith23]

You could try suing them on right to light if you qualify.

I know a property investor who said there are Increasingly big payouts on this, esp in London

Extensions and right to light | Brady Solicitors

If you’re planning an extension you must consider how it may affect your neighbour's right to light. Sumi Begum of Brady Solicitors explains

www.bradysolicitors.com

Thank you for this, i am going to look into it.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Hmm, I suspect the OP hasn't quite got as deep pockets as those that sued the Tate.

 

[conny]

Hmm, I suspect the OP hasn't quite got as deep pockets as those that sued the Tate.

But he could look into the case and then mention it in his argument. Shows he is not 'nit-picking' but looking seriously at what effect these buildings are going to have on him and his family. There is also the question of property valuations being lowered because of this development.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

But he could look into the case and then mention it in his argument. Shows he is not 'nit-picking' but looking seriously at what effect these buildings are going to have on hi and his family. There is also the question of property valuations being lowered because of this development.

Argument with who? it's speculation really isn't it, unless we can see what's been approved and the context.

 

[conny]

Argument with who? it's speculation really isn't it, unless we can see what's been approved and the context.

Which is why he needs to see the full planning application and what is being proposed by the builder/developer.
If there appears to be any discrepancies, then his first port of call would be the planning office for an explanation. You need to look out for any 'requested amendments' made after the original application had been passed. One or two are quite normal, but when you start seeing numerous requests for a change of this, an alteration of that, an inclusion/exclusion of the other, it raises suspicions that the end result will be quite different to the original concept.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

It's been approved.