Next door's conservatory...

barbiedoll

MrsFingersCrossed wrote: »

Went to see it again this afternoon and the garden is so pretty otherwise. And we had the idea of a verandah type arrangement across outside our patio doors, with a sloping roofline to echo theirs, and then fill in the side with trellis / plants. There is also a mirrored window-effect fence panel I've found online that could go in there too. So lots of ideas, just a lack of courage in approaching them in case they say no. We don't want to give them that chance, but if it comes to it we will explain that anyone would be making changes, and ours are probably the lesser of many alternatives they might really object to.

I don't see how they can say "no" if you want to put up a mirrored fence panel (which sounds fabulous, by the way!) on your side of the boundary in your garden.

Everyone expects that new buyers will soon start changing things in their brand new (to them) house/garden. If your potential neighbours think otherwise, they're naive at best. Give them a friendly knock by all means but don't think that you're banned from making changes on your own property. Their conservatory sounds ghastly. If you don't move in and make changes to block their view, someone else will, I can't see any buyer wanting to put up with that.

moneyistooshorttomention

Re "everyone expects new neighbours to make changes in their gardens" - I think my own nfh expected it to remain very much the same as it was - so I wouldn't agree that "everyone" does.

Phrased more accurately = most reasonable people expect that.....but there is always the odd one.

There are neighbours that will do their darndest to stop any changes happening at all to neighbours gardens:(:mad::( - but you just have to ask yourself and your friends whether a change is fine in a "reasonable persons eyes" (eg not planting leylandii or the like obviously) and if its in your garden and is reasonable in a reasonable persons eyes = go ahead and do it anyway.

I still hold to not doing anything that looks like "asking permission" of a neighbour to do something that falls within the bounds of "reasonable in a reasonable persons eyes", as a particularly awkward neighbour who wants the status quo to remain as is can exert a large amount of "wear and tear on the nerves" anyway, as they oppose virtually everything and you then have to give yourself a stiff talking to (or a stiff drink) about it being your right to do what you please in your own garden (within those reasonable bounds).

It certainly came as quite a surprise to me to find a neighbour trying to make all the decisions about how adjacent gardens should be - as well as those about her own garden. She really did dictate to neighbours in effect how things would be and had to be told an awful lot of times that my decisions are mine (and not hers) before the message sunk in. I could quite understand when I was told how she had "steam-rollered" over the previous owner of my house.

MrsFingersCrossed

Update:
I rang the planning office and they said it is within our rights to put up a fence up to 2 metres high right on the boundary smack next to neighbour's conservatory side windows. Apparently we could even build a brick wall there but next door wouldn't be able to clean their windows and to maintain their side wall would have to ask permission to knock down our wall, do the maintenance and rebuild it, all at their expense. It seems a bottomless pit of potential disagreement, but we are still going ahead (worried frown). H isn't worried, confident he can sort out the area with fence, pergola / roses / trellis. I will keep you posted.

Dan-Dan

MrsFingersCrossed wrote: »

Update:
I rang the planning office and they said it is within our rights to put up a fence up to 2 metres high right on the boundary smack next to neighbour's conservatory side windows. Apparently we could even build a brick wall there but next door wouldn't be able to clean their windows and to maintain their side wall would have to ask permission to knock down our wall, do the maintenance and rebuild it, all at their expense. It seems a bottomless pit of potential disagreement, but we are still going ahead (worried frown). H isn't worried, confident he can sort out the area with fence, pergola / roses / trellis. I will keep you posted.

Is the side wall part of the original building?

moneyistooshorttomention

MrsFingersCrossed wrote: »

Update:
I rang the planning office and they said it is within our rights to put up a fence up to 2 metres high right on the boundary smack next to neighbour's conservatory side windows. Apparently we could even build a brick wall there but next door wouldn't be able to clean their windows and to maintain their side wall would have to ask permission to knock down our wall, do the maintenance and rebuild it, all at their expense. It seems a bottomless pit of potential disagreement, but we are still going ahead (worried frown). H isn't worried, confident he can sort out the area with fence, pergola / roses / trellis. I will keep you posted.

I understand your worries on this - but you've now had official confirmation its okay to put a fence there- so I would just do so in your position. The owner of this house will know, in their heart of hearts, that its not reasonable to have a window looking straight into your garden and they shouldn't really be upset about it. In fact - they may even be glad of the extra privacy in their conservatory for all you know.

fivetide

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

. In fact - they may even be glad of the extra privacy in their conservatory for all you know.

Which is why I would have gone and asked them/ had a conversation. Nothing they can do but a lot better than the passive aggressive 'softly softly' approach under the pretence of being 'reasonable'


Why can't people just talk? Save a lot of hassle or let you know immediately where you stand.

MrsFingersCrossed

Dan-Dan wrote: »

Is the side wall part of the original building?

No. The side boundary is the neighbour's conservatory extension (which sides on to our patio). They must have knocked down the garden wall to build it - ie where the conservatory ends is where the (now) raw edge of the original garden wall starts.

DaftyDuck

Well, if you won't talk, try a different approach on moving in. Stick a (hired) jacuzzi in the corner, along with a few... toys and lotions, set up your equipment for your hobby of roadkill taxidermy, and set up some open shelving ("oh, I keep all my excreta in jars.. Can't trust the sewers you know....").

I suspect they'll brick up the wall quick enough. Or sell tickets.

Just go and chat with them.... So much easier for both parties in the medium and long run.

Andypandyboy

I wouldn't go and chat either, it is perfectly reasonable to put up a trellis or pots to screen the conservatory from their garden. I am sure the neighbours are expecting it.

If you go and ask it makes it appear as if you believe their agreement is needed, which it isn't. Of course, it can be approached pleasantly and politely, but I wouldn't give the neighbours any opportunity to object because the reality is I would still do what needed to be done. In fact I would show surprise if they did object and say such an objection had never even crossed my mind as I had believed it was to our mutual benefit.

fivetide

Andypandyboy wrote: »

I wouldn't go and chat either, it is perfectly reasonable to put up a trellis or pots to screen the conservatory from their garden. I am sure the neighbours are expecting it.

Possibly

If you go and ask it makes it appear as if you believe their agreement is needed,

No it doesn't. The OP needs to speak with them anyway. What is wrong with being polite and simply telling, yes telling them, what the plans are? Totally different from asking...

Of course, it can be approached pleasantly and politely, but I wouldn't give the neighbours any opportunity to object because the reality is I would still do what needed to be done.

So how do you do politely by just chucking something up against their windows?

In fact I would show surprise if they did object and say such an objection had never even crossed my mind as I had believed it was to our mutual benefit.

That would be my line in any conversation. Not sure why anyone would be so afraid of talking.