Dilapidated/dangerous house next door - advice/options if neighbours unwilling to take action?

msov

Hi all,
This is my first post - thanks in advance for your input.

We moved into a terraced house last year. It soon became apparent that the dilapidated house next door was going to be a problem. The key issue for me is there is a hole in their roof which allows water into my roofspace. I had my side of the roof repaired last year, refelted, the coping stones sealed etc. so I'm confident it's not 'my' issue. Water ingress seems to happen when the wind blows from a certain direction, which further confirms the idea that it is getting in from their side. If you look at the attached photo, there's little doubt this could be causing an issue! It is also getting worse, as can been seen from different dated photos of the same issue.

There are various other issues, such as their chimney being about to collapse onto the neighbour-on-the-other-side's house. The house is cracked from top to bottom. Their front porch is also going to collapse imminently, which will bring down sheets of glass. My porch was connected to this, and they agreed I was able to chop it down as it was in a similar state of disrepair, but they didn't take me up on my offer to take theirs down for them.

I am of course aware that a conversation is necessary. Based on my previous conversations about the porch, trees in the garden etc. I am confident their capacity/willing to deal with house issues is limited. They must be aware of the issues and have chosen not to act so far.

So my question is: does anyone have any similar experience from which I can learn? All I can think of is have a conversation and if/when that fails, report it to Council Dangerous Buildings, but I'm guessing the implications of this are serious for everyone, and best avoided. Any advice?

Thanks
Mark

princeofpounds

Yes, council. Usually the building control department will handle dangerous structures. Also, separately there will probably be an empty homes team who may 'support/force' the owner to bring it back to normal use.

davidmcn

msov said:

So my question is: does anyone have any similar experience from which I can learn? All I can think of is have a conversation and if/when that fails, report it to Council Dangerous Buildings, but I'm guessing the implications of this are serious for everyone, and best avoided. Any advice?

I don't see any reason for avoiding it, if the neighbour shows no inclination to do the work themselves. Obviously councils these days don't have huge resources for this sort of thing so they might not be much more responsive.

You also have the option of just enforcing your own legal rights to abate the legal nuisance caused by the neighbouring property.

blue_max_3

Could you maybe offer to buy it?

RelievedSheff

Could you offer to get the work to the roof done for them?

ProDave

Did you not notice the condition of this house before buying yours?

msov

Thanks everyone. In response:
It's not empty, three fairly elderly men live there.  I imagine the conditions inside are not of a great standard!
Buying, getting the work done myself etc. - we're a young family so not in a financial position for this stuff. I also doubt they would want to sell. The seem 'content'.
And yes, we noticed there was a rough looking place next door, but the survey didn't suggest it would be a problem, and to be honest, it's more the fact that I've observed it getting steadily worse that has prompted action on my part. On the one hand I don't want to interfere in these peoples lives, but on the other it is affecting my property (I now know this because I repaired my side) and it must be actually unsafe for them. The roof is going to cave in at some point, so perhaps it's kinder to get some 'support'..?

In terms of enforcing legal rights: if the residents don't have the means to put it right, I'm wondering where this leaves me... Any expereince?

msov

ProDave said:

Did you not notice the condition of this house before buying yours?

And the discovery of the hole in the roof happened after we bought it and were getting work down on our side. Will be flying a drone over any future purchases!

princeofpounds

OK so if there are people there:
- Notify them in writing of the problems and request they fix them. This makes them liable for any further damage their structure causes to yours.
- Of course you can have a softer conversation with them on the whole topic.
- Set a deadline by which you expect to see progress on making the structure safe from the perspective of your property.
- If they don't meet that deadline, contact the council.

Ultimately if they can't do anything about it, then your insurance should cover the worst of any consequences for your property. The insurer can pursue them for costs and, for example, place a charge on their property.

davidmcn

msov said:

It's not empty, three fairly elderly men live there.

Are the residents the owners?
If they can't afford to carry out essential works then the council have the power to carry out the works and put a charge on their property to (eventually) recover the costs. As I said above though, the council might not view it as a priority unless there's an immediate danger.

msov

davidmcn said:

msov said:

It's not empty, three fairly elderly men live there.

Are the residents the owners?
If they can't afford to carry out essential works then the council have the power to carry out the works and put a charge on their property to (eventually) recover the costs. As I said above though, the council might not view it as a priority unless there's an immediate danger.

Yes, I believe so. Thanks.