Need Definition- link detached house

Running_Horse

Is the wall shared? In my brother-in-law's road all the semis have had extensions to the edge of their land with tiny gaps between houses. Looks like a terraced road, but still sell as semis.

telfordwhite

smiley21_uk wrote: »

Okay getting back to my point...i just want to know if that changes the description of my house from a link detached to a semi and if that is the case, it would then devalue my property. is that right?

Your house is worth what someone is prepared to pay for it, not what the EA markets it as. I doubt the value would be affected.

bobbie78

does it say on your mortgage valuation or survey report anywhere? I'm guessing your asking for insurance reasons so they can't say in 10 years time when you claim something they have been insuring the wrong kind of house so won't payup.

courtjester

or type in Google:

define: link-detached

"Adjacent detached properties which do not have a party wall, but which are linked by the garage(s) and so forming a single frontage."

define: semi-detached

"Semi-detached housing (usually abbreviated to semi, as in "three-bedroom semi") consists of pairs of houses built side by side as units sharing a party wall and usually in such a way that each house's layout is a mirror image of its twin."

****

These phrases (like 'townhouse' also) are largely to do with marketing, rather than any legal definition so are subject to variation and unlikely to involve any legal liability over definition if the labelling is slightly out.

I think the definition of semi-detached given is the most appropriate, i.e. that the properties are a mirror half of each other, rather than the misconstrued version that many people take of two properties 'attached' to each other on one wall - which can include an end-of-terrace (which isn't in fact a semi).

silvercar

The house with the garage conversion would have been unlikely to need planning permission, as such there is no way that the solicitor acting for you could be expected to know about it.

I don't actually think you lose value, you gain in potentially reduced heating bills as that room will now be warmer adjacent to you. You also know you have a house where there could be no objection to you converting your garage.

pollyanna24

When I bought my house, it was defined as a link terrace (this isn't what comes up on the websites that tell you how much they sold for though, just says terraced). Our link terrace is so called because there is a tunnel/alley between the two houses that lead to our garden and next door's gardens. We are still joined at the top which is our bedroom (I think).

Catblue

A friend's neighbour also decided to turn the garage of their linked detached into a playroom.

The insulation was terrible, and certainly none was added when the neighbours "converted" the garage. I think they occupied the garage, rather than converted it. The noise of 3 screaming kids led to a "For Sale" sign in front of my friend's house within 2 weeks.

I was there when these kids were playing next door and it sounded like they were playing in my friend's house.

Richard_Webster

Don't get drawn into the marketing bullsh1t.

If you like the house and are happy with what you paid for it, that's all that matters.

Whether it was sold as a "link-detached", or a "town house" or a "mews" property, whatever. It's all bullsh1t.

Don't worry about it.

Or "apartment" rather than "flat"!

I agree. I live in one of seven originally detached houses built over 50 years ago. Each house had a driveway beside it. Over the course of time the first three houses (I am number 3) have built extensions that almost totally cover their respective driveways - we are 6 inches from one house and 1 inch from the other! What do you call them then? Theoretically they are still detached - we can't hear people next door as there are two double skin walls between us.

At the end of the day it is what someone will pay for a house, regardless of description. I hope nobody is silly enough to buy a house without looking at what they are getting for their money and making their own judgement about whether it is worth it!


As a conveyancing solicitor I believe the information given in the post to be useful but I accept no liability except to fee-paying clients