House is on a private road

SameOldRoundabout

The house we are buying is on a private road. There is a main road, a steep hill, with houses facing across as standard. About a 1/4 of the way up is a small offshoot road, with 4 houses built facing down the hill, and this road is private. 

Our house is the first in the row, our garden and main gate to the front door are on the hill, not the private road. However obviously our front boundary wall is on the private road. It is unclear who owns it. Our solicitor is going to attempt to establish a right of way with the LR when we complete but we have no idea who owns the land. Our deeds show the property boundary  and do not encompass the road at all. 

Seller is providing an indemnity policy for Absence of Easement. What I would like to know is if we are liable for road repairs? The road is not mentioned in any legal papers for our property but the solicitor seems to think we are liable, along with the 3 other properties who, unlike us, have no choice but to use the road to access their property. 

mrschaucer

Why is the seller providing the indemnity for Absence of Easement?  Are you saying that there is also access to your property from the private road?  If all you have is a boundary along it then it has nothing to do with you - why do you think you need to be involved in its repair?

notrouble

"Absence of Easement" seems irrelevant since you access the property from the public highway, not the private road. You do not need an easement over the private road (unless you want to visit the other 3 houses, in which case I assume they have easements which include visitors).

As for maintenance, if your deeds say nothing about an obligation to contribute, then probably you have no obligation to contribute. There is an outside chance of an unregistered Deed or Conveyance existing which specifies you should pay, but even if so, if you refused (on the grounds you don't use the private road) would the road owner/other users really take you to court, with all the stress and cost and time that that entails? Probably not. Easier for them just to say "We 3 use the road so we 3 will share the cost."

SameOldRoundabout

That’s why I’m confused. I think it’s because technically we can park on the road as our house sits on it. We more than likely won’t, as the other houses seem to have several cars and it’s always full, and also because our gate is on the other road. So I also would have thought it’s a case of “none of my business not my concern” however the solicitor says we could end up liable to pay maintenance. 

The policy is the solicitors idea, again I think because the seller has used the road for parking in front of the house therefore CAN apply for a right of way via the LR and the policy seems to be just in case an owner popped up and banned us from using the road? 

We are happy to NOT use the road as we don’t need to. I am just concerned we’ll a) b asked to pay if repairs are done (the road is in very poor condition so I assume no one wants to suck up that cost) and b) that this will be a negative issue when we want to sell further down the line. 

diggingdude

SameOldRoundabout said:

That’s why I’m confused. I think it’s because technically we can park on the road as our house sits on it. We more than likely won’t, as the other houses seem to have several cars and it’s always full, and also because our gate is on the other road. So I also would have thought it’s a case of “none of my business not my concern” however the solicitor says we could end up liable to pay maintenance. 

The policy is the solicitors idea, again I think because the seller has used the road for parking in front of the house therefore CAN apply for a right of way via the LR and the policy seems to be just in case an owner popped up and banned us from using the road? 

We are happy to NOT use the road as we don’t need to. I am just concerned we’ll a) b asked to pay if repairs are done (the road is in very poor condition so I assume no one wants to suck up that cost) and b) that this will be a negative issue when we want to sell further down the line. 

When you are asked just point out nothing compels you to contribute

mrschaucer

Well "technically" anybody can park on the private road unless prevented in some way.  You/your solicitor seem to believe that just because your house has a boundary with a private road you will be asked to contribute to its upkeep, without anything to that end being specified in your deeds.  Why would your solicitor think this?  And why are you/he even going down the path of pursuing rights of way etc which conceivably COULD in the future land you liable to repair costs?  If,  as you say, you are happy to not use the road at all, then just leave well alone and rely on the rights and obligations currently legally specified in your deeds - you seem to have no repairing liabilities for it at present.  How can this be a negative issue further down the line if you are legally not liable?

SameOldRoundabout

We haven’t asked anything about RoW etc. The sellers solicitor has advised her to get an indemnity policy, and ours has had her swear some sort of declaration to put to the LR as an established RoW before even telling us the searches had come back as it being not adopted! I can tell her to stop I suppose, but without your advice we had no idea what is what to be honest! I’ve never had any dealings with private roads or rights of way before. 

bouicca21

This may be a silly question but does your solicitor actually know that you have no need to access the property via the private road?

As an aside the various private roads in my area are all still owned by the original estate owner, but all the deeds from the time the land was parcelled up for development state that the frontagers are liable for repairs.