New build - neighbours want fence

Bloke

I've done a search on the forums but can't find the answers so hopefully someone can help...

I've just moved into a detached new build property, where the rear gardens to the neighbours either side of me is currently seperated by a small fence which is just a few planks of wood basically acting as a divider. Looking at the plans for the house, there are no 'T' markings showing who 'owns' the fence boundry so I can only imagine it's shared?

One of our neighbours has already asked if we would like to go halves on the fence and I asked her to get a quote first but there shouldn't be a problem. Also, the other side are having their garden done too so I imagine they'll want one soon. However we've now had chance to look at our financial situation a little closer and I had forgot about a few outgoings and so we can't really afford to spend any money on a fence to enclose a garden that we can't yet afford to create out of the rubble left by the builders.

Anyway the questions after all the rambling....

a) Am I under any obligation to pay towards the fence?

b) If they put one up and I don't pay am I then not able to put say a gate joining the fence to my house when I can afford it?

c) If they put one up and I dont pay, who is then responsible if a panel is damaged, gets blown away etc.

d) If they put one up and I dont pay, am I allowed to colour the fence on my side in the future?

e) I've heard all kinds of stories about people 'eating' their way onto another persons land when putting a fence up to make their garden bigger, is there any way to avoid this?

f) My Dad mentioned something about if they put it up we should get the 'good' side of the fence?

g) Anything else I should be aware of with regards to this?


I'm really sorry about the long post and amount of questions but I want to make sure I'm fully informed as I don't want to have a dispute in years to come - I'd rather sort anything out now.

Thanks,

Paul.

thewelshman_2

I thought that the rule of thumb was you owned the left hand fence

fabwitch_2

Here is the website of a gardening forum which has a Fences forum. They are very helpful and will be able to help you with your questions.
http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=6&sid=3616a14016c41655543e9fb61d20c441

carly

thewelshman wrote:

I thought that the rule of thumb was you owned the left hand fence

It depends entirely on whats written in the deeds, we own the right hand fence and the rear fence, others on this developement own the LHS.

alared

Basically if there`s nothing marked on the land registry plan as regards "T" marks then the fence is shared.(deeds don`t exist anymore)

You don`t have to pay for it,they can put whatever side of the fence which way they like.
Can`t see how they can stop you painting or hanging anything on it your side if you want to.
Of course the best plan of all is to TALK,jaw,jaw is better than war,war.
Explain that it`s the least of your priorities at the moment and other thing need doing first and agree to look at it at a later date.
Chances are they will go ahead anyway but at least you won`t have fallen out about it.

arnie&caseysma!

Not sure if it is what your dad was talking about being teh 'good side' but I can only imagine it would be like my garden walls. I own the walls - they were put up by the folk that had my house before me and the supports are in my garden even though the actual walls are on the boundary. I own the walls even though it is in the deeds that my neighbours are jointly responsible for maintaining them. They therefore have the 'good side' of the walls.

I would explain to the neighbours that at the moment you are unable to pay towards the fence at the moment. They can still go ahead and put the fence up if they want but make sure it is on their side of the wee fence that is there. That way in the future you can put a fence up on your own side when you can afford it. They may lose a few inches of ground width but hey ho, so what - they might have to to get what they want.

Speak to them about it. They may decide its not worth doing it that way and may be prepared to wait until such time as you can split the cost with them.

CGG

You'd be wise to take note of the old saying... Good fences makes good neighbours.

smk77

Had some similar issues last year when moving into a new property. The deeds state that the boundaries are shared. The builder put up a fence at the rear (it's a boundary for the development).

The neighbours on one side erected a fence (well if that's what you can call it! as it's 5ft tall (max), uses 5cm width post, the feathered panels are twisted and the gave us the 'bad' side) before we moved in. Not that bothered because within 24 hours I'd bought enough Leylandii to cover the fence - by next year I'll see nothing of the fence.

The neighbours on the other side got quotes of about £1000 for a 42ft fence. Ouch! Managed to get our builder's fencing company to put a fence up (therefore it's identical to the rear fence) for £440 and we knew the quality of the work - always a bonus! If your builder is still building on the development has put up any boundary fences then it might be worth asking them who erected the fences for them.

If money is tight then how about doing it youself? You should be able to do it for about £20 for every 6ft.

My deeds state that a boundary doesn't need to be marked by a wooden fence. It could be shrubs but must be in place within 2 years. You can get a 3ft Leylandii for about £3-£4 which will be 6ft+ in 2 years.



Here are my thoughts (not answers!) on your questions:

a) Am I under any obligation to pay towards the fence?

- as mentioned by others, depends what the deeds say. Don't forget, unless your deeds say otherwise it doesn't have to be a wooden fence.

b) If they put one up and I don't pay am I then not able to put say a gate joining the fence to my house when I can afford it?

-again, I guess it depends on the deeds. If it states in the deeds as being shared the I doubt that your neighbour can stop you doing anything because you 'own' half of the fence.

c) If they put one up and I dont pay, who is then responsible if a panel is damaged, gets blown away etc.

- again, depends on the deeds. If you are responsible now then you will be responsible in this situation. What you do about it is up to you!

d) If they put one up and I dont pay, am I allowed to colour the fence on my side in the future?

- again, depends on the deeds. if you are jointly responsible for it then you are jointly responsible for maintaining it and keeping it in good repair. Painting it keeps it in good repair.

e) I've heard all kinds of stories about people 'eating' their way onto another persons land when putting a fence up to make their garden bigger, is there any way to avoid this?

-not sure but if it does get put up on your land then you own it. Obviously don't just smash it down if this was to happen! Seek legal action. Someone mentioned gardenlaw web site. I used that a while ago and it was useful.

f) My Dad mentioned something about if they put it up we should get the 'good' side of the fence?

- I think that's just 'nice' thing to do. As someone pointed out you usually take responsibility for the fence on your left. If the person on your right gives you the good side and you give the person on the left the good side you will end up with a good side and a bad side.

g) Anything else I should be aware of with regards to this?

Speak to your neighbour and explain the situation. As it's autumn then I guess you won't be out in your garden and the privacy isn't as important. Perhaps tell them that you are happy to go halves (assuming your deeds state thats what you should do) but would like to wait until the spring.

You mentioned cheap gardens etc. Mine cost little to start off with - just time. Go for seeds instead of turf (plant very soon and it'll be ok for cold winter - be careful that you spread the seed evenly by spliting garden into 1m sections with canes) and have a look at https://www.crocus.co.uk. They have some suggested border layouts. Some are reasonably priced when you buy from them. If you would rather not buy online then have a look locally - avoiding the big garden chains who will be more expensive. Concentrate on the plants/grass first because they need to get established. Patios etc do when they are needed - not in autumn.

Also, I suggest that you take some time and plan the garden on paper. Don't just buy a plant and put it somewhere random in the garden. On a sunny day (shortly before they disappear) see what parts of the garden catch the sun. See if you can work out where the sun would have been in the middle of summer.

tawnyowls

I really would not recommend buying Leylandii. It's true that good fences make good neighbours, but Leylandii hedges make wars! Their height within 10 years can be over 100ft and spread over 30ft. Unless you're prepared to keep them ruthlessly in check, they will take over your (and your neighbour's) garden. (It's worth noting that since the new law about hedges came into force, a neighbour who can prove your hedge substantially affects their garden can force you to uproot the hedge, and because of their notoriety, that's likely to be much easier for someone whose neighbour has Leylandii.) Their needles also cause the ground underneath to become acid, and they take up a great deal of water, so very little will grow underneath them. If you don't keep them cut back, and then attack them, you'll find horrid brown patches, because they can't grow new leaves from old wood.

There are lots of other evergreens that are far better behaved and much better for wildlife: holly, privet, eleagnus and laurel, for instance. Or how about bamboo? A small-leaved clump-forming bamboo will grow quickly and shouldn't get out of hand.

smk77

Point taken about Leylandii. I put mine up because I was annoyed with the 5ft fence that our neighbours had put up. No privacy! When our neighbour goes into her garden for a smoke she sits next to the fence just outside our kitchen window. If the wind is blowing towards our house and our windows are open the smoke blows into the kitchen...Nice eh!

It would be tricky to approach them to put a real fence up because they might be happy with it and not want to pay for a new fence. So, the Leylandii will sort out the problem if it's kept under control.

It would have been so much less hassle had they waited for us to move in and agreed on a nice 6ft fence.

tawnyowls wrote:

I really would not recommend buying Leylandii. It's true that good fences make good neighbours, but Leylandii hedges make wars! Their height within 10 years can be over 100ft and spread over 30ft. Unless you're prepared to keep them ruthlessly in check, they will take over your (and your neighbour's) garden. (It's worth noting that since the new law about hedges came into force, a neighbour who can prove your hedge substantially affects their garden can force you to uproot the hedge, and because of their notoriety, that's likely to be much easier for someone whose neighbour has Leylandii.) Their needles also cause the ground underneath to become acid, and they take up a great deal of water, so very little will grow underneath them. If you don't keep them cut back, and then attack them, you'll find horrid brown patches, because they can't grow new leaves from old wood.

There are lots of other evergreens that are far better behaved and much better for wildlife: holly, privet, eleagnus and laurel, for instance. Or how about bamboo? A small-leaved clump-forming bamboo will grow quickly and shouldn't get out of hand.

davsidipp

our neighbours would not pay towards a new fence which is a shared fence in our deeds so we put the good side our way.my motto is you dont want to pay for something dont moan when someone else does!